By Daniella Miletic
WHILE Rome was still sleeping, Melburnians relished the final moments before Mary MacKillop became St Mary of the Cross.
They went to church services, they prayed in her favourite part of St Patrick's Cathedral - the St Joseph's Chapel - they visited her birthplace and they walked, with tears and with smiles, in her honour.
A cross made of gum leaves and the constant Waltzing Matilda refrain gave a distinctly Australian flavour to yesterday's Mark MacKillop canonisation parade in Melbourne.Credit: Rebecca Hallas
It was a scene of both excitement and emotion as a cheering crowd of thousands braved the cold to gather in Fitzroy, where Mary MacKillop was born, on the eve of her transformation as the nation's first saint.
Tears streaming down their faces, the Sisters of St Joseph, clad in blue scarves to mark the occasion, led thousands from their founder's birthplace in Brunswick Street through to the Royal Exhibition Building, where some stayed on to wait for a live feed of the canonisation ceremony from Rome.
Just as St Francis of Assisi is ''of Assisi'', to those gathered yesterday, St Mary of the Cross will always be connected to Melbourne. ''On this historic day we want to lay some claim to her, even though we know she belongs to all Australians,'' Bishop Peter Elliott said in a celebration mass at St Patrick's in her honour.
''She was a Melbourne girl,'' said Sister Joan Healy. ''It's God's work in an Australian person, born a block away … it's marvellous.''
For Bill Baini of Ivanhoe, it was a day to say thanks to the woman to whom he prayed to help heal the damage polycystic kidney disease has caused, and for his family to give tribute to the saint they all believe played a role in his recovery.
''I have been praying to Mary MacKillop for a while now, and I have faith in her goodness and her ability to perform miracles and make things happen,'' he said.
''And I believe from those prayers, which progressed from a point where I was on dialysis and struggling to support the family … I've got a transplant kidney going well.
''I owe that not just to my wife, who donated the kidney … but I don't think it would have happened without divine intervention. I believe the prayers, and Mary, made the difference.''
Clutching a statue of Mary MacKillop, Ms Baini said: ''She played a big part. His own twin brother and relatives tested, and they weren't even a match. And I'm not even related to him and it turned out to be,'' she said. ''It's a miracle.''
At first glance, the procession that trawled through Gertrude Street resembled a religious festival in an Italian city, with hundreds of people walking, singing, carrying crosses and pictures of their new saint. A closer look and listen revealed the main cross in the procession was made of gum leaves and the band was repeatedly playing Waltzing Matilda.
There were also a few pleasant larrikins. ''Canonise Ned Kelly … Australia's Robin Hood,'' one man repeatedly quipped to the passing crowd.
''It's a very deep day for me,'' said Latu Ngauamo, of the Tongan community Sacred Heart in Croydon. Mary MacKillop (whose Scots parents emigrated to Australia) was from a migrant family, he said. ''I am a migrant too. I feel part of it, she's like me, one of us.''
For Mary Baldwin, 74, the mass and procession were a chance to say thanks to the Sisters of St Joseph, who she credits with convincing her mother to allow her to stay in school. Ms Baldwin recalls that growing up, there would always be a print of the young Mary MacKillop in each classroom: ''I remember thinking, 'I must be good because she is watching me'.''
Organisers estimate that about 3000 Catholic faithful crowded into St Patrick's, double the official capacity of 1500. They included families, students and politicians including Victorian Attorney-General Rob Hulls and Victorian Nationals leader Peter Ryan.
Between 5000 and 7000 are believed to have taken part in the procession and while 3000 tickets were distributed for people to watch the canonisation on screens inside the Royal Exhibition Building, hundreds more also watched from outside.