Rudd pushes for MacKillop's canonisation

Mother Mary MacKillop has a place in all Australian hearts, Prime Minister Kevin
Rudd said shortly before visiting the Pope at the Vatican on Thursday.
Mr Rudd is expected to discuss the possible canonisation of the Roman Catholic nun,
who founded the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart in the late 1860s in
Australia and New Zealand, as well as setting up education for the poor.
"I think the inspirational nature of Mary MacKillop was that she was a very strong
woman who did exceptional work for the poor at a very difficult time of economic
duress in Australia.
"And that's why I think she has a place in the heart of all Australian Catholics and
non-Catholics.
"She is an extraordinary individual."
Mr Rudd said he recently spoke with the Sisters of Joseph and had talked about
Mother MacKillop's life work and her role.
"In those discussions I indicated if it was anyway helpful I would mention their
excitement ... about the process underway.
"Of course the intrinsics to a canonisation process lie within the processes of the
Catholic Church, that's where they properly lie," he told reporters in Rome.
The previous pope, John Paul II, beatified Mary MacKillop during a visit to
Australia in January 1995, sparking hopes among many Catholics that she would one
day become a saint.
When Pope Benedict visited Sydney for World Youth Day in 2008, he made a special
visit to her tomb to pray for her.
Mr Rudd's meeting with Pope Benedict comes just weeks before the 100th anniversary
of Mary MacKillop's death on August 8.
He is also expected to discuss the global recession and religious freedom with the
Pope, who on Tuesday strongly criticised the world's financial system saying it was
shortsighted and lacked ethics.
After visiting the Vatican, Mr Rudd will join the leaders of 16 other countries for
the start of the Major Economies Forum (MEF), which is being held on the fringes of
the G8 summit at the earthquake ravaged town of L'Aquila.