To
celebrate Australia’s first canonized saint, Mother Mary MacKillop,
thousands of bottles of Australian wine will be shipped to the
Australian Embassy in Rome from Coonawarra, a region in South
Australia that is best known for its vineyards and wine production.
Mother
MacKillop’s canonization will be formally declared on October 17,
2010, in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. Almost all the wine producers of the
Coonawarra region jumped at the opportunity to have their vineyards
represented in the celebrations. Moreover, thousands of Australians are expected
to attend the event honouring MacKillop at the Vatican.
Mother
Mary MacKillop (1842-1909) founded the Congregation of the Sisters of
St. Joseph in the 19th century. She had two miracles attributed
to her intercession by the Catholic Church and was beatified in 1995
by Pope John Paul II.
