Mother Aubert heritage buildings at Jerusalem in Whanganui to reopen after $200k restoration

St Joseph’s Church and the Old Convent at Jerusalem (Hiruhārama) will reopen to the public in April. Photo / Sisters of Compassion

Two historic buildings on the Whanganui River Rd, and the woman who helped construct them, have been celebrated after a restoration project.

The Old Convent and St Joseph’s Church at Jerusalem (Hiruhārama) will reopen to the public next month after almost $200,000 of restoration work, marked last week by more than 100 people.

The 19th-century buildings were constructed for the only Catholic Order established in New Zealand, the Sisters of Compassion, which was founded in 1892 by Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert or “Mother Aubert”.

Aubert dedicated her life to charity in New Zealand and built deep relationships, which still exist, with Māori communities.

This year is the 100th anniversary of her death.

Kaihautū Māori lead Gabriel Tupou said the site was “a jewel in the crown of Whanganui”.

The Sisters of Compassion and Ngāti Hau hosted a blessing and service at the settlement on March 19.

The day started with a pōhiri on to Patiarero Marae, followed by speeches and a blessing of the convent and church by Bishop John Adams of Palmerston North.

Representatives from the sisters and Ngāti Hau planted a tree in Aubert’s honour.

Sister Margaret-Anne Mills, who represented the Sisters of Compassion, said it was “the place that inspired Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert to build a community of women, Sisters of Compassion, to share in the call to live the Gospel”.

Tupou took part in the service and said people from across the Whanganui community, Hastings, Wellington and the contractors gathered “to pay homage to that enduring relationship, the recognition that Mother Aubert had”.

More than 100 people from across the lower North Island attended the celebrations at Jerusalem (Hiruhārama). Photo / Sisters of Compassion

The day represented their “intergenerational stewardship” of the site, he said.

Aubert arrived in New Zealand from France in 1860 and served the Roman Catholic Church across the North Island.

She arrived in Hiruhārama in 1883 after being invited by Māori to restart a Catholic mission in the area.

Aubert was fluent in te reo Māori and adopted Māori healing practices, even marketing her natural remedies to fund the Sisters of Compassion.

“The primary reason why she came to Aotearoa New Zealand was to serve Māori communities,” Tupou said.

She expanded her mission to Wellington in 1899 and founded the Home for Incurables and Our Lady’s Home of Compassion in Island Bay.

In 1901, Aubert started The Compassion Soup Kitchen, which still operates and recently celebrated 125 years of service.

Her funeral in 1926 was the largest ever held for a woman in New Zealand.

She was declared Venerable by Pope Francis in 2016, the second of four steps to becoming a saint in the Catholic Church.

The Old Convent and St Joseph’s Church are classified as heritage buildings and serve as a museum and retreat space. The renovations strengthened and restored parts of each structure.

Both buildings will be open for public bookings from April 1.

Erin Smith is a multimedia journalist based in Whanganui.