An important religious item with links to St Mary MacKillop at Penola is currently touring around South Australia.

The Catholic order Knights of the Southern Cross made two crosses from the discarded floorboards of the original school of St Mary MacKillop at Penola.

The schoolhouse was erected in the 1860s and stands to this day.

They were crafted in memory of the first Australian saint and her commitment to the Catholic education of children and the service of the poor and needy.

One of the crosses was presented to Pope John Paul II during the open-air mass at the Randwick racecourse in Sydney in 1986.

The second cross was presented to the-then Archbishop of Sydney.

It is being offered for prayer and veneration in a number of parish churches in the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide.

The tour of the “MacKillop Cross” has the approval of the Archbishop and the Sisters of St Joseph in thanksgiving of her life and ministry.

It is said that St Mary continues to be an inspiration to many people in every aspect of their lives.

The pilgrimage began at St Francis Xavier Catholic Cathedral in Adelaide in mid-April.