We Welcome Fr Peter Miller to the Diocese of Cairns.
Fr Peter hails from the small community of Ungarie where his grandparents took up land in 1914. He retired in June after twenty-two years as parish priest of Jindabyne. Some time ago, Fr Peter decided to give up snowshoes for sandals and he has recently moved into a retirement unit a stone’s throw from Trinity Beach.
When asked about his resolution to become a priest Fr Peter explained that the thoughts of the priesthood were with him all through his school days. “On the farm I had time to reflect while on the tractor, moving sheep or fixing fences or whatever. When I concluded that I was too old to keep playing footy, my favourite passion at the time, I gave it some serious consideration. After all, what else was I going to do?”
“I was ordained a priest at St Mary’s Church, West Wyalong, on May 8, 1987. The church where my parents were married on April 4, 1940. My first Mass was celebrated the next day at St Joseph’s, Ungarie.”
Fr Peter was ultimately appointed as the Parish Priest of Jindabyne in 1998. At the same time, he took on the role of prison chaplain at the Cooma Correctional Centre and has been a regular weekly visitor ever since. “The prisoners like to be able to talk with someone from outside, “Fr Peter explained. “Someone who is not an officer I didn’t always say Mass then again on occasion I did say Mass a couple of times per visit”. This is a ministry that I look forward to continuing here in the Diocese of Cairns.
Fr Peter concluded by saying “I thank Bishop James Foley and Archbishop Chris Prowse from the Archdiocese of Canberra & Goulburn for giving me the opportunity to move here to Cairns and I look forward to meeting everyone soon”.
Read more about Fr Peter in the December edition of the Cairns Diocesan News.
