Joy to serve in country parishes
People
Born and raised in the city, Fr Peter Milburn spent many years as a parish priest in the country – times that he remembered fondly in the lead up to his 60th anniversary celebrations next month.
As a child, Fr Peter Milburn lived in several suburbs of Adelaide – Mitcham, Kingswood, St Peters and Marion to name a few – due to his father’s postings as a police officer, but as a priest he was drawn to serve beyond the city limits.
The 86-year-old priest’s lifelong love of animals and nature is evident – with the sounds of his budgerigars filling the air and his little dog Mugie scurrying around inside his home in Modbury – and this added to his desire to be immersed in country life. And, of course, a childhood spent with regular visits to cousins in the Mid North and West Coast also helped.
“I loved the country – I think it was always in me,” he told The Southern Cross as he reflected on ministering for more than 25 years in regional areas of South Australia, including at Mount Gambier, Kingston SE, Naracoorte, Willunga, Nuriootpa and Kangaroo Island.
Fr Peter said preparing for the 60th anniversary of his ordination on July 6 had evoked many special memories of his ministry, and indeed why he was called to the priesthood as a teenager.
Influenced by the Josephites and Marists at school, he said there was never “one moment” in his life that propelled him towards becoming a priest, however it was always “there in his mind”.
“I sat for an exam to go to the railways at the end of 1955 and got offered a job there as an electrician,” he explained.
“In the interview I said I was either going to be an electrician or a priest, so they said it might be best to go home and talk to a priest about it, which I did.”
After 10 years studying at the seminary at Rostrevor, Fr Peter was ordained by Archbishop Beovich in 1965. (One of his fellow seminarians, Fr Geoff Aldous, who came from Perth to finish his theology studies in Adelaide, has remained a good friend and is planning to attend Fr Peter’s anniversary celebrations.)
Fr Peter said when he was ordained it was “exciting and changing” times for the Church. Vatican II was making its mark and there were big reforms such as the Mass being changed from Latin to the vernacular.
His first appointment was to the Goodwood parish and in 1968 he eagerly accepted his first country posting to Mount Gambier. He returned to the city in 1971 for a one-year stint in the Parkside parish before heading back to the South East, serving as the parish priest of Kingston (1972-74), Naracoorte (1975-85) and then Willunga (1986-92).
Back in Adelaide, he was the parish priest at Walkerville from 1992 until 2000, during which time he also worked part time in the “challenging” role of chaplain at the Remand Centre.
With the country still dear to his heart, Fr Peter was pleased to move to the Barossa Valley in 2000, enjoying four years as the parish priest at Nuriootpa, including 18 months at Kapunda.
Finally, it was time to return to the city and in 2005 he took over as parish priest at Modbury/Para Hills. Retiring in 2014, he spent several years as a supply priest in different locations, including Kangaroo Island.
“I liked all the parishes I was in, I enjoyed every place,” he said. “And I think the reason was that there are always people who are very good to you.”
While his ministry has taken him to a variety of locations over the years, a welcome constant was always his fraternity with fellow priests – the late Mgr Denis Edwards and Fr Kevin O’Loughlin, and Fr Anthony Kain and Fr Tom Gleeson. Their monthly get togethers were something Fr Peter treasured and said helped sustain them all in their vocation.
“We basically got together and shared our lives, said a prayer or two, and then had a meal,” he said.
“We’d all host, once a month, and this went on for years. That was always a back-up support, I guess.”
Unfortunately, bouts of poor health have impacted Fr Peter and his mobility in recent times, but he remains upbeat and grateful for the many people who he has been honoured to walk alongside in his service as a priest.
“I think it’s quite obvious that on occasions you have helped people,” he said.
“When I would go out on a visit, I would usually come away happy that I had made the effort. When you meet someone in their own home it is different, and you meet them under so many different circumstances. It’s a privilege to be in their life.”
Archbishop O’Regan will celebrate Mass for Fr Peter’s 60th anniversary at noon on Sunday July 6 at St John XXIII, Modbury Parish Centre.
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