Who is Father Bob Maguire and why should you care?

By AdNews | 18 July 2017
 

Father Bob is an institution around Port Melbourne and you can catch him speaking alongside industry provocateur Adam Ferrier at the Melbourne Media + Marketing Summit.

But for the uninitiated, here’s a few things you need to know about the former Catholic priest.

Tickets are on sale now.

  • He sees all religions or no religion as equals and his sermans are a beautiful lesson in enlightened existential bewilderment. He throws out clues to the points he's trying to make - but makes his audience work for the understanding. 
  • Father Bob raps. His cover of Kanye West’s Jesus Walks is something to behold. 
  • At 82 years old he still mans soup kitchens in Port Melbourne most nights.
  • In 2003 he launched the Father Bob Foundation for the homeless.
  • He hosted a weekly show on Triple J with John Safran for 10 years, where the odd-couple discussed politics, ethics and religion - with a healthy dose of humour.
  • He’s the star of a documentary about his life and works ‘In Bob We Trust’.
  • In 2014 he influenced the Foundation’s first crowdfunding campaign in an effort to raise $1 million. He asked people to tweet and suggest songs he would record for an album ‘Father Bob Sings for a Million’ ‘#songs4bob. https://youtu.be/gy8yiLBPW1M
  • His birthday is 4 September and the Victorian Premier will attend his birthday party, and Mike Brady of ‘Up there Cazaly’ will provide the entertainment. Tickets for Father Bob’s Birthday Gala are still available. 
  • He was named Victorian of the Year in 2011 and made Member of the Order of Australia in 1989.
  • He's a Collingwood supporter. 
  • His philosophy is 'leave no one behind'.
  • He's a radical and loves to burst the bubble of pomp and ceremony. At the beginning of his sermons he would put his robes on over his civilian clothes in front of the congregation. 

Tickets to the Melbourne Media & Marketing Summit are on sale now.

Thanks to Adam Ferrier, founder of Thinkerbell, for these nuggets of insight into Father Bob.

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