Father Bob Maguire to be offered state funeral by Victorian premier Daniel Andrews

The family of Father Bob Maguire is set to be offered a state funeral to honour the charity campaigner and religious maverick.

Fr Bob died at Cabrini Hospital in southeast Melbourne on Wednesday, aged 88.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews will speak with Fr Bob’s family on Thursday morning to discuss ways to mark his contribution to the state, including the option of a state funeral.

‘I’ll have some more to say about a state funeral and the way in which we can celebrate his rich life, a very generous life, a life of compassion and faith and so much more,’ Mr Andrews told reporters.

‘It’s a sad day today. He was just a marvellous, marvellous person.’

He said the Victorian government would be led by the family’s wishes.

Mr Andrews remembered Fr Bob as a man of faith, integrity and good humour, whose approach sometimes found him at odds with the Catholic Church.

‘I very much enjoyed his company and I think, as so many Victorians do, that we are poorer for his passing,’ he said.

Fr Bob dedicated his life to charitable works and earnt a reputation as a candid commentator unafraid to speak his mind or call out church leaders.

The Catholic priest became known for his work with disadvantaged people in his South Melbourne parish, before regularly appearing in national media.

Fr Bob balanced his media commitments and parish duties until he was forced to retire from the Catholic Church in 2012, and accused Cardinal George Pell of punishing him for being ‘open to all’.

Father Bob Maguire Foundation board member Frank O’Connor said Fr Bob had communicated his dying wishes to his family over the past year, but wasn’t aware if they would accept any offer of a state funeral.

‘Bob wasn’t always one that felt authorities like governments or what have you did the best thing by the people he was worried about,’ Mr O’Connor said.

‘But he’d probably be quite honoured for that sort of thing.’

Two days before his death, the priest publicly hit out at the charity in his own name, the Father Bob Maguire Foundation, after the board announced last week he had voluntarily stepped down as chairman.

But Fr Bob claimed he was blindsided by his termination, describing the situation as a ‘bloody mess’.

‘It’s nasty … I’ve known these blokes for years but they have turned treacherous,’ he told the Herald Sun on Monday in what would be his final interview.

‘I’m not used to this, we always ran the show as a fighting unit, I’m the commander in chief. We’re hurt but we aren’t out.’

The foundation’s board refuted that Father Bob had been sacked in a lengthy statement on Tuesday.

They insisted that he was not sacked from the board – but was simply no longer eligible to be on it.

Fr Bob dedicated his life to charitable works and earnt a reputation as a candid commentator unafraid to speak his mind or call out church leaders (left to right  Michelle Ananda-Rajah, Father Bob Maguire,  Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Father and Labor MP Josh Burns)

‘There have been many grossly ill-informed and patently wrong assertions made, often by people who have never met him or worked with him saying that it’s all a conspiracy by the Board to get rid of Fr Bob,’ the board said on the foundation’s website.

Hours after the drama, Fr Bob’s family confirmed he died at Cabrini Hospital, in suburban Malvern, on Wednesday morning.

‘Father Bob was a dear and much-loved member of our family and will be sorely missed for his energy and good humour,’ the statement read.

‘His physical and mental health had been deteriorating for some time, but his preference was always to help others rather than consider his own situation,’ his family said.

‘Father Bob was not just a much-loved family member, but was loved by all Australians for what he stood for. He has fought bravely for the underprivileged and homeless all his life. He represented the highest of principles, and he fought to actively live those principles.’

‘Despite his high profile in the media, he was always on the job, especially for the disadvantaged families and individuals for whom he had great love and compassion.

‘He wanted nobody to be left behind and always saw and believed in the good in people, but he knew that there were many whom he referred to as the unloved and unlovely. These were his real passion.

‘The last few months have been very difficult for both the family and for those around Fr Bob as we managed his declining health. We thank all the medical staff who have attended him in recent months and express our gratitude to them for their work and devotion.’