Vale Bishop Peter Elliott

With deep sadness, yet in the hope of the resurrection, the Archdiocese of Melbourne announces that Bishop Emeritus Peter John Elliott has returned to the Father’s house. Bishop Elliott died peacefully on Wednesday 6 August 2025, in Box Hill Hospital at the age of 81.

Born in Melbourne on 1 October 1943, Peter John Elliott was the elder son of Rev Leslie Llewellyn Elliott and Irene Ann (June) Rooke. After early education in government schools, he attended Melbourne Grammar School (1956–1961) and went on to earn a Master of Arts in History from the University of Melbourne and a Master of Arts in Theology from the University of Oxford, where he was received into the Catholic Church.

Returning home in 1969, he entered Corpus Christi College, Glen Waverley, to prepare for priestly ministry. He was ordained to the priesthood on 19 February 1973 by Lawrence Cardinal Shehan, Archbishop of Baltimore and Papal Legate, during the 40th International Eucharistic Congress held in Melbourne.

Bishop Elliott’s early pastoral ministry saw him serve in the parishes of Springvale, Lilydale and Mentone, where he was also secretary to Bishop John A Kelly (1979–1984), and later in East Hampton. A gifted scholar and teacher, he undertook doctoral studies at the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome, specialising in the theology of marriage, and in 1987 was appointed an official of the Pontifical Council for the Family. Over the next decade, he travelled extensively, representing the Holy See at international gatherings, including United Nations conferences in Cairo, Copenhagen and Beijing.

Returning to Melbourne in 1997, he served as Episcopal Vicar for Religious Education, edited the Archdiocese’s religious education series To Know, Worship and Love, and authored numerous books and articles on theology, liturgy, marriage and catechesis. Bishop Elliott also served as parish priest of East Malvern and director of the Melbourne campus of the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and the Family. He was appointed as an auditor at the World Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist in 2005.

Bishop Peter was a pastor, teacher and friend whose love for Christ and his Church shaped every aspect of his ministry.

On 30 April 2007, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as Titular Bishop of Manaccenser and Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne, responsible for the Southern Region of the Archdiocese. He was consecrated bishop on 15 June 2007. In the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, he served on the Bishops’ Commission for Liturgy and was the delegate of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for the establishment of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross for former Anglicans. He also served as a consultor to the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

Bishop Elliott retired from active ministry in 2018, but continued to write, teach and support the Church he loved so deeply. He recently entered Justin Villa Aged Residential Care in Balwyn.

The Archbishop of Melbourne, Most Rev Peter A Comensoli, today paid tribute to Bishop Eliott’s decades of faithful service:

‘Bishop Peter was a pastor, teacher and friend whose love for Christ and his Church shaped every aspect of his ministry. He brought to the Archdiocese a rare combination of intellectual depth, liturgical beauty and pastoral warmth. His life was marked by a profound sense of the sacred and a tireless commitment to the Gospel.’

Archbishop Comensoli continued: ‘In the words of the Apostle, he fought the good fight, he finished the race, he kept the faith. Now we commend him to the mercy of God, confident in the Lord’s promise: Well done, good and faithful servant … enter into the joy of your Master (Matthew 25:23).’

Bishop Elliott will be remembered for his scholarly clarity, his deep love for the sacred liturgy, his passion for sound catechesis and his pastoral care for families. Many will recall his gentle wit, his wise counsel and his ability to make the truths of the faith both beautiful and accessible.

Funeral arrangements will be announced in the coming days. We invite all the faithful to pray for the repose of his soul, and for comfort for his family, friends, brother priests and all who mourn his passing.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon him.
May he rest in peace. Amen.