Cardinal Pell

2023 - 2 - 1

Post cover — Image courtesy of "ABC News"

Hundreds farewell Cardinal George Pell at Sydney funeral as police ... (ABC News)

Hundreds of mourners packed into Sydney's St Mary's Cathedral for the funeral of Cardinal George Pell, while LGBT groups, as well as survivors of child ...

"I'm here in support of him and very happy and very proud to be here," she said. "I think it's a great privilege for us to give our appreciation of the extraordinary work the cardinal did," another man said. "We pray that this giant of the Catholic Church in Australia, that the angels receive his soul and present him to God the most high." "We're here acknowledging George Pell as a hero of the Catholic Church," one man said. Archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher, led the Pontifical Requiem mass and paid tribute to the late cardinal whom he called "our beloved former Archbishop". "Some of us were blessed to call him our friend, all of us (called him) our father in faith, and so we mourn his passing," Archbishop Fisher said.

George Pell's personal secretary condemns protests as 'tsunami of ... (The Guardian)

Joseph Hamilton reassures Catholics the protests are a mere 'ripple' as survivors of clergy abuse tie ribbons to fence around St Mary's Cathedral.

Speaking to the Guardian last week, ACCCR project officer Kevin Triston said the timing of the two events was unintentional, but provided an “interesting contrast … The exhaustive, five-year royal commission found he both knew about child abuse, particularly within the Victorian diocese of Ballarat, and failed to take proper steps to act on complaints about dangerous priests. Simon Hunt, a satirist who has been helping organise the ribbon-tying, said the event was traumatic for survivors. “This really does not make a difference to that.” a lion of the church, a magnet for vocations, a confessor bishop and a true cardinal priest. confessor of our church.’” “Because for the vast majority of the worldwide Catholic family, our cardinal was ... Ribbons tied to the fence on Wednesday were again removed overnight by a group of unknown men and women, who verbally clashed with police and yelled obscenities at survivors, protest organisers told the Guardian. “For 22 days now we have been inundated by plaudits, protests and pundits surrounding the passing of our cardinal,” he said, speaking near Pell’s coffin. [found by the child abuse royal commission](https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jan/12/george-pell-what-the-five-year-royal-commission-into-child-sexual-abuse-found#:~:text=The%20royal%20commission%20rejected%20Pell%27s%20position.&text=The%20commission%20found%3A%20%E2%80%9CWe%20are,deceived%2C%20intentionally%20or%20otherwise.%E2%80%9D) to have failed to act when he learned of child abuse complaints. And now at the hour of vespers, we gather to do for him what Christians have done from the first centuries, to chant the songs, to listen to the scriptures, to hear the testimony of the church fathers and to pray for the repose of his soul.” George Pell’s personal secretary likened the “protests” about the cardinal in the wake of his death to a “tsunami of hate”, but dismissed the local criticism as “less than a ripple when viewed from the perspective of the global church”.

Protesters clash with Catholic faithful outside Cardinal George Pell's ... (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Protesters clashed with Catholic faithful before the funeral of Cardinal George Pell at St Mary's Cathedral, where thousands gathered to farewell the ...

Pell’s successor as Archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher, was the principal celebrant at the Pontifical Requiem Mass, also known as a mass for the dead. Former prime ministers Tony Abbott and John Howard and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton joined mourners at the cathedral. Relying on two small screens that occasionally dropped out, the faithful and the curious stood quietly as they listened to eulogies. The former Catholic archbishop of Melbourne and Sydney was being farewelled with a Requiem Mass that started at 11am. [Sign up here](https://www.theage.com.au/link/follow-20170101-p57ogt). He was 81.

Abbott makes protest joke during eulogy (NEWS.com.au)

Former minister Tony Abbott used his eulogy at Cardinal George Pell's funeral to take a brutal swipe at protesters who gathered outside.

In the days leading up to the service, protesters tied colourful ribbons to the gates of the cathedral in a show of support for abuse victims and survivors. NSW Police tried to stop the protest in the Supreme Court over “safety concerns”. “He should not have been charged in the absence of corroborating evidence and should never have been convicted in the absence of a plausible case, as the High Court so resoundingly made plain,” Mr Abbott said. The wild scenes came after protesters were given the green light to gather outside and hold a “loud, visible and angry” protest during the funeral after negotiations with police. Tension built as protesters climbed onto the boundary wall of Hyde Park holding a sign that read in large letters “Pell go to hell”. He also made a nod to the protesters’ shocking sign, “Pell burn in hell”.

Mourners arrive for George Pell's Sydney funeral as protesters rally ... (SBS)

Mourners have started arriving at Sydney's St Mary's Cathedral for Cardinal George Pell's funeral mass, as police stand by and protesters prepare to rally ...

The casket of Cardinal George Pell was carried into St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney on Wednesday morning. More information is available at and . Pell's body will lie in state before being buried at a private ceremony. "But then there's a different kind of anguish and sorrow potentially on the other side of the road, and so it's a difficult line to walk." Thousands of colourful ribbons attached to the cathedral's gates in memory of those who suffered sexual abuse by clergy were removed overnight. - Thousands of colourful ribbons attached to the cathedral's gates in memory of those who suffered sexual abuse by clergy were removed overnight.

Cardinal George Pell's funeral sees mourners and protesters clash (BBC News)

Australia's highest-ranking Catholic was accused of failing to tackle child sex abuse in the Church.

Cardinal Pell disputed the findings, saying they were "not supported by evidence". But outside the cathedral square, child abuse survivors remembered him as someone who had failed to protect them. "Pell stood for blatant homophobia, misogyny... A landmark inquiry into child sex abuse in institutional settings found Cardinal Pell also personally knew of child sexual abuse by priests in Australia as early as the 1970s and had failed to act. Nathan, 33, said he wants the cardinal to be remembered "for the things he did and not for the things that he was accused of". And in a message read to the congregation, Pope Francis paid tribute to Cardinal Pell's "consistent and committed witness, his dedication to the gospel and to the Church".