Australia: controversial Cardinal George Pell buried in Sydney

The funeral of Cardinal George Pell was held this Thursday, February 2 in St. Mary's Cathedral in Sydney.

AP - Giovanni Portelli

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

The funeral of Cardinal George Pell, who died on January 10 in Rome at the age of 81, was celebrated today at St. Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, in a hostile climate.

Many LGBT activists, and former victims of sexual abuse by churchmen, protested outside the place of worship.

Advertising

Read more

With our correspondent in Brisbane,

Grégory Plesse

Australia's most capped clergyman was denied a state funeral and the absence of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, as well as that of the Governor-General, was much noted.

However, hundreds of people came to pay their last respects to George Pell, including many figures from the conservative right, such as former Prime Ministers John Howard and Tony Abbott.

The latter, during his eulogy, even went so far as to compare George Pell to Mother Teresa and Saint Augustine.

LGBT protesters

The atmosphere was very different outside, where hundreds of protesters, LGBT rights defenders and former victims of sexual abuse by churchmen, called on George Pell to "

 burn

 " in hell.

The former cardinal had been accused of having covered up pedophile acts,

but also of having imposed them himself

on altar boys, when he was Archbishop of Melbourne.

Found guilty and sentenced to six years in prison in 2019, he was

finally acquitted

the following year, the High Court of Australia considering that the evidence against him was insufficient.

Never disavowed by the Holy See

During his trial, the Vatican had withdrawn his position as treasurer, however, the one who was the third most powerful man in the Church has never been disavowed by the Holy See.

As soon as he was acquitted, George Pell also returned to Rome, where he died on January 10.

►Also read

: New scandal for the Church around the Slovenian Jesuit Marko Rupnik

Newsletter

Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

  • Australia

  • Religion

  • Vatican