For years, the Australian Cardinal George Pell made headlines – as a skilful head of finance in the Vatican, but later mainly because of allegations of abuse. A state funeral is therefore avoided.
After the death of Australian Cardinal George Pell, there will be no state funeral for the controversial churchman in his home country. That possibility is “clearly” ruled out, Victoria State Prime Minister Daniel Andrews said yesterday. Andrews said he couldn’t imagine “anything more painful” for people who have been victims of sexual abuse than such a state funeral. At the same time, he expressed his condolences to Pell’s family, colleagues and friends.
Burial in Sydney
The cleric, who died in Rome on Tuesday at the age of 81, was for years number three in the Vatican under Francis and the highest-ranking cleric in the history of the Catholic Church to be convicted of child molestation. However, in 2020, Pell was acquitted on appeal after serving around 13 months and released from prison.
The cardinal was a former Archbishop of Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, and of Sydney, the capital of neighboring New South Wales. A state funeral is ruled out in both states, the Australian news agency AAP reported. The body is to be flown from Rome to Australia in the next few days. A funeral mass is reportedly planned at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney. Pell will then be buried in the crypt of the church.
release for lack of evidence
The case for which Pell was being tried in his home country dates back to 1996-97, when he had just become Archbishop of Melbourne. After a service he is said to have passed on two choirboys who were 13 years old at the time. Pell had denied the allegations. Australia’s highest court granted the appeal in April 2020 for lack of evidence. After 13 months, Pell was surprisingly released – and returned to the Vatican a few months after his release in the middle of the corona pandemic.
Source: Stern
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