An outpouring of love for Cardinal Pell as mourners urged to ‘Be Not Afraid’

By Catherine Sheehan

After a lifetime of extraordinary achievements and service to the Church, George Cardinal Pell was farewelled during a Pontifical Requiem Mass attended by thousands at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney on 2 February.

The historic event took place three weeks after the Cardinal’s sudden passing from a cardiac arrest on 10 January in Rome where he had been recovering in hospital following routine hip replacement surgery.

In an outpouring of love for the late Cardinal, the Cathedral was over-flowing with those wanting to pay their last respects to the man dubbed a “lion of the Church” and one of Australia’s “greatest sons”.

The Mass was concelebrated by 30 bishops and 220 priests and was attended by members of Cardinal Pell’s family, friends, numerous seminarians, religious sisters, and dignitaries.

The Cathedral was full to capacity with a further 2000 mourners filling St Mary’s forecourt, with many of the faithful quietly praying the rosary in the sweltering midday sun.

In stark contrast, a small group of protestors organised by the Community Action for Rainbow Rights, waved flags and placards, and chanted “George Pell, go to hell”, expressing opposition to the Church’s teachings on marriage and sexuality, as well as the handling of sex abuse cases.

As the Mass began Apostolic Nuncio to Australia, Archbishop Charles Balvo, read a message from Pope Francis in which the Holy Father expressed his sorrow at the passing of Cardinal Pell.

“I offer my sincere condolences, remembering with heartfelt gratitude his consistent and committed witness, his dedication to the gospel and to the Church,” the pope wrote.

“I raise prayers for the repose of this faithful servant,” he added, “who unwaveringly followed his Lord with perseverance even in the hour of trial, that he may be received into the joy of heaven and receive the reward of eternal peace.”

The heart of a pastor

In his homily, Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP described the late Cardinal as a “lion of the Church”, and a “giant of a man with a big vision” who had remained at heart an Aussie and a pastor of souls, even after his elevation to the cardinalate and the world stage.

“While he rose to international prominence and roles, the Cardinal remained very much an Australian to the end,” Archbishop Fisher said.

“Faithful to the Divine Office and mental prayer, he offered the holy sacrifice [of the Mass] more than 20,000 times.”

“For 56 years as a priest and 35 as a bishop, the Cardinal’s primary concerns were pastoral.”

Cardinal Pell had, “loved his Lord and served his Church, shamelessly, vehemently, courageously, to the end,” Archbishop Fisher said.

“He had a big heart too. Strong enough to fight for the faith and endure persecution but soft enough to care for priests, youth, the homeless, prisoners and imperfect Christians. Ultimately, that heart gave out but only after more than 80 years being gradually conformed to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”

Be Not Afraid

In a moving eulogy, David Pell described his late brother as “a good and holy man, and a proud Australian”.

“He was falsely accused, tried, convicted and spent 404 days in solitary confinement,” Mr Pell said.

“We felt so sorry for George because we could not help him. We knew that it was not true.

“We had to be stoic against the relentless campaign to smear George’s life, especially with the youngest members of our family.”

Mr Pell revealed that as a young priest, his brother had been following his bishop’s orders when he accompanied a priest accused of child sexual abuse to court.

“I need to remind you that all ordained priests take a vow of obedience to their bishop. That is what George was doing, when he accompanied that perpetrator to court.

“He was not his friend. He was appalled at what he heard in court and did not go back the next day.”

Mr Pell also alluded to a possible connection between the false charges made against his brother and his role as Prefect for the Secretariat of the Economy, which involved cleaning up the Vatican bank.

“By the time George and his team found 1.2 billion Euro that was not properly accounted for, his fate was sealed,” Mr Pell said.

He urged those present to adopt his brother’s episcopal motto ‘Be Not Afraid’ in seeking to live out their faith.

“Be not afraid was George’s motto. These words are mentioned in the Bible 365 times. They are powerful words, and need to be remembered by us as we continue the daily struggle.

“George, we commend you to the Lord. After catching up with Mum, Dad, Molly and Margaret, you will be seated with St John Paul the Great, Pope Benedict, and our dear Lord.

“You have fought the good fight. Help us to accept the baton. Rest in peace.”

One of our country’s greatest sons

In a eulogy punctuated several times by applause from the congregation, former Prime Minister Tony Abbott paid tribute to his late friend and mentor who he described as “one of our country’s greatest sons” and “the greatest man I’ve ever known”.

“He was made a scapegoat for the Church itself,” Mr Abbott said.

“He should never have been investigated in the absence of a complaint. He should never have been charged in the absence of corroborating evidence. And he should never have been convicted in the absence of a plausible case – as the High Court so resoundingly made plain.”

“And far from being an apologist or a dissembler about the sins of the Church – personal, financial, or intellectual – he was their hammer.

“Here in Australia, he was the first Archbishop to sack misbehaving clergy and report them to the police rather than hide them in another parish.

“In Rome, he tried to ensure that the collections, from the faithful were used for the glory of God, rather than the indulgence of the higher clergy.”

Referring to the protestors in Hyde Park, Mr Abbott said, “as I heard the chant ‘Cardinal Pell should go to hell’ I thought ‘aha!’, at least they now believe in the afterlife! Perhaps this is ‘Saint George Pell’s first miracle”. Applause rippled through the Cathedral in response.

Mr Abbott said the Cardinal’s persecution and imprisonment was a “modern-day crucifixion” which he had accepted humbly without succumbing to anger or despair.

“That’s the heroic virtue that makes him, to my mind, a saint for our times.”

Following the Mass Cardinal Pell’s remains were laid to rest in the crypt of St Mary’s Cathedral during a private ceremony attended by bishops, priests, family and close friends.