This story contains comments that may be upsetting to many people.
Hailed as a saint by some supporters, the late cardinal George Pell will be remembered by others for his many controversial remarks throughout the years.
The ultra-conservative Australian priest who rose to become one of the most powerful men in the Vatican made some eyebrow-raising comments during his long career. The Catholic archbishop of Sydney said in a statement yesterday Pell was a “fearless” gospel proclaimer who “spoke truth as he found it, however difficult or unpopular”. Indeed.
On abortion
Pell told a World Youth Day event in Canada in 2002 that abortion was a “worse moral scandal” than sexual abuse against young people by Catholic clergy. He doubled down on the comments when pressed by Australian reporters: “I don’t back off the statements,” he told The Sydney Morning Herald at the time.
In Pell’s view, abortion was “worse” because it “destroys innocent life”. He added he felt the church was being “attacked” over allegations of sexual abuse “by elements that are a bit anti-Christian”.
On homosexuality
Pell became known early on in his career for his “pugnacious moral declarations”, as Guardian Australia put it, including comments about homosexuality.
While archbishop of Melbourne, he was quoted as saying about Catholic schoolboys being driven to suicide by homophobia: “It is another reason to be discouraging people going in that direction. Homosexual activity is a much greater health hazard than smoking.”
On a paedophile priest
When giving evidence to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in 2016, Pell drew loud gasps from those listening when he said he didn’t have much interest in the crimes of paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale.
Asked if the offending was well known in the local parish, Pell responded: “It’s a sad story and it wasn’t of much interest to me.”
Asked to explain, Pell responded: “The suffering, of course, was real and I very much regret that, but I had no reason to turn my mind to the extent of the evils that Ridsdale had perpetrated.”
On Jewish people
During an appearance at ABC’s Q+A program in 2012, Pell made headlines for his comments about Jewish people and the Holocaust. He claimed the ancient Jewish people were not the intellectual equals of their contemporary Persians or Egyptians.
“For some extraordinary reason God chose the Jews. They weren’t intellectually the equal of either the Egyptians [or Persians],” he said.
Pressed to explain, Pell went on: “Egypt was the great power for thousands of years before Christianity. Persia was a great power … The poor, the little Jewish people, they were originally shepherds. They were stuck, they are still stuck, between these great powers.”
In the same program, on the topic of the Holocaust, Pell claimed “probably no people in history have been punished the way the Germans were”.
When another panel member put to him that the Jewish people in Europe had suffered more, Pell conceded: “Yes, that might be right. Certainly the suffering in both, I mean the Jews, there was no reason why they should suffer.”
He later tried to walk back the comments in a statement to the Australian Jewish News, saying he didn’t mean to cause offence.
On divorce
In 2001, the future cardinal said he would like couples who divorce to face penalties and couples who stay together should get benefits.
“What I’m trying to do is focus attention on the damage, personal and financial, that unfortunately often follows from divorce,” he told the ABC.
“So I’ve canvassed, and they’re just floaters, a list of possible penalties. Penalties for those who divorce, especially if it can be established where there is fault. And benefits, and this is especially my emphasis, benefits for those who stick together and bring up families.”
Survivors of abuse can find support by calling Bravehearts at 1800 272 831 or the Blue Knot Foundation at 1300 657 380. The Kids Helpline is 1800 55 1800. In an emergency, call 000.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault or violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.
Abortion is worse than child abuse ‘because it destroys innocent life’? The implication here is somehow in Pell’s logic, a sexually abused child is not actually ‘innocent’. Doesn’t that explain so much about the way this man saw the problem.
I inferred Pell to be implying that the sexually abused child didn’t have their life destroyed.
Exactly. He didn’t care about sexually abused kids by priests. And when some of those kids’ lives were destroyed by suicide, five will get you 10, he believed they had sinned by ending their ruined lives. Pell was a dog (apologies to canines).
Their life may not have been terminated, but in many cases, their life was destroyed along with their innocence. I don’t believe in Hell, but while I suspend my personal disbelief, I maintain my optimism there will be a special place reserved for George.
He was expressing the church’s fundamental viewpoint on women and children.
The Royal Commission said that George Pell had to be aware of Risdale’s offending, at a minimum.
Pell could call out Risdale or have a career with the church.
Pell chose his owb career aspirations over the protection of children.
Enough said?
Even after all we have learned about Pell, the fact that he could say that the rampant serial child sexual abuse perpetrated by his colleague and former housemate Ridsdale ‘wasn’t of much interest to me’ remains utterly gobsmacking.
George Pell was about 45 days older than me; he was male and Catholic whereas I am female and not a Catholic; we were both born in country towns in Victoria.
His statements suggest to me that we were generations and worlds apart.
My late Grandmother was from rural Victoria and older than you both when she died. I can’t remember her ever missing mass, though she must have.
When she started hearing about the sexual abuse of children by priests, she spoke to her parish priest. He told her it was a media beat up.
I don’t think I ever saw her so upset and disappointed as she was when she recounted that conversation. Although she never lost her faith, she refused to have a priest in her presence until the day before she died.
History will not be kind to Pell. Rightly so.
I expect there are a few people in the Vatican looking for possible miracles by him with a view to sainthood. No kidding.
Surely his not knowing of paedophilia in Ballarat while living with a key perpetrator and being intensely connected in the Ballarat Catholic community, while working on a committee shifting known paedophiles around, must qualify as a miracle.
Sainthood guaranteed
Such smug sanctimony from a seriously flawed character with not a shred of Christian humility or compassion. A worse representative for the value of religious belief would be hard to find. Thank gods he’s gone to his ‘reward’.