Speaking openly on his views about the three most recent popes and other matters, Australian Cardinal George Pell says he “never really approved” of Pope Benedict’s resignation from the papacy. And, of the three most recent popes, Pell said he was closest to Benedict. His remarks came during “The Church Up Close” a webinar hosted Read more
Age and illness have not taken the wind out of Pope Francis’ sails. Despite major intestinal surgery last July and his upcoming 85th birthday in December, the Italo-Argentine pope — amazingly! — is showing absolutely no signs that he’s slowing down or planning to close up shop anytime soon. His recent four-day visit to Budapest, Read more
By special arrangement and courtesy of Fr Frank Brennan SJ, professor of law, and Sydney’s Catholic Weekly: The Anatomy of a Travesty. It’s time to declare that George Pell is innocent of the preposterous charges he faced in the County Court of Victoria and to move on for the good of everyone, including bona fide Read more
The legal bill for Cardinal George Pell to defend sex crime charges amounted to A$3m (NZ$3.2m). The charges were eventually thrown out by the High Court. Pell confirmed there was still a “significant” amount of money to be paid, despite having walked free more than a year ago. Cardinal Pell’s legal team initially applied for Read more
An Australian court on Friday ordered a dozen media firms to pay a total of A$1.1 million ($842,000) in fines for breaching a suppression order on reporting the conviction, since overturned, of former Vatican treasurer George Pell for child sexual assault. The 12 media outlets, mostly owned by Nine Entertainment Co and Rupert Murdoch’s News Read more
Cardinal George Pell turned 80 years old on Tuesday, losing his eligibility to vote in a future papal conclave. The Australian was made a cardinal by St. Pope John Paul II in October 2003, while he was archbishop of Sydney. Ten years later, Pope Francis appointed Pell a member of his Council of Cardinals, and Read more
Italian Cardinal, Camillo Ruini acknowledges there is a risk of schism in Germany over same-sex unions, however, he is hoping and praying it will not eventuate. “I hope with all my heart that there will not be any schism, and I pray for this,” Ruini told the Il Foglio newspaper. His comments come in response Read more
The Vatican needs clear rules to govern the status of popes who resign in the future, according to Cardinal George Pell, a leading Roman Catholic conservative. Pell is one of the highest-ranking Church figures to speak publicly on the need for these new rules. The situation became an issue in 2013 when Pope Benedict, 93, Read more
Cardinal George Pell has spoken of his surprise at the apparent extent of ‘criminality’ involved in recent Vatican financial scandals. “I didn’t know that there was so much criminality involved,” Pell said. He was speaking to the AP before the Dec. 15 release of the first volume of his jailhouse memoir, ‘Prison Journal.’ The book Read more
An Australian anti-corruption agency said it was not investigating speculation about the transfer of Vatican funds to Australia in the Cardinal Pell case. The anti-corruption agency statement contradicts Italian media speculation that the money might be linked to the overturned convictions of Cardinal George Pell for child sex abuse. Last month, several Italian newspapers reported Read more