Cardinal George Pell passes away following hip surgery complications
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Australia’s most senior Catholic figure, Cardinal George Pell, has died in Rome, Italy due to complications following a recent hip replacement surgery.
According to The Australian, Cardinal Pell had been chatting with the anaesthetist in hospital when he suddenly went into cardiac arrest.
EWTN News Vatican correspondent Colm Flynn was one of the first people to publicly confirm the Cardinal’s death.
‘I’ve just spoken to his household, and can confirm the sad news of the passing of Cardinal George Pell at the age of 81. May he rest in peace,’ Flynn tweeted.
Colleagues in the Catholic Church were saddened by his passing and expressed their condolences to his family.
‘Cardinal Pell was a very significant and influential Church leader, both in Australia and internationally, deeply committed to Christian discipleship,’ said Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli.
‘At this immediate moment, let our prayers go out to the God of Jesus Christ, whom Cardinal Pell wholeheartedly believed in and followed, that he may be welcomed into eternal life.’
‘May eternal light shine upon him, and may he now rest in peace and rise to glory in the Lord.’
Cardinal Pell, the highest ranking official of the Catholic Church from Australia, is characterised as a staunch advocate of traditional Catholic values. He is known to be unapologetically against same-sex marriage, homosexuality, the climate crisis, and abortion and contraception.
Cardinal Pell was born on June 8, 1941 to father George Arthur Pell, mother Margaret Lillian, and four siblings (all but one, David, have since passed).
He was ordained at the Vatican in 1966 after choosing his faith over what was a blossoming career in Aussie Rules football (AFL).
He served as the seventh head of Melbourne’s local Catholic community as archbishop from 1996-2001, and then as Archbishop of Sydney from 2001-2014.
In 2014, Cardinal Pell was appointed by Pope Francis as the leader of the then-new Secretariat for the Economy which was tasked to manage and oversee all of the Vatican’s financial activities.
Four years later in December of 2018 he was convicted of child sex abuse claims alleged to have abused two 13-year-old boys during his term as Archbishop of Melbourne.
After spending over a year in prison over the charges, he was freed in April 2020 after the High Court of Australia overturned his conviction.
The High Court ruled that all the evidence presented in the allegations raised against Cardinal Pell was not considered properly, according to reports.
For his part, Cardinal Pell has maintained his innocence on the matter.
Cardinal Pell is said to be the highest ranking official of the Catholic Church convicted and jailed for child sex abuse claims in the world.
Cardinal Pell returned to Rome the same year, where he remained until his death.
Source: YouTube/9 News Australia
According to The Australian, Cardinal Pell had been chatting with the anaesthetist in hospital when he suddenly went into cardiac arrest.
EWTN News Vatican correspondent Colm Flynn was one of the first people to publicly confirm the Cardinal’s death.
‘I’ve just spoken to his household, and can confirm the sad news of the passing of Cardinal George Pell at the age of 81. May he rest in peace,’ Flynn tweeted.
Colleagues in the Catholic Church were saddened by his passing and expressed their condolences to his family.
‘Cardinal Pell was a very significant and influential Church leader, both in Australia and internationally, deeply committed to Christian discipleship,’ said Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli.
Cardinal Pell was the country’s highest-ranked official of the Catholic Church. Image Credit: Twitter/@colmflynnire
‘At this immediate moment, let our prayers go out to the God of Jesus Christ, whom Cardinal Pell wholeheartedly believed in and followed, that he may be welcomed into eternal life.’
‘May eternal light shine upon him, and may he now rest in peace and rise to glory in the Lord.’
Cardinal Pell, the highest ranking official of the Catholic Church from Australia, is characterised as a staunch advocate of traditional Catholic values. He is known to be unapologetically against same-sex marriage, homosexuality, the climate crisis, and abortion and contraception.
Cardinal Pell was born on June 8, 1941 to father George Arthur Pell, mother Margaret Lillian, and four siblings (all but one, David, have since passed).
He was ordained at the Vatican in 1966 after choosing his faith over what was a blossoming career in Aussie Rules football (AFL).
He served as the seventh head of Melbourne’s local Catholic community as archbishop from 1996-2001, and then as Archbishop of Sydney from 2001-2014.
Cardinal Pell was known to be a key figure in the Catholic Church under Pope Francis. Stock Image Credit: Pexels/Kai Pilger
In 2014, Cardinal Pell was appointed by Pope Francis as the leader of the then-new Secretariat for the Economy which was tasked to manage and oversee all of the Vatican’s financial activities.
Four years later in December of 2018 he was convicted of child sex abuse claims alleged to have abused two 13-year-old boys during his term as Archbishop of Melbourne.
After spending over a year in prison over the charges, he was freed in April 2020 after the High Court of Australia overturned his conviction.
The High Court ruled that all the evidence presented in the allegations raised against Cardinal Pell was not considered properly, according to reports.
For his part, Cardinal Pell has maintained his innocence on the matter.
Cardinal Pell is said to be the highest ranking official of the Catholic Church convicted and jailed for child sex abuse claims in the world.
Cardinal Pell returned to Rome the same year, where he remained until his death.
Source: YouTube/9 News Australia
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