Protesters hold a giant rainbow flag outside St Mary's Cathedral
(Picture: Getty Images)Mourners and protesters squared off on Thursday at the funeral service for Australian Cardinal George Pell, a former top Vatican official who was acquitted in 2020 of sexual abuse accusations.
Hundreds took part in protests outside St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney, where former prime ministers Tony Abbott and John Howard were among thousands of mourners paying their respects to the 81-year-old who died last month.
“He’s the greatest Catholic Australia has ever produced, and one of our country’s greatest sons,” Mr Abbott said during a eulogy.
In a park opposite the cathedral, groups of protesters, many from the LGBT community and some holding signs reading “Pell Burn In Hell”, heard speeches against the cardinal and the Catholic Church.
“(We’re here to) just show solidarity with the victims and the survivors of what’s happened through the Catholic Church, but particularly George Pell,” said Layne Elbourne, a musician.
Some mourners held up rosary beads in response to protesters’ chants as tensions flared.
Police intervened to separate angry mourners from protesters holding signings condemning the cardinal to hell, the BBC reported.
In 2020 Australia’s High Court quashed the convictions of Cardinal Pell for sexually assaulting two choir boys in the 1990s, allowing him to walk free after 13 months in prison.
