How many times have we heard it before? A man who has spent his life not merely admonishing but vilifying homosexuality, sex outside marriage and a whole host of other “sins” has himself been caught. This time it’s Cardinal George Pell, one of the Pope’s most senior advisers and none other than the Vatican Treasurer. A Melbourne Court this morning found him guilty of several sexual offenses against two former choirboys, one of whom died of an overdose a few yeare ago. Although he will appeal, he will be sentenced tomorrow and go straight to prison. May he rot there!
He was particularly brutal to homosexuals. When a wreath was laid outside St Patrick’s Cathedral in Melbourne in memory of gay students in Catholic schools driven to suicide, Pell’s disdain was absolute.
“I haven’t got good statistics on the reasons for those suicides,” he declared. “If they are connected with homosexuality, it is another reason to be discouraging people going in that direction. Homosexual activity is a much greater health hazard than smoking.”