An Australian court has allowed a civil case to proceed against a Catholic archdiocese involving child sex abuse allegations against late Cardinal George Pell.

Mourners at the Sydney funeral for Australian Cardinal George Pell have remembered him as a victim of a campaign to punish him regardless of his guilt.

Mourners are paying respects to Cardinal George Pell in a Sydney cathedral before the funeral of the polarizing church leader who was once the most senior Catholic convicted of sex abuse.

Pope Francis will deliver a final send-off for Cardinal George Pell during a funeral Mass on Saturday.

Pope Francis has paid tribute to Cardinal George Pell, after his death in Rome.

Pope Benedict XVI’s 2013 resignation sparked calls for rules and regulations for future retired popes to avoid the kind of confusion that ensued.

A cardinal has testified that Pope Francis authorized spending up to 1 million euros to free a Colombian nun kidnapped by al-Qaida-linked militants in Mali.

A judge has fined a dozen Australian media companies for breaching a gag order on Cardinal George Pell’s since-overturned convictions for child sexual abuse.

Cardinal George Pell, who was convicted and then acquitted of sex abuse charges in his native Australia, is spending his newfound freedom in Rome.

Australian media companies admitted in court Monday, Feb. 1, 2021, they breached a gag order in publishing references to Cardinal George Pells since-overturned convictions in 2018 for child sexual abuse. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, File)CANBERRA – Australian media companies admitted in court Monday they breached a gag order in publishing references to Cardinal George Pell’s since-overturned convictions in 2018 for child sexual abuse. The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment would prevent such censorship in the United States, so attempting to extradite an American for breaching an Australian suppression order would be futile. No Australian media company published a straight news report of Pell’s convictions, but some directed their audiences to international online reports. Because there was no second trial, no one is alleging that breaching the suppression order caused any harm.

FILE - In this Monday, Dec. 21, 2020 file photo Pope Francis exchanges holidays greeting with Vatican employees in the Paul VI hall at the Vatican. Pope Francis has formally stripped the Vatican secretariat of state of its financial assets and real estate holdings following its bungled management of hundreds of millions of euros in donations and investments. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, file)ROME – Pope Francis has formally stripped the Vatican secretariat of state of its financial assets and real estate holdings following its bungled management of hundreds of millions of euros in donations and investments that are now the subject of a corruption investigation. Francis signed a new law over the weekend ordering the secretariat of state to complete the transfer of all its holdings to another Vatican office by Feb. 4. Francis moved against his own secretariat of state amid an 18-month investigation by Vatican prosecutors into the office’s 350-million-euro investment into a luxury residential building in London’s Chelsea neighborhood and other speculative funds.

“Prison Journal," which recounts the first five months of Pell’s 404 days in solitary lockup, also provides a play-by-play of Pell’s legal case and gives personal insights into one of the most divisive figures in the Catholic hierarchy today. Due out Dec. 15, the book likely won’t budge anyone from either camp, but it is a fascinating read nonetheless. After a first jury deadlocked, a second unanimously convicted him and he was sentenced to six years in prison. Pell repeatedly denied wrongdoing and has apologized to victims for what he called the “profoundly evil” actions of predatory priests. “The pedophilia crisis remains the greatest blow the church has suffered in Australia,” Pell writes in his diary.

But the enormous international interest in an Australian criminal trial with global ramifications highlighted the difficulty in enforcing such orders in the digital age. No foreign news organization has been charged with breaching the suppression order. The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment would prevent such censorship in the United States, so attempting to extradite an American for breaching an Australian suppression order would be futile. “We are not breaching the suppression order, just explaining why we can’t report on the story.”The media defendants have not said what their defense is to be in the court case. De Ferrari said some of the individuals charged had said they were not aware that a suppression order existed.

FILE - In this Dec. 21, 2017 file photo, Pope Francis talks to Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on the occasion of his Christmas greetings to the Roman Curia in the Clementine Hall at the Vatican. (Claudio Peri/pool photo via AP)ROME – Pope Francis is giving the Vatican secretariat of state three months to transfer all of its financial holdings to another Vatican office following its bungled management of hundreds of millions of euros in donations and investments that are now the subject of a corruption investigation. The Vatican released the letter that Francis wrote to Parolin on Aug. 25 in which he announced he was stripping the secretariat of state of its ability to independently manage the money. Its financial holdings are now to be held by the Vatican's treasury office, known as APSA and incorporated into the Holy See's consolidated budget, Francis wrote. Francis moved against his own secretariat of state amid a year-long investigation by Vatican prosecutors into the office's 350-million-euro investment into a luxury residential building in London's Chelsea neighborhood.

FILE - In this Oct. 4, 2020 file photo, Vatican Swiss Guards stand attention at the St. Damaso courtyard on the occasion of their swearing-in ceremony, at the Vatican, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020. On Monday, Oct. 12, 2020, the Vatican said in a statement that four Swiss Guards have tested positive for the coronavirus, as the surge in infections in surrounding Italy enters the Vatican walls. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, file)ROME – Four Swiss Guards have tested positive for coronavirus and were showing symptoms, the Vatican said Monday, as the surge in infections in surrounding Italy penetrates the Vatican walls. The Swiss Guards, the world’s oldest standing army, provide ceremonial guard duty during papal Masses, man the Vatican gates and help protect the 83-year-old Pope Francis. They join three other Vatican residents who tested positive in recent weeks plus the dozen or so Holy See officials who tested positive during the first wave of the outbreak.

Cardinal George Pell has a drink in a cafe at the Vatican, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020. Corriere speculated that Becciu might have “bought” the testimony of Pell’s accuser to get Pell out of the Vatican. Becciu and Pell were known to have clashed over the Australian’s financial clean-up efforts at the Holy See. “In relation to what has been published by some organs of information, I categorically deny any interference in the trial of Cardinal Pell,” Becciu said in a statement released by his lawyer, Fabio Viglione. The Victoria Police media unit said Monday they couldn’t find any record that the Vatican had alleged witnesses against Pell were bribed with Vatican money.

Australian Cardinal George Pell arrives at Rome's international airport in Fiumicino, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2020. The 79-year-old Pell arrived at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci airport on a flight from Sydney wearing a blue surgical mask. It wasn't immediately clear how long Pell would remain in the Vatican or what his agenda might involve. Pell and Becciu had long clashed over the Australian's efforts to bring greater transparency and accountability to the Vatican's balance sheets. In his first television interview after his release, Pell linked his fight against Vatican corruption with his prosecution in Australia.

FILE - In this Feb. 27, 2019, file photo, Cardinal George Pell arrives at the County Court in Melbourne, Australia. Pell will fly back to Rome on Tuesday, CathNews, an information agency of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference said, citing “sources close to” Pell. Pell’s return follows Francis last week firing one of the cardinal’s most powerful opponents, Cardinal Angelo Becciu, over a financial scandal. In his first television interview after his release, Pell linked his fight against Vatican corruption with his prosecution in Australia. “I hope the cleaning of the stables continues in both the Vatican and Victoria,” Pell said, referring to his home state of Victoria where he was convicted.