VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis on Wednesday praised the late Australian Cardinal George Pell for persevering in trying times, a reference to when Cardinal Pell spent more than a year in prison on child sexual abuse accusations before he was fully acquitted.

In an Italian-language message sent to the dean of the College of Cardinals, Pope Francis also thanked Cardinal Pell for laying the groundwork for economic reform in the Vatican with “determination and wisdom”.

One of the most powerful figures in the Roman Catholic Church, Cardinal Pell died at the age of 81 on Tuesday in Rome due to heart complications following a hip operation.

In 2019, he was sentenced to six years in prison and registered as a sex offender. He spent 12 months in Barwon Prison near Melbourne before the Australian High Court quashed his convictions on appeal, opening the door for his return to Rome in late 2020.

Although cleared by the courts, a separate government inquiry criticised Cardinal Pell’s indifference to sexual abuse claims inside Australia’s Catholic Church. REUTERS