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Thursday June 20, 2013

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Cardinal Pell a 'despicable spin doctor for an earthly hierarchy'

Posted by: Derryn Hinch | 15 November, 2012 - 4:24 PM
Cardinal Pell

I was off-air yesterday obviously, attending  the funeral of  dear friend and  AW colleague Paul Barber. And I expressed some of my thoughts on  the AW  website. It was a lovely funeral.

As my grandma would say:  ‘They done him proud’. It was a Catholic service at the Immaculate Conception church in Hawthorn. Before the service I had a private chat with  the celebrant, Father Kevin Dillon of Geelong. A fine man of the cloth.

He has appeared several times on this program as long ago as when  Pope John Paul II visited Melbourne. Father Dillon is actually a listener and he applauded my on the marathon campaign I have waged against child abusers. Especially in his church.

And it got me thinking. How hard it must be right now…  how hard it must have been for years.. for decent, honourable clergymen having to (by association) wear the revulsion and opprobrium we have for paedophile priests.

How all the good they do and the comfort they give can be besmirched by these evil men.

And it dawned on my last night why Cardinal Pell’s press conference this week – after the announcement by the PM of a royal commission into sexual abuse of children and the cover-ups – it dawned on me why his performance almost made my flesh crawl. Made me want to shout at the TV screen as he tried to blame the media. As he talked about separately the fact from the fiction.  As he cruelly insulted victims – and  sullied the memories of those young men who committed suicide  --  when he talked about ‘ exaggerations’.

I watched not a man of Christ, not a disciple, not a spokesman for his Lord and Master but a despicable spin doctor for an earthly hierarchy.

And it dawned on me what sort of speech George Pell should have made as a defender of the faith.

He should have said something like, presuming he believes this:

‘I welcome this Royal Commission with open arms. My only regret is I did not lobby for it ten, twenty years ago. How much suffering of little children could we have prevented.

‘I despise men, who hide behind a collar, who pretend to be protectors of the  young, who use my church, the name of my God, to rape children in the name of our Jesus Christ.

They are not fit to call themselves priests. They foul the very sanctity of our churches by their mere presence in them.  They pollute the vestry and commit sacrilege every time they lift a chalice to the lips during Communion.

May they rot in Hell. And I pledge today, to the hundreds of thousands of decent Catholics who are forced to share this shame, that I will not cease in my quest to rid my church of these evil men until I am called for my own day of judgement …. So help me God.’

Didn’t say it. Wouldn’t say it. These rock spiders have acted with such impunity and immunity for decades  -- under church protection – that if they were cockroaches, and they are lower than that, if they were cockroaches, they wouldn’t even scurry from the light.

And church leaders who could have and should have trod on them years ago could have stopped them. They didn’t even call in the fumigators.

Drive with Hinch

Hinch Hinch is a former police rounds reporter, former foreign correspondent, former newspaper editor, former host of national current affairs shows, former novelist, former radio host in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide, former MIDDAY host and former jailbird.

 

Blog comments Your Say

  • Well.... Cardinal Pell knows its coming to an end and he will have a lot to answer for There does not seem to be any were to run as the net closes in. All Rats behave in the same manner when they are cornered. I would not like to be in his shoes.BAD LUCK.

    Dominic Lombardo Wednesday 21 November, 2012 - 8:08 AM

  • Well yet another young woman loses her life at the hands of another - The police say no vile comments about the "alleged" offender - Guess what?? their right sadly enough but for our legal system to work it must be impartial - The only thing I say we are to blame - we as a society that in my lifetime has become weak & too nice - Time to harden the f**k up & stop feeling sorry for mongrels

    Jmes L Smith Tuesday 20 November, 2012 - 10:54 PM

  • while the Bishops are all over the media in damage control.. " we understand your pain, we are not all like Pell" .
    I for one am going to miss him .. you couldn't find a better example of a priest echoing the true face of the Vadican'.He is the real deal, it is all self-serving politics. As for the rest.. just pious words? who would trust them.

    rosemary Monday 19 November, 2012 - 7:00 PM

  • May God give every abused person the strength to appear at this Royal Commission so that justice can prevail on these evil men.

    Di Jones Saturday 17 November, 2012 - 3:18 PM

  • I agree that the Royal Commission into repugnant child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church and other institutions is long overdue but unfortunately the endlessly dishonest Labor Government has excluded 99% of Australian child sexual abuse from consideration by the Royal Commission. Estimates of Australian child sexual abuse over 80 years within the Catholic Church range from 3,000 (the Catholic Church) to 40,000 (anti-abuse activists). However the important Northern Territory "Little Children are Sacred" Report quoted research showing that 34% of Australian women (3.0 million) and 16% of Australia men (1.4 million) have suffered child sexual abuse (Google "Horrendous Australian child sexual abuse").

    Dr Gideon Polya Friday 16 November, 2012 - 11:22 AM

  • Catholicism will feature in this Royal Commission as prominently as Australian Rules football featured in World of Sport. :P

    mylene Friday 16 November, 2012 - 10:33 AM

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