School stares down bid to restore George Pell’s name

George Pell’s alma mater St Patrick’s College is strongly resisting moves by his supporters to restore the Cardinal’s name on its Ballarat campus, splitting the school community.

George Pell. Picture: i-Images

Cardinal George Pell’s alma mater is resisting moves by his supporters in Ballarat to have his name returned to the Catholic college that launched his global church mission.

A group of prominent scholars has been quietly advocating behind the scenes for Pell’s name to be reinstated at St Patrick’s College, the main Catholic boys’ school in country Victoria.

Discussions have been held with the aim of either returning Pell’s name to a school building or placing it on the honour roll after the High Court freed him from prison after 404 days.

Sources said a third option was to return Pell’s name in a “low key” way that acknowledged how he had risen from the school to become one of the nation’s most influential Catholics.

The push has again split the school community, with principal Steven O’Connor acknowledging differences of opinion about what should be done to either remember or suppress Pell’s name.

His name was stripped from the school after he was jailed for abusing two choir boys at Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral in 1996 and 1997 but the convictions were quashed in 2020 by the High Court.

“I understand there are different opinions across our school community about Cardinal George Pell and his legacy,’’ Mr O’Connor said. “While I respect the diversity of these opinions and recognise there might never be a time when we are all in agreement, St Patrick’s College has no plans to reinstate the Pell Wing.

“This has been renamed the Waterford Wing, which ties the school closely to its history and traditions by recognising the home of Blessed Edmund Rice.

“Additionally, we have no plans to reinstate Cardinal Pell’s name on the honour roll, and we are not exploring any additional opportunities to integrate Cardinal Pell’s name to our school property or processes.’’

Mr O’Connor said there had been no communication from parents or carers but The Australian is aware of strong support from some old scholars, who believe the school should not punish the Pell name given the High Court’s decision.

“There is a lot of talk and the school is well aware of the view that George should be acknowledged. It’s obviously the right thing to do,” a Pell supporter said.

Ballarat, 115km west of Melbourne, is divided over the Pell legacy, with much of the anger about the child sex abuse disaster being aimed at the late cardinal.

This was particularly so after Pell accompanied serial Ballarat offender Father Gerald Ridsdale to court in the early 1990s, an event that stained Pell’s reputation among many Catholics who knew victims of Ridsdale.

St Patrick’s College featured prominently in the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, with the Christian Brothers having an appalling record on child sex abuse.

Pell’s staunchest critics believe the negative commentary towards him by the commission underpins why he should not be afforded any glory at his old school, although his supporters say the commission’s position lacked substance.

The commission said Pell was told in 1982 that Ridsdale was being moved between parishes because he was an abuser. It also said Pell was conscious of child sexual abuse by clergy as early as 1973 and failed to act on complaints about priests.

It rejected Pell’s evidence that he was lied to by church officials about Ridsdale and disgraced Melbourne priest Peter Searson.

Andrew Collins, a survivor who attended royal commission hearings in Rome, said Pell had played a large role in the diocese over many years but did not deserve recognition because there was evidence he had failed to act to protect children.

“He was in charge of all the education in the diocese,” he said.

“Even when he did know, he didn’t know anything.”

Pell reportedly told several friends he attended the Ridsdale court hearing on the request of former Melbourne Archbishop Frank Little, who also was educated at St Patrick’s.

St Patrick’s has opted for a ­survivor-first strategy amid prolonged outrage over the way many children had been abused by Catholic clergy in western ­Victoria.