“As I heard the chant ‘Cardinal Pell should go to Hell,’ I thought, ‘Ah ha! At least they now believe in the afterlife!’ Perhaps this is St. George Pell’s first miracle,” former Prime Minister Tony Abbott said.

The New South Wales Police Force said on Tuesday it has rejected an application from a Sydney-based gay rights group for a permit to protest outside the cathedral on Thursday due to safety concerns.

Cardinal George Pell, who died on Jan. 10, left behind an article and a memorandum that revealed his thoughts about Pope Francis, his actions, and future conclaves, among many others.

A leading Australian Catholic and close advisor to Pope Francis, the cardinal had participated in the funeral of his friend, Pope Benedict XVI, just last week.

“Even if you leave the ordination question aside for a moment, there is still a great need to explore ways of engaging women in all other levels of the life of the church in significant roles. There is still a lot of work to be done.”

In their first private one-on-one conversation, the president of the Australian Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Timothy Costelloe, S.D.B., told Pope Francis, “The church in Australia is alive!”