George Pell: Modern crucifixion to jail cardinal, former PM Tony Abbott says

Reaction to the sudden death of Pell was met with calls that the 81-year-old had come "to embody the institutional failures of the Catholic Church".

Others, including Abbott in his lengthy social media post, said the church had lost a great leader.

"He was a very pastoral priest who well understood the human stain, and was more than capable of empathising with sinners while still counselling against sin," he wrote.

"His incarceration on charges that the High Court ultimately scathingly dismissed, was a modern form of crucifixion; reputationally at least a kind of living death."

The former PM praised the way Pell faced allegations of child sex abuse. Ultimately, the high court overturned Pell's conviction.

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"In his own way, by dealing so equably with a monstrous allegation, he strikes me as a saint for our times," he posted.

Abbott also praised Pell's journals written from his time in jail.

"His prison journals should become a classic: a fine man wrestling with a cruel fate and trying to make sense of the unfairness of suffering," the former PM said.

Pell was a committed defender of Catholic orthodoxy and a staunch advocate for the virtues of western civilisation," Abbott said.

"Like everyone who knew him I feel a deep sense of loss, but am confident that his reputation will grow and grow and that he will become an inspiration for the ages," he said.