Ex Cathedra
In memory of His Eminence the late George Cardinal Pell AC
From conviction in the absolute
Of truth
To final appeal transcendental
Be not afraid
Pallium of lambswool consecrated
Crozier gilt with innocence and censed
To stultify temptations wasting
Of the flock
Scarlet galero now to hang
Atop the quire of his See
Not at the hand of baying mob
But congregation resolute
Whose faith was not to flee
Vestigial remnants come to lie
Encrypted ’neath the Altar’s eye
Vermillion tassels
knotted
fade above
Mighty frame degrades below
The ways
upwards, downwards
Are the same
Be not afraid
Patrick Coyne