Roman Catholic Cardinal George Pell – convicted in 2018 of molesting altar boys – called on the Vatican to discipline two of Europe's most senior bishops for violating the Church's teaching on sexual ethics.

In a statement released March 15, Pell asked the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) to "intervene and pronounce judgment" on Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich and Bishop Georg Bätzing, president of the German Bishops' Conference.

Their crime in Pell's eyes? They both made statements questioning Catholic teaching that same-sex relations are sinful.

Cardinal Hollerich, who presides over the Synod on Synodality that runs until October next year, said last month that Church teaching on same-sex relations was "wrong" and that the "the sociological-scientific foundation" of Catholic teaching on what "one formerly condemned as sodomy" was "no longer correct."

Bishop Bätzing, the president of the German Conference of Bishops, said in a March 4 interview that same-sex relationships were permissible and not a sin and that the Catechism should be partially changed to reflect this.

According to Pell, such statements are "erroneous," because they "not only reject the ancient Judeo-Christian doctrines against homosexual activity but undermine and reject the teaching on monogamous marriage, the exclusive union of a man and a woman."

The CDF is a powerful Vatican institution charged with keeping Church officials and the faithful in line with Catholic dogma. They may censure violators, prohibit them from preaching or publishing texts, or even excommunicate them from the Catholic Church.

The group was once headed by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI. During his tenure, the CDF earned a reputation for suppressing progressive Catholic thought – especially on questions of sexual ethics and family relationships.

Pell was arrested for molesting children in 2017 and convicted by an Australian court in 2018. Australia's High Court overturned the conviction in 2020 on the grounds that the jury "ought to have entertained a doubt" about his guilt.

A Vatican investigation into the charges against him was terminated after the High Court ruling. He was never disciplined by the Church, but the Pope allowed him to retire from his positions, as he was already 75 at the time of his arrest.