Cardinal George Pell leaves the Hotel Quirinale in Rome after giving evidence to the royal commission via video link on the first day of the hearing. Picture: ELLA PELLEGRINI

That was the opinion of the nation’s highest ranked clergyman Cardinal George Pell as he sensationally took to the makeshift witness box in a hotel in Rome to be cross-examined from the other side of the world by the royal commission probing sexual abuse of children in the church.

The 74-year-old was resolute and firm in his responses to a series of questions put to him over four hours of gruelling evidence starting at 10pm local time with just a 20-minute break.

The church, he said, had let people down, had made “enormous mistakes” and simply “mucked things up” by ignoring the personal failures of some.

But for as much as his answers were forthright and his acknowledgment of failings by his church significant, he also declared he did not know, did not hear and did not see the abuse that was happening all around him in Ballarat and other parts of regional Victoria.

He said unfortunately “original sin” was alive and well but apparently most of it by clergy in the community passed under his radar despite by his own admission there having been one very high profile case that had put clergy child abuse at the forefront of thinking.

Indeed on his evidence, Cardinal Pell cut something of having had a solitary beginning as a young clergyman, spending time in his studies and academia and “rarely indulging” in gossip that he said may or may not have involved the misdemeanours of other diocese priests and Christian Brothers.

And it seemed parents, children, teachers, parishioners and other priests were confiding to everyone else about offending clergy but never to him.

COMMENT: The eternal shame of silence on abuse

He also distanced himself from knowing in any personal way several priests and Christian Brothers adversely named in the hearings. There were 27 times during his evidence of moments, places and faces he could not recall.

He couldn’t recall knowing many of the names of clergy put to him or hearing about abuse and or having jurisdiction over matter he may or may not have heard. Abuse was common knowledge to many he acknowledged but just not to him and no impropriety was ever bought directly to his attention.

Cardinal Pell’s evidence began with his describing his role within the Vatican to which he dismissed suggestions by Senior Counsel assisting the inquiry Gail Furness that he was number 3 in the Holy See preferring to instead be considered just a senior official in the Roman Curia.

She also praised his modesty about his sporting and academic prowess which brought chuckles from the capacity 170 people attending.

Chuckles too when he described the turbulent times of the church in the 1960s and the introduction of contraception that created a social revolution in the community and a “whiff of revolutionary spirit” that saw many priests leave before ordination.

Cardinal George Pell acknowledged — from Rome in Italy — that the Catholic Church ‘has made enormous mistakes’ in allowing thousands of children to be raped and molested by priests over centuries. Picture: Jeremy Piper / Royal Commission into Institutional Response to Child Sexual Abuse via APSource:AP

But then Ms Furness led the cardinal through detailed evidence of his various roles of responsibility, at one stage surprising him with a new piece of evidence that suggested his role as an educational vicar was an “essential link” between the clergy, parents and students and therefore at the crux of the issue being probed by the royal commission into how church leaders had responded to abuse.

The cardinal initially said that essential link remark overstated his position until it was pointed out that that was how he had described it himself in a letter he wrote to his bishop.

From then he said he could not recall various propositions put to him as to when, how and by whom if anybody had reported abuse to him.

“Well it was a long time ago, I can’t recall such complaints … I can’t remember any such examples but my memory may be playing me false because I don’t have perfect recall,” he said.

Australian David Ridsdale, who was sexually abused by Australian Catholic priests, was in Rome, Italy, to hear Cardinal George Pell’s evidence to the child abuse royal commission in Sydney. Picture: Ella PellegriniSource:Supplied

He did however say plausible claims by responsible people had been made but not followed up or reasonably dealt with, with at that stage the focus being more on protecting the church.

For the survivors of clergy abuse who had travelled from Australia to face-off with Cardinal Pell his evidence brought them some solace.

“We would have to acknowledge that it’s a more conciliatory tone,” David Ridsdale, who was abused by his clergy uncle and others, said.

“We would have to acknowledge that there were some statements that were certainly more constructive than previously but in saying that there was some very careful selection of words, a very careful manner that was discussed … some of the people he said he did and didn’t know doesn’t fit well with our memories.”

Demonstrators are seen with placards showing their feelings towards Cardinal Pell outside the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, in Sydney. Picture: AAP / Dan HimbrechtsSource:AAP

His evidence will continue tomorrow.