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Article snippet: MELBOURNE, Australia — Cardinal George Pell, one of Pope Francis’ top advisers, made his first court appearance in formally charged with sexual offenses. Cardinal Pell, 76, was flanked by police officers as he entered Melbourne Magistrates’ Court through a thicket of camera crews, reporters and photographers. He said nothing during the filing hearing, which lasted about six minutes. One of the cardinal’s lawyers, Robert Richter, told the court that his client would plead not guilty to all charges and vehemently maintained his innocence. Magistrate Duncan Reynolds set the next court proceeding for Oct. 6. Journalists from around the world started lining up outside the court as early as 5 a.m. to get a seat at the hearing, which was purely administrative in nature and allowed the magistrate to set dates for future hearings. “It is rumored that one international news outlet will have a dozen journalists and photographers in place to cover the cardinal’s appearance,” a journalist from Fairfax Media, one of Australia’s most powerful media organizations, wrote on Monday. The unspecified charges of sexual offenses drew global attention after the police in the Australian state of Victoria said last month that the cardinal had been charged on summons and was required to appear in the magistrates’ court here. Shortly afterward, the Vatican announced that Francis had granted a leave of absence to Cardinal Pell, who vowed to fight the charges, calling them false and the resu... Link to the full article to read more