The 81-year-old former Catholic archbishop of Melbourne and Sydney died in Rome last month and was given a traditional cardinal's funeral at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
His body was returned to Sydney for burial after a solemn reception that begins on Wednesday with two masses followed by a vigil later in the day.
A procession of about a hundred people accompanied Cardinal Pell's body as it was transferred by hearse along College Street to the cathedral, which is open to mourners.
Survivors of clerical abuse and their supporters surrounded the cathedral in silent protest on Wednesday, attaching ribbons in a rainbow of colours to the fence.
It comes ahead of a planned protest from LGBTI group Community Action for Rainbow Rights directly across the street from the cathedral at Hyde Park to coincide with Thursday's funeral mass,
Police Commissioner Karen Webb has filed an urgent application to the NSW Supreme Court to block the protest, with a decision expected later on Wednesday.
Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon said police respected the right of people to protest but there were safety concerns that hadn't been resolved during negotiations.
"There's a number of aspects within the form that was launched by the organisers that we believe present a risk to public safety," he told ABC TV on Wednesday.
Paul Auchettl, whose late brother was a victim of clerical abuse by a priest under the leadership of Cardinal Pell in Ballarat during the 1970s, spent the morning tying ribbons to the church.
"Tying a ribbon becomes a sacred act. What you're doing is trying to honour someone who might not be here anymore or who's struggling," he told AAP.
Throughout the morning, drivers in passing cars honked horns in support of the colourful protest, while survivors cried and bonded over their collective trauma.
Veronica Eldridge, whose late husband endured abuse as a child, and Nicky Davis, who is a survivor, say they feel buoyed by the show of support.
"I'm actually feeling really empowered because we are having our say," Ms Davis said.
Cardinal Pell was the Vatican's top finance minister before leaving Rome in 2017 to stand trial in Melbourne for child sexual abuse offences.
He was convicted the following year of molesting two teenage choirboys in the sacristy of Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral while archbishop in 1996.
Cardinal Pell maintained his innocence and in 2020 his convictions were quashed by the High Court.
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