PASTORAL LETTER - LENT 2014
Pastoral Letter, Lent 2014
Our share in building society
Throughout our
history as a people, in an attempt to build our nation and uphold our dignity,
we have taken great strides and accomplished many goals. It is impossible to refrain from commemorating
the important anniversaries which our nation is celebrating this year. Many contemporary Maltese and Gozitan
citizens, as well as some who lived before us, have toiled so that our country
may retain the dignity and the position which it deserves, equivalent to that
enjoyed by other peoples. We should express
sincere feelings of gratitude towards our brethren who have laboured on our
behalf throughout history in order that this may come to fruition.
Besides feeling
grateful for all we have received, we should also hold a great sense of responsibility
and duty towards both present and future generations, so that we too may be able
to pass on to our descendants our living traditions of belief, virtues and
values. However we feel that a greater
concerted effort is required in order that we may become more aware of the
State, to engender a wider civic sense, and not to be constrained by party
politics, which often does not allow us to seek and perceive the truth. In this
way, we may become more capable of respecting the dignity of every person,
irrespective of one’s colour, faith, social affiliation, sexual orientation - from
all that which makes us different.
As a society we
possess many beautiful and good qualities, especially our generosity, our aid
to those who are vulnerable, and the Catholic faith which we inherited from our
forefathers. All these qualities need to
be cherished and strengthened because they are all virtues which enrich our
patrimony. Yet at the same time, if we
take a look around us, in all honesty, we cannot but acknowledge that along
with the virtues, there exist also the vices, which are in sharp contrast to the
picture we portray of ourselves and with which we are more at ease.
Lately, there has
been an alarming increase in violence, which points to the fact that in our country,
a web of organized crime may be prevalent.
There has also been a rise in domestic violence and brutal attacks on
elderly persons, as well as other hostilities of all sorts which render family
relations difficult. This is a source of
concern. We have also heard about cases of corruption which are of an almost
institutional nature. Without our
noticing, this is eroding the moral fibre of our society and leads people to
believe that there is nothing wrong with stealing, evading taxes, taking false
oath in court, and so many other factors which we are reading about almost on a
daily basis. This is not a beautiful
picture, yet it is also a part of the real, holistic picture of our
country. We should be troubled by all
this; but instead of being scandalized and passing judgment, we should combine
our efforts and do whatever is necessary, because we are all responsible for
one another and for our country.
Faced with this
reality, the people of God, together with other members of society, hold a
great responsibility. As Christians, we
all need to question how our faith, which is still so prevalent in our society,
is being put into action. The Church
feels wounded when society is ailing.
She too feels the need for healing – the kind of healing which emanates
from the mercy and grace of God, our Creator and Saviour. As the people of God, from time to time, we
need to ask ourselves whether the faith which we profess and preach is actually
being put into force; a force which, with God’s help, will enable us to
overpower evil and educate towards a culture of honesty and integrity. The time of Lent which is approaching should,
in the first place, be a catalyst which encourages us to take an honest look at
ourselves and the realities which surround us, in the light of the truth which
God reveals to us through His Word. Secondly, with God’s help and with His
grace, which comes from the holy sacraments, we need to find the motivation to
get started and be transformed; we cannot afford to be satisfied with the way
we are.
Lent is a
beautiful period which is necessary for us to stop awhile from our normal
routine and reflect upon the truth about ourselves. At the start of Lent, we read that the Spirit
took Jesus into the desert so that as man, he would be tempted and ultimately
triumph over the temptations of Evil. In much the same way as Jesus, we also
need to experience the desert, where we meet God and our inner selves, where we
seek the truth about ourselves, where we discern our present position, what we
expect out of life, what God is asking of us, and where we are heading.
For this reason,
today, we wish to focus upon the need to be authentic in all our actions. By ‘authentic’ we mean that which is true as
opposed to that which is false. The
authenticity of each and every one of us as individuals can mark the
authenticity of the society we form part of and in which we live. Sunday after Sunday during the coming Lenten
season, the Word of God will appeal to us to be more authentic. Authenticity is a great virtue which we
require so that we do not hide behind our own mask, which does not permit us to
reveal our true self. Authenticity means that we are not afraid to admit the
truth about ourselves, both individually and also as a society, even if this
truth is unattractive. The worst sins in
life - those which are difficult to be forgiven - are those sins which we
become aware of, yet do not feel guilty about.
God earnestly forgives all those who seek Him humbly and
contritely. He is unable to forgive us
if we close the door to our heart. He
will continue to knock, but only we hold the key.
Like other things
in our life, it is easy for Lent to become a matter of routine, especially
when, year after year, we repeat the same practices. Routines dampen that beautiful moment of faith
which such a period of time is supposed to generate in us. During Lent, many
are those Maltese people who dedicate much time and energy to beautiful
expressions of external religiosity.
Sadly, we note that sometimes, such expressions are merely a distraction. They should not diminish the power of the
Word of God, but rather they should enhance the fact that Lent is a time for us
to stir our stagnant waters. It is up to
us to let God cleanse us from all external forces which distract us from that
which is essential.
In the Church, at
present, Pope Francis is provoking us to become a more authentic Church. He is repeatedly insisting upon the fact that
we need to renew our personal encounter with Jesus Christ. He is continually inviting us to become more
simple, to be a poorer Church, one which is close to the poor; in such a way we
become genuine Christian communities with our doors always open and where nobody
is excluded. This is a moment of grace is our history. In the face of such grace, we cannot afford
to close our eyes and ears. As a Church
– in our projects, in our judgments on the realities of life - it is necessary for us to become more and more
a Church which is capable of serving the people, accompanying and guiding them
gently, no matter who they are and from where they hail. In order to be
authentic, our faith must be translated into practical choices which we make on
a day to day basis: in the parishes, in families, at the workplace, in our
institutions and in our interpersonal relations. This is the only way in which we can announce
the Gospel with joy, the only way in which we can inspire hope in the hearts of
more people and in the core of our present day history.
While expressing our appreciation to our fellow Christians
and men of good will who are committed both in their private and public lives
to enhancing a life of values and virtues, we wish to encourage everybody to
contribute, with God’s help, towards building an authentic society.
We impart upon you our Pastoral Blessing as a pledge of every heavenly good.
X PAUL CREMONA O.P. X MARIO GRECH
Archbishop of
Malta Bishop of Gozo
X CHARLES J. SCICLUNA
Auxiliary
Bishop and Vicar General of Malta
