As the famous French poet Jean de La Fontaine stated, the quintessential traits of a person can be grasped through the evaluation of his work. What type of work and purpose, and passion, effort and drive one puts in it, are some of the character-defining factors one needs to consider.
The Gozitan based voluntary organisation "Moviment Gesu fil-Proxxmu" www.gesufilproxxmu.com, through the work spearheaded by Monsignor George Grima, has for many years excelled in helping people living in some of the poorest countries in the world such as Ethiopia. Furthermore, it is inspiring many young people to travel to Third World countries to have a hands-on voluntary experience helping out extremely vulnerable communities that without the intervention and presence of international charitable organisations would have to an existence deprived of hope and dignity.
Apart from the deserved praise for the work that Monsignor Grima has done, I believe it is imperative that the invaluable experience such people acquire is not lost when they eventually cease their missionary work. It is easily understandable that in Third World countries such work is very challenging to complete. Most of the time there is a lack of organisation, logistics and infrastructure, combined with a socio-cultural way of life that is complex to understand. In this sense, the Curia, as an administrator of such organisations, should give a sense of continuity to the invaluable missionary work it exercises abroad. Hopefully, new people will be ready to undertake this challenge and be guided in this most honourable mission by their fellow veterans.
And if "by the work one knows the workman", people operating in such charitable organisations are nothing less than the unsung heroes of the 21st century.
J. Grech
Victoria