My sole intention is to stem Mr John Guillaumier’s intolerable amount of acerbic and hostile comments, tirades and innuendos against the Church and anything holy. This however should be done in moderation.

There was a time when this paper afforded a monopoly in the letters section to a certain person who had ample time and space to sharpen his knives and fire on all cylinders to expose his sinister philosophy (April – August 2016).  His letters were treated as if they had just been handed down from the mount on a tablet of stone.  I hope this paper does not fall back into this period’s ways of cronyism and discrimination during which I sometimes felt like being forced to climb Mount Everest in flip-flops. It has always been an uphill struggle to have a letter published but my insistence and conviction to have my letters published expressing, what I believe to be right and proper, driven on by hope brings me neatly to this letter.

With reference to letter “Begging for graces” (TMIS, 9 October), nobody can really explain that conundrum and whatever is written about the subject does not get any closer to the reason why this happens.  It is hard for anyone to digest that sickness and pain, a stark reality, unmistakeably leads us to affirm that suffering is compatible with God’s love. However, a tinge of faith can clarify and alleviate the complexity of this dilemma.

When the manner of Peter’s death by crucifixion was foretold by Jesus, it signified glory to God. 

Suffering in itself is nothing, but suffering shared with Christ’s passion is a wonderful gift (Mother Teresa), the death of God himself on the cross. He entered our world of flesh and blood, tears and death. He laid aside his immunity to pain and suffered for us. Thus our sufferings become more manageable thanks to him and it is God’s only self-justification in such a world of ours. Scripture describes God as a hidden God (St Paul) and you have to make an effort of faith to find Him, as all blessed souls do, “In silence and in hope shall your strength be” (Isaiah 30.15).

But who can understand God’s proselytization? And this has not covered the pain and sufferings of children and we remain in horrified incomprehension. However the following excerpt can be of some spiritual balm and enshrines this mystery.

“For we have not a high priest who cannot have compassion on our infirmities, but one tried as we are in all things except sin” (Jews 4. 15).

Sadness and acceptance of the cross, peace and love are everlasting for people of goodwill and more so for Christians. In any case, atheism has no solution for similar circumstances, but believers at least can cling to the consolation of religion and faith.

 

John Azzopardi

Zabbar