That the trust of people in religion is plummeting at an alarming rate is for all to see and to be quite honest, I’m not too surprised either.  Religion is no longer appealing because of its outdated messengers, its lack of attractiveness to most people and the doom and gloom it seems to suggest, rather than respond with hope and optimism.  In all fairness, every organized religion is finding it progressively complex to blend the current lifestyle people are choosing for themselves based on a neo-liberal régime.  

For example, last week I went to the Thanksgiving Mass organised by the University of Malta out of a sense of duty to our graduands.  This Mass was celebrated by the Archbishop Alessandro D’Errico, Nunzio for Malta, who could barely be understood because of his weariness and feebleness.  Not only that, the message was as flat as a pancake, had no connection to the life of the professionals who were in front of him and the focus of the event seemed to be only on making sure the rituals are adhered to; the incense is splotched at the right time, the djakni going about with candles at the same pace and the djaknu seeing to the removal and arraying of the Bishop’s headgear innumerable times as if the magic sits in the mitre. This not to mention the archaic hymns and the red throne which is evocative of the ‘us and them’.  In other words, the Mass on this special day for students was as boring and humdrum as a game of cricket on a rainy day.

However, the story that made the headlines in Malta, Gozo and beyond is a different one, placed on a different hill of olives we don’t often hear about.  This Sultana, a pseudo-Christ riding a luxury car with a group of children tugging at a rope (which had a symbolic meaning which only Fr Sultana seems to understand), created a rumpus all over the archipelago.  An act reminiscent of buffaloing if you had to ask me.

So many people, many of which are practicing Catholics in Gozo and Malta found this ritual preposterous, outlandish and bizarre except for some apologists who felt that the coming of the new Archpriest merits this jesting.  Even the Archbishop of Malta, who might I add has no jurisdiction on the Gozitan diocese, felt this matter is problematic when he was quoted as saying; ‘…priests should take into their consideration that each choice has its consequences and [are] also up to interpretation by others.’ (Newsbook - 17/11/2018). 

The discomfort in all of this is that the Catholic Church, that claims to be the intermediary with God, keeps messing up big time, and we seem to be getting used to it.  After the flak he got Sultana throws the ‘pizza Porsche’ dig on his Facebook Page – how nifty.  He seems to have got the message of his Bishop spot on (!) because after this bedlam, the ToM goes on to quote the Gozitan Bishop in a speech he gave during Sultana’s instalment ceremony; ‘Mgr Grech had warned of the scourge of “clericalism” whereby priests felt superior to others, including to their congregation. He urged the new archpriest to seek out the poor, as Jesus had done, rather than favour the wealthy.’  On the other hand, the Gozitan Curia took the side of Sultana that this was a “regional display of joy”, (Times of Malta on-Line - Thursday, November 15, 2018).  So much confusion and inconsistency it is unbelievable.  Sultana should do the right thing and ask for an apology and I think the Gozitan Curia should force it out of him.  If not, he should be made to wrench a truck-full of people who are dedicated to the Church and what they get are such acts of pre-eminence and ascendancy.

The lack of sensitivity and the ambition for authority is nowhere near abating in some avenues of the Catholic Church.  Whilst Pope Francis preaches humbleness his foot soldiers act like feudal lords.  This might be something Sultana and his cronies might consider reflecting on;

In this quote, Pope Francis condemns those who do not heed God’s command in Proverbs 3:5 to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, on your own intelligence do not rely.” “Clerics feel they are superior, they are far from the people;” they have no time to hear the poor, the suffering, prisoners, the sick,” Francis said. Catholic News Agency (Accessed 18/11/2018);

“Fr Sultana, not that I’m very impressed by your acumen and sense of judgement but if there is any astuteness to contend with you might as well-read Proverbs 3:5 until you understand that this calls for an apology.”

The Church is fading and what we are left with are wags.