Archbishop Joseph Mercieca took the opportunity of his meeting with parish priests during the annual Candlemas ceremony to pass on two strong messages.
The first was that, over the last few years, initiatives linking charity with prizes have undermined the real value of what helping others in need really means. The second was that parishes should learn to understand what is more important when it comes to spending money – Mgr Mercieca did not mince his words when he said it would be better if less money was spent on fireworks and more was given to help the needy.
Mgr Mercieca’s thoughts can be encapsulated in the following sentences: “I am sorry to say that in recent years, new circumstances have emerged where the beauty of the Christian value of charity has been dampened by ideas and initiatives that link charity with the lure of winning prizes…
“I am happy when I see less money and energy being spent on fireworks, that end up in smoke, and instead being used to invest in parish initiatives to help those suffering… I hope this example is followed… The fire of Christian love that emerges from helping others in need is of more value than all the fire(works) that any parish can have during the feast.”
Mgr Mercieca linked the value of charity with two trends that we have in Malta: fireworks and
fund-raising activities. The first is a traditional aspect of our parish feasts, while the latter is a relatively new phenomenon that, nonetheless, has changed the way charity is perceived.
The Malta Independent has often described the type of fund-raising activities that lure people into giving money in the hope of winning a prize – and this could be a car or a trip abroad – as another form of gambling. People do give because they want to help others, but many do so and expect something in return.
This can be seen from the fact that fund-raising activities that include star prizes manage to bring in much more money than those that do not have any prizes at all.
The value of charity is a different matter altogether. It is not giving something to expect something in return. It is giving what you can spare, and sometimes even more than this, to help others who are in greater need than yourself, without trying to get something back except a deep feeling of happiness.
“To seek creative and effective ways of encouraging people to contribute more is in itself a good thing. But when such initiatives are linked with prize-winning we are not living the value of charity in the right way,” Mgr Mercieca stressed.
The same goes for the money spent on fireworks every summer. Mgr Mercieca was very careful in his choice of words. He did not say that fireworks should be abolished, but he certainly encouraged parishes to spend less money on them and instead use the money to help those in need within the parish.
“Every parish member should be helped to understand that the parish should ensure that there is no one who is losing his dignity because of his situation,” Mgr Mercieca said.
No doubt, Mgr Mercieca has touched on two sensitive issues that have unfortunately become part and parcel of our society.
It is hard to change something that is as ingrained in our lives as fireworks during feasts have been for so many years. But parish priests should be able to lend a helping hand in this regard. After all, they are the ones who should be very much in control as to what goes on during the parish feast. Tighter controls over the budget used by fireworks enthusiasts who want to spare no expense on their hobby will help in no small way to put the Archbishop’s words into practice.
It might be more difficult to control fund-raising events, because apart from those organised by the Church itself, the Curia has no say in them whatsoever. It should therefore be up to the organisers to find other “creative and effective” means – instead of giving prizes – to attract more contributions.