Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is in Rome for an official meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. He will also pay his respects to Pope John Paul II when he visits his resting place at the Vatican.

It will be Dr Gonzi’s first official meeting with the German Pontiff. He visited the Vatican when Cardinal Josef Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI, but it is only now, nearly two years down the line, that the two will be meeting face to face in an official meeting.

The Prime Minister’s visit comes during an important period for the Maltese Church, right in between two events that will be remembered for a long time.

It was only last week that it became known that the Blessed Dun Gorg Preca will be the first Maltese saint after the Congregation for the Causes of Saints approved a second miracle attributed to the humble priest who founded the Society for Christian Doctrine in Malta.

And, tomorrow week, Mgr Paul Cremona will be taking over the reins of the Catholic Church in Malta when he is ordained Archbishop of Malta, succeeding Mgr Joseph Mercieca, who has led the Maltese Church for over 30 years, in what should be a ceremony that will be followed by thousands of people.

These two events will, in all probability, be mentioned during the Prime Minister’s meeting with the Pope today. Dr Gonzi will also be taking the opportunity to invite His Holiness to pay a visit to Malta which, if it materialises, will follow the two visits made by Pope John Paul II in May 1990 and May 2001.

During his second visit, Pope John Paul II beatified Dun Gorg Preca and, who knows, maybe a visit by Pope Benedict would coincide with the canonisation of Dun Gorg, although this is highly improbable, considering that normally such events take place at the Vatican. Still, Pope Benedict could choose to visit the islands some time after the canonisation of Dun Gorg, for which a date has not yet been set, however.

Over the years, Malta and the Church have enjoyed excellent relations, although there have also been difficult times, in particular during the 1960s and the 1980s. Today, the Church and the Maltese government have a healthy relationship, which will no doubt be enhanced during today’s meeting at the Vatican.

Some would say that the relationship is perhaps too healthy, in the sense that, at times, the authorities hold back from taking decisions that might place them in confrontation with the Church, such as, for example, the issue of whether divorce should be introduced in Malta.

There is no doubt that the Church is still very influential on the Maltese population, although it must also be admitted that this influence is not as strong as it used to be. The fact that the most recent statistics show that only just over half the population goes to Sunday Mass is a clear indication that the Church is not as dominant as it used to be.

Still, each time the Church speaks, even on matters that are not directly related to religion, it is listened to intently. A recent case in point was the publication by the Diocesan Commission for Justice and Peace of a document on property, a report that created a widespread debate on the subject.

Of course, the number of people who publicly disagree with what the Church says has grown, but at the end of the day, the Church’s teachings and actions are still followed closely by one and all.