It used to be the custom for a priest to walk in front of the Pope at his coronation Mass holding aloft a jar of burning spices and chanting to him: “Sic transit gloria mundi”.
It is the intention of this leader to be somewhat the same with regard to Malta’s new archbishop, Paul Cremona.
It is an open secret that since Fr Cremona was announced as the new archbishop he has captivated all those who didn’t know him. His ready smile, his openness, the way he allowed all media to ask any sort of questions they wanted, his evident humbleness and the equally evident fact he never expected to be chosen as bishop – all these have worked very much in his favour, as have the glowing testimonies given by those who knew him.
There has been a huge surge in his favour in public opinion, which is even now ready to overlook the perhaps over-the-top manner of the inauguration celebrations this week, not the young people and the children’s events, but rather the 1950s American-style carcade around Malta on Thursday and what looks like being a long-drawn out celebration on Friday with so many band marches and the reception at the Kazin Malti to round everything off.
Obviously, the new archbishop had nothing to do with these preparations and any incipient triumphalism is definitely not due to him.
Once Friday is over, he must be allowed time and space to settle into his new, unexpected role. And the most the country can expect of him is … that he be himself. Himself as the humble and intelligent man he is. Himself as the parish priest he has been twice. Himself as the post-conciliar priest he has always been. Himself as the man of prayer he has never stopped being.
For all the Hosannas to be chanted on Friday, he comes to head the Maltese church at a time of transition. What we are seeing, nay participating in, is the evolution of Maltese society from a closed, rigid, priest-led society to an open, pluralist, lay society just a few years later than other European societies, but not that much later anyway.
Some of his predecessors thought their role was to try everything to stop the march of history, and they did succeed for a time and at a terrible cost. Fr Cremona is too intelligent to realise that no one, not even a superman or –bishop, can hope to do that.
Yet this is not to say his role would be to acquiesce or to lead a dispirited, losing, Church. There is so much good in people, so much potentiality, so much which can be harnessed for the good of society. Rather than a church that condemns, that excludes, Maltese society today is hungry for someone to inspire trust, optimism, faith, love, respect for one and all and also for those with whom one is not in agreement.
There will be times – there are already issues such as contraception, sex outside marriage, marriage breakdowns – where Maltese society, or significant parts of it, will cut loose from the Church and decide otherwise than what the Church teaches. The choice facing the Church, and its bishop, is whether to stand aside and see itself as the Small Remnant, consigning the rest to eternal damnation, or whether to strive to love those who do not agree with its proposals and to love them with the love of Christ, for themselves. Even in the area of, for instance, marriage breakdown, there is still so much that the Church and the people of the Church can do, rather than just adjudicate marriage tribunals or decide who can receive communion and who can’t.
It is the Maltese Church’s great opportunity that it has been given as its leader a pastor, not a man of the law. A pastor can understand people, can feel their hurt and their anguish. His first reaction is not to throw the Book at them, but rather to hear them out, to speak to them individually, to help ease their pain.
Archbishop Cremona’s great role would thus be ad extra, to speak, dialogue with those already outside the church and to show them all Christ’s great love. To do so, however, he has to tread a careful line so as not to allow himself to be so identified with the church of festas, band marches and a religiosity that is merely cultural.
His role ad intra, inside the Church, must be on the contrary unremitting. There have been, still are, too many abuses going on that scandalise the people. It is not just about paedophilia that the new archbishop must be strong, but on all kinds and sorts of abuse.
Archbishop Cremona begins his ministry with huge good will, not just by those inside the Church, but also from the many other Christians in Malta and even from people of goodwill. He must be himself, a man of God, and trust in Christ and His words all the time, all the days, all the years we all wish him to have as bishop of Malta.