The Nadur carnival made headlines and the Church in Malta has been offered another golden opportunity to read the signs of the times and carry on with its internal reforms. The incidents in question demonstrate some of the shortcomings of the Church in a very painful manner. We should however forget the pains and work on the main messages.

These are: there is a clear detachment and even an outright confrontation between “us” and “them”, i.e. between the children of the enlightened society and the Church establishment. The bishops have already embarked on initiatives to promote more involvement, increased ownership and a sense that the Church belongs to us all. There is the need to eliminate the concept of the Church as a service provider and the faithful as the consumers.

The ministers of the Church and particularly their male bias were also clearly targeted. It is not in the hands of our bishops to change the constitution of the Church. But they could enhance the female involvement in leading roles at both parish and diocesan levels.

The Nadur incidents beat pageantry with a worse version of the same kind. Pageantry has become the predominant way how the Church manifests itself in public. Regretfully this is the clearest sign that Christian teachings in Malta are not deeply rooted. The Church must improve the teaching standards of religion at school while it should also develop adult religious programmes with the aim of creating mature Christians.

The provocation of breaking taboos presents a test that gives insight into the principles guiding the first reactions. Even Jesus provoked the religious establishment of his time by cleaning the temple of things that were part and parcel of the cult of the day. We know of the reaction of the religious establishment then. It would be a pity to repeat the same mistakes now. The main function of the Church is to be the clearest sign of the presence of Christ on earth. Church manifestations at village feasts, for instance, are hardly to be seen in this light. And some of the reactions following the Nadur incidents were also far from being inspired by the teachings of Christ.

It was no coincidence that it was at Nadur that revellers hit at the protecting role of religious habit (clothes). Cassocks and investitures should not make a priest or a nun enjoy impunity from prosecution against committed criminal offences. There are hundreds of exemplary priests and nuns but those ones that break the laws of the country should be punished as ordinary citizens. It is also recommendable for the Church to create commissions preferably led by mothers that monitor and save the Church from committing avoidable mistakes in its activities with children and in the care of elderly people.

God can write clear messages on irregular lines and the Nadur incidents contain significant ones pointing towards a much needed reform of the Church in Malta and Gozo.

Agnes Debono

Kercem