This year’s Lenten pastoral Letter written by our Bishops Paul Cremona O.P, Archbishop of Malta; Mario Grech, Bishop of Gozo; and Charles J. Scicluna, Auxiliary Bishop and Vicar General of Malta, is centred on the theme “Our Share in Building Society”.
Its subject matter is catchy. Christians are neither society’s parasites nor casual critics. On the contrary, Christians are active protagonists in bringing about that much-needed constant societal renewal. For that matter, I cannot fail from quoting that inspirational second century apologetic document, technically entitled “The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus”, but commonly known as “A Letter to Diognetus”, to strengthen my convinced position.
“There is something extraordinary about their (Christian) lives.
“They live in their own countries as though they were only passing through. They play their full role as citizens, but labour under all the disabilities of aliens. Any country can be their homeland, but for them their homeland, wherever it may be, is a foreign country. Like others, they marry and have children, but they do not expose them.
“They share their meals, but not their wives. They live in the flesh, but they are not governed by the desires of the flesh. They pass their days on earth, but they are citizens of heaven. Obedient to the laws, they yet live on a level that transcends the law. Christians love all men, but all men persecute them. “Condemned because they are not understood, they are put to death, but raised to life again. They live in poverty, but enrich many; they are totally destitute, but possess an abundance of everything. They suffer dishonour, but that is their glory. They are defamed, but vindicated. A blessing is their answer to abuse, deference their response to insult. For the good they do they receive the punishment of malefactors, but even then they rejoice, as though receiving the gift of life.”
Some may easily and rightly criticize my outright application of Diognetus’ description of Christians as automatically applying to all those who are baptized as Christians on our islands. In their pastoral letter, the Bishops appropriately pointed out that the “alarming ... web of organised crime”, the “rise in domestic violence and brutal attacks on elderly persons”, and the “cases of corruption which are of an almost institutional nature”, which are tacitly conveying the destructive message that “there is nothing wrong with stealing, evading taxes, taking false oath in court”, should be immediately dealt with.
Their pastoral concern motivated them to promote an education of “a culture of honesty and integrity”. The two main ways which our Bishops propose to propagate this healing culture are God’s Word and the holy sacraments.
But what our Bishops mean by authenticity? They duly reply: “By ‘authentic’ we mean that which is true as opposed to that which is false. The authenticity of each and every one of us as individuals can mark the authenticity of the society we form part of and in which we live. Sunday after Sunday during the coming Lenten season, the Word of God will appeal to us to be more authentic. Authenticity is a great virtue we require so that we do not hide behind our own mask, which does not permit us to reveal our true self. Authenticity means that we are not afraid to admit the truth about ourselves, both individually and also as a society, even if this truth is unattractive.”
When we Christians fail to be honest we cause scandal because we lack constancy. This was the thrust of Pope Francis’ homily delivered at a Mass he celebrated at Casa Santa Marta last month. The Holy Father said: “An inconsistent Christian does so much harm. Scandal kills. So many times we’ve heard ‘But Father, I believe in God, but not in the Church, because you Christians say one thing and do another.’ And also, ‘I believe in God, but not in you.’ This is because of inconsistency.”
Are we ready to heal our society and the Church by thinking, feeling and acting as Christians? Will this Lent make us grow in the virtue of authenticity by being consistent in our Christian commitment?
Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap
San Gwann