President Abela created shockwaves by citing ‘moral grounds’ in refusing to sign the Bill that would create homosexual civil unions and allow same sex partners to jointly adopt children. I disagree that these unions should be referred to as ‘marriage’. Same sex marriage defies logic. Let’s leave the term ‘marriage’ for the contract between a man and a woman. I do agree with the term civil unions or civil partnerships. It is necessary and only fair that these unions should be legalised.

I also disagree vehemently with same sex couples adopting children. Now the River of Love Christian fellowship has come up with a signed petition of over 10,000 who are against gay adoptions. What are we supposed to do, purr with pleasure if the new President signs the Bill as it is? What the repercussions of introducing this new element in civil society will be, in the future, none of us can foresee. What is certain is that there will be even more confusion. There is certainly need for a more cautious approach in adopting this Bill especially when it comes to adoption.

But what upset me most is the way the comments boards of newspapers which reported this story were full of disparaging remarks about President Abela. Hundreds of comments were uploaded. Only a few supported his stand. So is a President not allowed to follow his conscience?  Let us be clear. Everyone has a conscience, some more elastic than others. Morality has nothing to do with religion. Nor is it the sole domain of the Catholic Church or indeed of ‘mere Christianity’ to borrow a title of one of C.S. Lewis’ books. Atheists and agnostics take moral stands too, not just Catholics.

Societies, ours included, have gone from one extreme to another. From a paternalistic, authoritarian, narrow, judgmental society which tolerated no transgressions, we have now gone to the other extreme when anything and everything is condoned and there are no limitations.

I remember a time when there were traditional moral certainties and the absolutes of good and evil stood out starkly. We had a soul to save. We were not allowed to reconstruct our intellectual universe the way we wished it to be. There were rules: the Ten Commandments, the Seven Deadly sins, the lists of does and don’ts, the values taught to us from babyhood to which we were expected to adhere.

Character and moral fibre were an important part of our education both at home and at school. There were ideals to which you were expected to aspire. There was a benchmark. We were wrapped up in a fabric in which many of us still live today. More often than not the ideals were not reached. But one kept on trying. It was expected of you and you expected it of yourself.

But gradually came the assault against the moral foundations which is slowly but surely destroying our society. The media – not so much the local as the foreign – and the guardians of political correctness have turned traditional values upside down. The lack of any moral compass reflects the culture at large. There is a frightening decline, in fact, a collapse of ethics and morality in business, the professions and everyday transactions. More often than not my word is no longer my bond.

What springs to mind are the various acts of corruption which are almost regarded as normal. There is no need to name them. As these acts of moral violence against society were being enacted, did the protagonists, at some point, not feel a twinge of conscience?

Murders, contracted or otherwise seem to get more gruesome. One murderer cut off the arms of his victim as proof of death to the man who contracted the killing. You can be certain that money is involved. Indigenous moral traditions are in retreat. Our ability to choose the moral environment in which we live is steadily being diminished.

But there are those who defy morals and laws, not just in their illegal conduct but also in their rhetoric. They take drugs and defend their use, they practice sexual promiscuity and glorify it. They cheat others in business. Obscene language has become more common than the common cold and all kinds of transgressions are looked upon almost benignly. The rest of us just look on helplessly.

It has become heretical to question this new morality. “Of course the President should have signed the adoption by same sex couples Bill and asked no questions. How dare he rock the boat and refuse to sign it?” That is the new reasoning.

Each day I look around me at what is happening and listen to the news. Only recently, a Dutchman was boasting on BBC World that he has fathered almost 100 children. The mothers live in different parts of Holland and Europe. He seemed very pleased with himself. I wonder what the children will think of this when they are grown up.

A young mother told me the other day: “It is difficult enough to try and explain God to my children but what could I tell them when I found them staring at two women in their 20s kissing and petting heavily? They can do what they like in their bedroom but not outside it.” We have to try and keep our children innocent for as long as we can but it is becoming more and more difficult.

Each day I find myself repeating: ‘This is not my world and I don’t like it.’ How will future generations survive it all?

Dr Abela did well to go against the grain and stand up for his beliefs. We have to have the courage of our convictions. There are many who are right behind him. Count me as one of them.