It has been revealed recently that St John Paul II was a visionary of the Lord Jesus and Mary who prophesied to him that Europe would be more profoundly and grievously wounded by Islam than by the communist and Nazi totalitarianism of the last century.

After one of the visions, the Pope spoke to Mgr Mauro Longhi, who was with him at the time, and said that this invasion must not be fought with arms - which we in Malta certainly could not afford - but by our faith, which we should live in an integral way.

In Malta, those who have abandoned the Church's teachings are people raised in an irreligious or non-religious home and who have overwhelmingly and willingly fallen out of the ranks of those having a very weak commitment to their boyhood religion. Over time, people have become increasingly detached from their scant religious culture, although it just wouldn't be Christmas without decorations, a Christmas tree and perhaps a crib.

On the other hand, our representatives in Parliament neglected their appreciation of the moral and human values sustaining our Christian heritage dating back two millennia and never gave morality derived from religion the chance to shape our laws.

This was certainly one of the main reasons why Malta has lately experienced such an evident moral decadence.

Is it not painful to think that the lingering obsession of our MPs with proposing and enacting further laws which do not conform to Catholic principles is a paradox of the authentic faith as it should be witnessed?

Has Malta taken the plunge into moral deterioration before the mainland of Europe?

John Azzopardi

Zabbar