Last Wednesday, during Pope Benedict's week-long visit to the US, he told US bishops that "people today need to be reminded of the ultimate purpose of their lives". During several other occasions he highlighted the challenges involved in bringing an ardent faith to a secular culture. While addressing a welcoming crowd who waited for him near the White House he implored Americans not to hesitate to bring moral arguments rooted in Biblical faith into their public discourse.
Although the Pope was speaking in the US his words apply to Catholics everywhere... including Malta.
He spoke at some length to the US bishops about this topic. The Pope observed that America's brand of secularism poses a particular problem: it allows for professing belief in God, and respects the public role of religion and the Churches, but at the same time it can subtly reduce religious belief to a lowest common denominator. Faith becomes a passive acceptance that certain things 'out there' are true, but without practical relevance for everyday life. The result is a growing separation of faith from life. Benedict made it clear that the Church's task is to close that separation.
The Pope also gave three specific examples of areas where the principles of Catholic social teaching should be applied: placing proper moral restraints on medical research, preserving the family, and promoting a culture of life. In his discussion of family life, the Pope went on to observe that even Catholic couples need a stronger understanding of sacramental marriage; he noted the "alarming decrease in the number of Catholic marriages in the United States together with an increase in cohabitation". The Pope told the bishops that it is their task to boldly proclaim arguments based on faith and reason in favour of the institution of marriage.
Later, he addressed the tendency that "far from a Catholic approach to 'thinking with the Church', each person believes he or she has a right to pick and choose". He criticised these Catholics who have a 'supermarket' mentality to faith: "Is it consistent to profess our beliefs in church on Sunday, and then during the week to promote business practices or medical procedures contrary to those beliefs? Is it consistent for practising Catholics to ignore or exploit the poor and the marginalised, to promote sexual behaviour contrary to Catholic moral teaching, or to adopt positions that contradict the right to life of every human being from conception to natural death? Any tendency to treat religion as a private matter must be resisted."
The Pope's words and deeds on the scandal of child sex-abuse by members of the US clergy were of extreme importance and are another indication at the highest level that this abuse has to be combated all the way. Although the abuse was limited it was nevertheless abdominal. The Pope expressed his "deep shame" on the scandal, which he conceded had been "sometimes very badly handled".
His meeting with a number of people who had been abused was dramatic, yet held in private, as it should have been. A statement released after the meeting said: "They prayed with the Holy Father, who afterwards listened to their personal accounts and offered them words of encouragement and hope."
Nevertheless the Pope quite rightly pointed out another type of child abuse that is so public and diffused that some people tend to forget about it.
"Children deserve to grow up with a healthy understanding of sexuality and its proper place in human relationships," the Pope said. "They should be spared the degrading manifestations and the crude manipulation of sexuality so prevalent today. They have a right to be educated in authentic moral values rooted in the dignity of the human person."
"What does it mean to speak of child protection when pornography and violence can be viewed in so many homes through media widely available today?"
The Pope said: "We need to reassess urgently the values underpinning society, so that a sound moral formation can be offered to young people and adults alike."