An anti-divorce billboard, which the parish priest sees as a way of delivering a message to his congregation, is again on display at the Żebbuġ church parvis.

“We live in a free society and are not imposing anything... Why shouldn’t we give direction? Then people can decide for themselves. An informed conscience will allow people to make up their minds... And for those who are Catholic, it is important that the Church’s position is clear,” parish priest, Fr Daniel Cardona, said when contacted yesterday.

The billboard consists of a quotation from a letter the bishops sent to priests and reads: “The divorce mentality irreparably corrodes the bond of marriage and the introduction of divorce through civil law will always weaken the way we understand and experience everlasting marriage.”

This is the third time the parish has mounted an anti-divorce billboard. The previous two had stirred controversy because one said God did not want divorce and the other likened divorce to a disease.

Fr Cardona said the billboard now on display was merely meant to transmit a message to his congregation. “It is based on a pastoral letter sent to priests about the effect of divorce on society... I believe the billboard is a way of delivering a message. Some agree, others disagree,” he said, adding he felt it was his duty to pass on his message to his congregation.

“I am convinced that, apart from the religious argument, there is the effect on society and divorce will be detrimental to our country. As a citizen, I believe the introduction of divorce, in the circumstances of our country, will do more bad than good,” he said.

Asked if the billboard was meant to influence people’s vote, given the May 28 referendum on a divorce Bill now before Parliament, Fr Cardona said anyone who expressed an opinion in public, such as columnists, might influence the vote.

In January, a billboard that decried “the injection of the divorce disease” was removed from the church parvis within 24 hours. It featured a man, wearing a tie, injecting a freakish-looking youngster with a syringe that had divorce written on it while ­holding in the other hand a paper reading “Private ­Member’s Bill”, a clear reference to the divorce Bill presented by Nationalist MP Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, whose constituency includes Żebbuġ.

Last July, the parish displayed a billboard saying in large black letters: “Divorce: God doesn’t want it”. The Curia distanced itself from the matter. In the January incident, a Curia spokesman washed his hands of the parish’s “initiative”.