This is an ideal time for reflection for the local Church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The Church was instituted to spread the good news of the Gospel. Fr Joe Borg in his article ‘Ecclesiastical blood transfusions’ (The Sunday Times of Malta, August 17) offered proposals on how to communicate better the fundamentals of the Christian message.
Faith is a relationship with God. Do all Catholics and non-Catholics for that matter know what this means? Recently Gozo Bishop Mario Grech – referring to a comment by a radio listener on the lack of awareness of the reality of hell – said that it could be that there are many who do not know about hell but there are even more who do not know about God’s great love for us.
Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna prior to his ordination said that communication for the Church is a continuous challenge: “We have a product which is extraordinary and we have to get our act together to bring it to as many people as possible.”
In this same interview (The Sunday Times of Malta, October 24, 2012), Mgr Scicluna referred to the importance of passing on a message in a language people understand and in this respect Archbishop Paul Cremona’s smile was a good step forward. This enhances other characteristics of his leadership. He is a gift of the Holy Spirit to this country and so are priests like Fr Rene Camilleri and Fr Joe Borg, together with many others who speak of the vibrancy and creativity necessary for effective communication.
Let us be united and begin a new chapter in evangelisation inspired by the dynamic document by Pope Francis – The Joy of the Gospel (Evangeli Gaudium) for a better world.