Every Gozitan parish should adopt a family of persecuted Christians, such as those fleeing Syria and Iraq, and provide them with shelter and the means to live, Gozo Bishop Mario Grech is proposing.

“If we welcome these people, we would be helping them evade death. I will be writing to the civil authorities and to the apostolic nunciature to inform them of the availability of the local Church and to ask them to help us with this project.”

The sound of trumpets in our feasts reminds me that, in Iraq and Syria, the trumpets of death are being sounded

He said that if the people failed to cooperate the parishes should fork out the funds themselves to offer shelter to the families.

Mgr Grech’s comments followed Archbishop Paul Cremona’s message of solidarity with the poor, which he made the previous day during a pontifical Mass marking Victory Day at Naxxar.

Mgr Cremona also spoke about the importance of every human being receiving due respect and said no form of development or economic progress should come at the detriment of the vulnerable.

The next day, during his homily marking the feast of the Nativity of Our Lady in Xagħra, Mgr Grech said he wanted to see Malta’s Church enlarge “its maternal heart”.

Mother Church should make a preferential choice in favour of those who found themselves in the periphery of existence: those who gave up on life, on the Church, on society and perhaps even on God, he said. There were people who cried so much that they no longer had any tears to shed. There were also people who were materially and intellectually poor while others felt excluded due to sexual, racial or cultural prejudices.

In his heart, he held all those who were victims of the atrocious fighting in Iraq and Syria but, particularly, “our Christian brothers and sisters”. “How can we remain passive when countless of our Christian brothers and sisters who refuse to renounce their faith are being violated and killed,” Mgr Grech asked. “The sound of the trumpets in our feasts reminds me that, in Iraq and Syria, the trumpets of death are being sounded. The firework noises remind me of the noises made by war cannon.”

Mgr Grech expressed his wish as a spiritual leader that the local Church sends a sign of solidarity to these people. “I know the Maltese have a huge heart and can be generous with those in need...”

Meanwhile, Mgr Cremona expressed concern that more people, sometimes entire families, were at risk of poverty and unable to purchase even the basic needs. He called for national unity based on the principles of justice, solidarity and subsidiarity.

Unity was especially important in the context of the many bloodstained conflicts in the Mediterranean basin which, he said, should serve as an eye-opener.

“As we continue to appeal for ceasefire, we should set great store for the value of peace and national unity. Today, I pray to God, through the intercession of Our Lady, Mother of Victories, that our neighbouring countries may once again enjoy peace and that their people can benefit from the fruits of their unity,” he said.

Justice demanded that each and every person received their due as a human being and as a citizen, irrespective of colour, race, gender, religious beliefs or political affiliation. In a fast-paced world, people could easily fall behind, Mgr Cremona said, stressing “we cannot allow” this .

“In a country as small as ours, it is possible that our economy can grow in such a way that is not profitable for the holistic development of the country. If small- and medium-sized enterprises are stifled by the so-called giants of economic development, this could be to the detriment of our country’s economy in the future.”

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.