The Constitution gives us ample reason to see the transition period within Malta’s Catholic Church as something that is wider in importance than an issue for our Catholic community only.
This would be especially so in a Malta, which has embraced in full the freedom of every faith and that of the expression of views differing from the Catholic doctrine.
The Constitution, however, also tells us the single biggest faith of the Maltese remains the Catholic faith and, as such, it is something that remains central to the social texture of the Maltese nation.
Equally true is that the Constitution clearly defines Malta as a State regulated and ruled only by what the democratically elected institutions decide and this is to be limited only by the strict interpretation of fundamental human rights.
Therefore, in a pluralistic and increasingly secular society, Malta should hope its new pastor would be a figure who would personify, firstly, the value of ecumenism in the sense of a genuine drive of true respect, tolerance and, above all, dialogue between all faiths within the island.
Secondly, it needs be a figure who opens the Church to a rational dialogue with society in a language which appeals to all and which explains the reasons of faith.
The Catholic Church has been for too long associated with confrontation, particularly during electoral contests.
The outgoing archbishop had started his mission full of promises, reminding me very much of the smiling pontiff, Pope John Paul I. Mgr Paul Cremona has an infectious smile, which engages anyone around him. His warmth of approach with people is that of a pastor who is very comfortable in reaching out to all.
So many returned that very smile by reaching out their hand or that of their children in a friendly and warm, welcoming gesture in reaction to a blessing or even a friendly pat.
The new archbishop also showed early signs of adopting the style of a pastor who was more comfortable with his faithful than with the corridors of power within the Curia.
It is a paradox that many had prayed for such an unworldly pastoral figure as archbishop, thinking that Malta had progressed enough socially that open cultural confrontations were past us and that the Church could now take in full its constitutional rule of advising society on those principles that were good and those which were not so good.
The Church needs to collectively use itsmind as much as its faith
Of course, the so-called divorce referendum changed all that and it also changed our unworldly pastor and this not for the better.
Back were days of confrontation between Catholics and liberals obfuscating the fact that many Catholics can, at one and the same time, be conservative in their personal life choices but also believe in a society in which liberal values can be allowed for non-believers.
The Church, therefore, found itself in need of strong leadership to first of all understand the significance of the divorce referendum result and what it told us about the Maltese society.
This did not happen. The Church needs to rapidly enter into a dialogue with its faithful to understand what its position in society should be after what can only be defined as an electoral defeat.
Very unfortunately, there was no post-mortem follow-up of any significance between the faithful and their leaders. It seemed as if the Church had retreated from any thinking process in the delusion that life could return to its normal parameters.
Was all this to be blamed on our unworldly pastor? The answer is simple: of course not.
The Church is a very complex community; in fact, it is with great difficulty that it can be defined as an organisation in the sense our political parties could be so defined.
Yet, there were hundreds of people who were clamouring internally for a significant internal dialogue to follow a new path in this ever-changing world of ours.
There is no one personality, however strong and worldly, who alone will put the Catholic Church back in its natural role within our society, namely as a moral, spiritual force to be reckoned with.
It is the Church as a whole that needs be clear minded on when to speak to society on moral issues and when to leave the Maltese, Catholics included, to exercise electoral rights responsibly. The new pastor needs, however, to be the promoter of such a process.
The Church, therefore, irrespective of the person who will be chosen as new pastor, needs to collectively use its mind as much as its faith if it is to enjoy a greater appeal within the wider Maltese society. The example of Pope Francis beckons.