Who stands to gain if Gozo is no longer considered as a separate diocese? To be more specific, which church or parish will become the leading administration centre of that island? Could it be that ancient pique is fomenting certain actions to regain superiority?

Having said all this, if both islands are united into one diocese, would there be any scope for an ‘archbishop’? In all probability Malta would be downgraded to just an ‘ordinary’ bishop who would form part of one of the Sicilian archdioceses.

I hope that those involved in the selection of a new archbishop will delve deeply into the pique, animosity (if not hatred) between a number of parishes. These attitudes in these islands are not conductive to the religion of Jesus Christ, a religion built on love and friendship.

Once again I implore the selectors and the new archbishop to study how to eliminate, or at least minimise, the damaging undercurrent of pique by pitting saints against each other.

If we truly believe in the community of saints, we must accept the fact that all the saints are in heaven and it is a sacrilegious act to use saints as a cover for human envy and enmity.