Sincerely and without being sarcastic I admire and pity our members of Parliament. Many of them are in a quandary.

The people in their majority opted for divorce legislation which seems to be at loggerheads with Christ’s teachings. What should the members do, vote as demanded by the public or follow their conscience at all costs? There is no simple answer. Perhaps the easy solution would be to abstain. Another option would be not to call a division but to approve the Bill without a formal final vote, just as it would have been agreed in the committee stage. The problem is because a referendum had been called (consultative or otherwise) and after all, Parliament is there as elected by the people for the people and not for individual consciences and scruples.

Having said all this I want to raise a further conundrum. A number of parliamentarians feel obliged to follow Christ’s teachings, and as good Catholics, this is as it should be. At the same time Christ spoke and taught about other topics and subjects. Now I have to ask the controversial question. Does the conscience affect only divorce or does it follow all Christ’s teachings and declarations?

I cannot imagine true Christians being faithful on one topic while ignoring other factors. Thus to me it seems that these parliamentarians should make a detailed examination of their conscience and find out where Malta is at fault.

I will mention and tackle a hot potato. In the western world there have been many instances of paedophilic clergy. Many instances have been confirmed and the respective diocese is paying damages. Did we have similar instances in Malta? Have we tackled the bull by the horns or, on the excuse of avoiding a scandal, swept the dust under the carpet? Have the police been informed and taken proper action? Are such cases treated in our law courts as if the alleged perpetrators were common people?

There is also the question of what opinion the common man in the street has of our legal system. By no means am I pointing the finger towards the judiciary or any other sector. Law courts are very complex organisations, which in theory are independent but in fact subject to many forces be they administrative or otherwise. Will Parliament ever have the wherewithal, conscience and courage to tackle this complex topic? Christ had spoken specifically about delays in the legal system and of a corrupt judge that did not want to pass judgement against one of his friends.

There are many other instances of Christian thinking that parliamentary conscience does not seem to bother anyone. Conscience in Malta is similar to scruples and used on a cut and paste basis.