Archbishop Paul Cremona yesterday quashed speculation he would be resigning for health reasons, saying any decision on his future rested with the Pope.
Mgr Cremona was commenting last night when asked by this newspaper about the remarks made by The Sunday Times of Malta columnist and blogger, Fr Joe Borg about the leadership of the Church in Malta.
A former public relations officer to Archbishop Emeritus Joseph Mercieca, Fr Borg compared the Church to the Nationalist Party’s demoralised state in 1976 when leader George Borg Olivier had suffered his second consecutive defeat at the polls.
I hold this position in obedience [to the Pope’s wish] and will only leave in obedience
His remarks stoked controversy and fuelled speculation that Mgr Cremona’s health was hindering him in carrying out his duties.
After five days of silence by the ecclesiastical authorities, Times of Malta approached the Archbishop at the end of a prayer vigil held at the Sanctuary of Our Lady in Mellieħa last night.
The prayer vigil was held in solidarity with persecuted Christians around the world and to promote world peace.
Mgr Cremona was asked whether he was feeling pressured to remain in office fearing that stepping down for health reasons would convey the message that he would have abandoned his mission at the helm of the Maltese archdiocese.
“I hold this position in obedience [to the Pope’s wishes] and will only leave in obedience,” the Archbishop replied.
“Since the Pope told me to stay on, I acquiesced to his wish. The wish, the idea, is not mine but it is the Pope’s. I shall remain for as long as the Pope asks me to,” Mgr Cremona said.
Earlier, he urged the faithful who, like him, “were also suffering for the strengthening of the Church” not to be disheartened and to follow the example of Christians who were being persecuted.
In his address in the presence of top ecclesiastical authorities, including Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna, the Archbishop remarked that there was no comparison between the situation in Malta and in those countries where Christians were persecuted.
Draw courage that Church is being strengthened through our suffering
The violence they were suffering, he said, stemmed from intolerance, the lust for power, jealousy and hatred. They were sentiments that could also exist here and fuel conflict, the only difference being that no one was bearing arms in Malta, Mgr Cremona said.
Nevertheless, he went on, many Christians in Malta were still suffering both “within the Church and also for the Church”.
“Let’s draw courage from the fact that our Church is being strengthened through our suffering,” Mgr Cremona told the crowd of about 1,000 faithful present for the vigil.
He also spoke of the “suffering” being faced by parish priests and other members of the clergy who were working in “difficult and unfavourable circumstances”.
Though no direct reference was made, his remarks come in the wake of a controversial decision that saw the Mġarr parish priest being replaced fewer than six months from his appointment.
Though no official reason was given by the Church, it appears there was discontent among some parishioners who objected to his style of leadership from the very start.