The appointment of Mgr Charles Scicluna as Auxiliary Bishop to Archbishop Paul Cremona reminds me of St Augustine when he was appointed coadjutor to Valerius, Bishop of Hippo.

Mgr Scicluna has promised to be faithful to the Maltese archdiocese. Augustine can show him the way to be a good shepherd.

St Augustine used to teach thus: “Since I accepted to put on authority over you on my shoulders, by God’s mercy I have been ordained bishop. The first thing he who presides must know is that he is a servant to others... he must not refuse this because the Lord of Lords did not refuse to be our servant. In fact, as we read in the Gospel, he who is the first among you must be the servant (Luke 22:24)...”

The bishop must be a good shepherd. He must be as Christ giving his life to others. Augustine says: “We are yours, your servants, but your companions as well. We are servants, we all have one Lord. We are your servants in Christ. I am your servant for his love. We are your heads and your servants. You need us. Let us think what it means to be a bishop who is placed in authority. When Jesus said to the apostles: ‘Even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many (Matthew, 20-28)’. The Lord served. So he wishes his servants to be” (Sermon 340/a).

According to Augustine, “a bishop who is not a servant is not a bishop... When someone is called to be a bishop, if he is not a good man, he would be unworthy... he must be a master of humility in word and example”. Being a bishop, according to Augustine, is a heavy burden. He accepted the position for the benefit of the Church. He fulfilled many offices – preaching, catechism, formation of the clergy, administration of the Sacraments and, above, all the administration of justice.

Augustine used to say: “Pray for me so that after I preached to others I shall not be a bad man. When you want to be proud, be proud of the Lord. I am among the sinners” (Letters 78:8).