I found the editorial A Most Humble Guardian (February 9) about the death of Fra Andrew Bertie, Grand Master of the Knights of Malta, most interesting. His full title says it all: His Most Eminent Highness the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta, the Most Humble Guardian of the Poor of Jesus Christ.

Centuries ago, the military mission of the Order was equal in importance to caring for the needs of the sick, the poor and the oppressed. The Order's devotion to the cardinal virtues of Christianity has been synonymous with the famous eight-pointed Maltese Cross. I am confident that today's Knights of Malta will continue that "humble guardianship". I am a papal knight in the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem as well as a member of the Brotherhood of Blessed Girard, which is the relief organisation of the Order of Malta. Helping the sick, elderly, refugees, children, the homeless and those with special needs has become a central mission of the Order. We have the motto: Tuitio fidei et obsequium pauperum - Protection of faith and service to the poor. To follow the teachings of Jesus Christ is to follow a path of faith, hope and charity towards our fellow man.