A source of peace
The following is a purely personal reflection (not a debate) triggered by the articles of Edward Caruana Galizia and Joanna Williams and Christian Colombo (‘The gap in morality’, January 8).
Regarding humanism: Jesus is a foremost humanist. He always called himself “son of man” even though he was crucified for claiming to be God.
He considers anyone worthy of eternal life if s/he cared for people in their human needs, even if s/he has never seen or met him (Jesus) (Mt 25:31ff).
He said: “This is my commandment, love one another as I have loved you” (John 15: 12). He synthesises the two commandments to love God and neighbour into an all-inclusive one: love each other.
When we love anyone genuinely, Jesus considers it done to himself. “You have done it to me,” he tells those whom he sends to heaven because of their loving and merciful heart towards him. They are surprised at his words since they had never seen or met him (Mt 25: 31ff).
Regarding the mysterious “gap”, or void, left by the abandonment of faith in Jesus Christ: nothing and no one can replace faith in him.
God has created us for Himself and our hearts cannot rest except in Him, said St Augustine. All those who have had a taste of God agree.
God so loved the world that He gave it his only begotten son so that those who believe in him may have eternal life.
Eternal life, not as pie in the sky when we die but starting from now, in spite of our earthly condition with its limitations, its suffering and its sinfulness.
He who does not believe is depriving himself of faith, which is the greatest loss one can experience (Cf John 3 16 ff). Faith is a mystery that can never be appreciated enough and its loss is a tragedy which can never be mourned enough.
It has been, for me, the source of peace, even in abject conditions. It has been the good news I have always enjoyed and tried to share these 88 years of mine. It now gives me tremendous expectations of a blissful eternity with my Beloved through the transformative power of His love, which we call purgatory.
ALBERT SAID –Naxxar
Could priests marry?
This has been the question which has surfaced in recent weeks in Malta. Well, St Paul seems to throw great light on this issue in his letter which we read as the second reading of the fourth Sunday in Ordinary time:
“Brothers and sisters: I should like you to be free of anxieties. An unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord. But a married man is anxious about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and he is divided. An unmarried woman or a virgin is anxious about the things of the Lord, so that she may be holy in both body and spirit. A married woman, on the other hand, is anxious about the things of the world, how she may please her husband. I am telling you this for your own benefit, not to impose a restraint upon you, but for the sake of propriety and adherence to the Lord without distraction” (1 Cor 7:32-35).
Are we courageous to let this biblical Pauline advice say something about and enlighten us on this matter of priestly celibacy?
Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap – Marsa