In my today commentary in The Sunday Times (Can the political class be saved? http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120729/opinion/Can-the-political-class-be-saved-.430536 ) I commented on the sorry state that our political class is in.
As part of my commentary I referred to a speech delivered by Dr Louis Galea on the occasion of the presentation of the Robert Schuman Medal to President Emeritus Edward Fenech Adami by Joseph Daul, Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, on the 27 May 2012, Valletta.
I promised my readers to give extensive quotes from that address as I believe it to be very pertinent to the current situation. The following has, therefore, the characteristics of a guest commentary. I had to summarise as it would have otherwise be too long. So any lack of clarity is the fault of my summary and not the fault of the original speaker.
On the future of 'Christian Democracy'
"What hope does Christian Democracy bring to the European project...Christian Democracy now morphed under the wider brand People's Party and Democrats?
"Today many are shunning politics. It is true that politics is not the only, or even the most, important motor of change and development. But the political system is fundamental to create the necessary legitimacy for change that spurs sustainable and honest development, prosperity, social justice and cohesion. [Piero Angela, in the book titled 'A Cosa Serve La Politica?] postulates that our modern urban living conditions, our lifestyle and aspirations, depend on very complex and dynamic systems. He argues that, in our modernity, we require an equally sophisticated class of political leadership that can manage these systems.
"I cannot but agree totally with this statement, adding perhaps, that high calibre leadership requires knowledge and competence in specific economic, technological and cultural fields; but it also requires a soul.
"Many of us have chosen to militate in the political field, and to do so in a family which owes its roots to Christian Democracy. ... Could it be that we are also suppressing, abandoning, the ideals and values that have been so dearly cherished by our forefathers?"
What do we stand for?
"How could we pretend to analyse, understand, provide guidance and solutions for our citizens without first reflecting on the transformation necessary in today's political class itself? And a transformation process begs the fundamental question: what 'world view' is going to guide us? Independently of our belief system and of our institutional religion – be it Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist – there are fundamentals we need to rediscover and embrace if we want to share in the responsibility of charting the next steps in human history, in European and Maltese history.
"A pertinent question for us here gathered is: .. Are we still Christian Democrats? What do we stand for? ... Are we still willing to stay true to our core values and principles? ... What world view, what compass, guides our minds and hearts?"
Our world view
"I strongly believe in the distinction between the different and separate roles of Church and State in the management of political and State affairs. But I also believe that a politician who claims to be a Christian cannot simply pay lip service to rites and rituals, but then embrace an attitude of indifference, of 'secularism', in one's world view. Sturzo, Schuman, De Gasperi, Adenauer, Fenech Adami, and many other statesmen, were normal men and women. But could they ever have brought about such positive transformation in their societies, and in Europe, had they adopted an indifferent, secular, world view?
"... I feel we need to reflect on who we are, who authentically we want to be, before we can fruitfully think on what we want to do and why.
"We live in a period of human history where there has been more change than any generation before us had to go through – political, economic, cultural, psychological. Most previous generations lived their lives with one very secure world view, one that most agreed upon... The problem is that all this change is not being accompanied by the transformation required to deal with it, to understand how the universe now holds together, how the beginning is connected to the end, the alpha to the omega.
"I was fortunate to have my childhood embedded in the 'Great Story' of the Crib and the Star of Bethlehem, to which I can relate my humble little life story. Now there seems to be a growing inability to connect, giving us a feeling of confusion, disorientation, of 'disaster', engulfed by 'angst'. Could this be because we are restricting the Good News of the Gospel to the privatised world?
"My personal view is that hope can be found in the talent and potential of our young generations. We need to help them shape their distinct identity . ...We need to help nurture in our young their talents, their ability to overcome fear by hope, to balance pressure with love and sacrifice, and to fight the easy temptation of individualism with actions towards a strong sense of community and solidarity.
"Does Christian Democracy have a role to play in this sense? Is there still a need to experience in our daily work a benevolent universe, where we are the beloved daughters and sons, of a benevolent God... of a Deus amor est? Answering this question should provide us with that infusion of inspiration, for the vision and the strategy to continue shaping a civilised, caring society, both in Malta but more importantly in Europe and the world around us."