That Bishop Nikol Cauchi made an impact on those over whom he was given charge to teach and lead in the way of truth and goodness was self-evident last week. His diocesan brethren – and those across the narrow channel that separates Gozo from Malta – mourned his death, celebrated his life and praised him in a fulsome manner.
Cauchi knew his flock and called many of those who made up that collective by their name – and they recognised his voice. Is there a greater tribute to be paid a bishop whose role is to “proclaim the Gospel of Christ to men”, a role that the Decree on Bishops in Vatican II states unambiguously is “one of the principal duties of bishops”? For these should call on men to believe or should strengthen them when they already have a living faith (expounding to them) “the whole mystery of Christ, that is, all those truths ignorance of which means ignorance of Christ”.
The man who takes up takes up this office takes up the Cross as he is called upon to explain – in the words of the Decree – “how high a value, according to the doctrine of the Church, should be placed on the human person, on his liberty and bodily life; how highly we should value the family, its unity and stability, the procreation and education of children, human society with its laws and professions, its labour and leisure, its arts and technical inventions, its poverty and abundance”.
A bishop, then, is called upon to teach, to preach, to lead, when times are good, when times are difficult, when the signs of the times flash in direct contradiction to what the Church holds closest and dearest to it mission on this earth, when it is necessary to flow against the stream.
From what I read about him, from what people wrote about him – you needed only to visit the online comments to become aware in what esteem he was held – and from what he himself wrote in the line of duty, so to speak, it was clear last week and will remain clear, that Cauchi read the times, understood the difficulties of sanctification and recognised the arduous task placed upon him “to make of one mind in prayer all those who (were) entrusted to (his) care”.
It is a measure of the man, of his intellect, which was sharp and deep, of his humility, simple holiness and pastoral care, that he left so affectionate a mark behind him.
Of wings and ships
It is one of those ironies we can do without; as Air Malta faces a future that can only be prosperous if those involved in seeing the national carrier through a rough patch can summon the wisdom and responsibility demanded of them, Viset and our cruiser liner industry are riding the crest of a wave.
Air Malta is now best left to the common sense of those who understand the problem and the wit to arrive at a satisfactory restructuring programme that will inevitably involve pain and gain. The next three months will witness a hard slog and an outcome that will offer new opportunities under changed circumstances.
Viset, on the other hand, has every reason to feel chirpy; it seems to sail from success to success, its performance justifying its own and the massive investments government poured in to transform our harbour into a truly grand one. These have worked; anybody who approaches Malta by sea, particularly if he arrives here at night, is struck by the sheer beauty of bastion and light and the almost Venetian attractiveness of what was once a dismal wharf front. The magic has rubbed off on those who matter when it comes to bringing guests to our shores: MSC Cruises and TUI Cruises, which operates the liner Mein Schiff and is about to about to add a Mein Schiff sibling to its fleet.
MSC (Hamilton Travel is its exclusive agent) and Viset signed a contract last week that will bring to Malta 150,000 visitors for each of the next five years. Mein Schiff (SMS Travel) has decided to transfer its operation to Malta from next May, making the island its port of call. These excellent developments and MSC’s additional decision – subject to negotiations – to register part of its huge fleet of ships under the Maltese flag, are encouraging; not only for the Maltese economy – it is estimated that MSC-TUI together will bring in scores of millions of euros over the next five years – but also for Air Malta.
I understand the carrier played a role in persuading TUI to make Malta its port of call and stands to gain from its German routes, whence the overwhelming majority of the cruise liner’s passengers will fly out to begin their holiday.
So, silver linings, too.
Just do it!
Did any of you receive the joke sent out by e-mail about the Red Indian who was asked why he had given his wife the name Four Horses? They expected him to say that it was because she was fleet of foot, noble, brave, loyal; something along those lines. The answer was altogether more prosaic. “Well”, he said, “she’s nag-nag-nag-nag.”
I’m beginning to think the opposition could easily wear that name. Its constant nagging over the contract for the extension of theDelimara power station is a case in point. I suspect that it will be for Joseph Muscat what VAT was for Alfred Sant prior to the 1996 general election; and as misguided. The award of this contract was referred to the Auditor-General for investigation after accusations of corruption were made.
The investigation involved the detailed scrutiny of different stages in the evolution of that process, 10 in all, as well as equally detailed questioning of more than a score of people who took part in sifting through each of those stages and on each of which they arrived at unanimous decisions.
It lasted for nearly one year at the end of which the Auditor-General concluded that he found nothing to indicate that the tender process had been corrupted at any stage, still less that he had an iota of evidence to take to the Commissioner of Police for him to take action.
The opposition would not accept this and continued to refuse to do so after the Auditor General gave evidence, last week, before the Public Accounts Committee, which is chaired by a member of the opposition. Nor has it taken the bull by the horns and shown that it is in possession of evidence that goes counter to the conclusions arrived at by the Auditor General.
It would do itself and the rest of us a world of good if it could substantively demolish the Auditor General’s position; by refraining from this course of action, certainly not out of any squeamish regard for the government, and going for the dung-flinging option instead, it is clear that Labour’s VAT moment is back. Ultimately, that backfired rather badly.
The extension to the Delimara power station and the parallel closure of the Marsa power station are now vital requirements for the country’s development in terms of energy and in the context of a healthier environment around the harbour areas; never mind the removal of an eyesore that militates against plans for the continuation of the harbour’s regeneration.
This world
Whenever a natural disaster strikes, as it did last January in Haiti, the international community rushes to help the victim country.
Perhaps ‘rush’ does not quite describe the activity that followed the Haitian earthquake; for weeks it seemed as if coordinated aid was suffering from a disconnect. What was worse in this particular tragedy is that the world still seems not to have got things right in that tortured land.
If the earthquake was bad enough, the help that trickled to the stricken country was not good enough. Even now, 10 months later, there are more than a million-and-a-half Haitians living in camps and none too well.
Rainstorms have added to the shambles – as everybody knew they would – and still the world has been unable to get it right; not the UN, not the US under the leadership of President Barack Obama, not the EU under the leadership – of who? – not Russia or China or India or Brazil have been able to get sufficiently to grips with a situation to which has now been added deadly outbreak of cholera.
You would think that a global community which includes such giants as the G20 could have, by now, helped Haitians with enough shelter and hospital care, fresh water and hygiene facilities to prevent the climbing scale of deaths being inflicted by cholera; alarmingly, you would be wrong
You would think that governments aside, 10 billionaires could have, by now, paid for the transportation of a million mobile homes to the island while 20 more could have knocked the infrastructure into shape; once more, you would be wrong.
And if you wish to know what’s wrong with the world, watch the way it has failed with such thunderous success to bring Haiti back on to its feet. The place no longer ranks as a good photo-op, which just about sums up those who enjoyed them when the drama first began.
The Secretary-General of the UN, the leaders of the Western and Asian world, the international community, have retreated into a collective state of dumbness and numbness.