In a survey concurrent with the Mass attendance census, 95 per cent of respondents said they believe in God and 92 per cent said they are Catholic. This study provides positive pointers on which one can build, although this is a complex issue.

There are many priests who celebrate Mass where they present Jesus as our friend with whom we can have a relationship but, obviously, there is ample room for improvement.

In my opinion, it is better to promote Mass as a fulfilling experience rather than a duty. The human being needs to be joyful and seeks happiness and encouragement to overcome even the most difficult situations.

A role model of a convinced Catholic is Fr Robert Galea, the Maltese-Australian priest who participated in the World Youth Day on January 23 saying that his purpose is to give people Jesus. His song – Here I am – was written with a very clear goal: to win over more young people: “We want to touch the hearts of young people using their own language and contagious rhythm. The new evangelisation consists precisely in this: presenting the eternal message of God’s love, in formats and in languages that can fill young people with enthusiasm.”

Making the celebration of Mass a meaningful experience of faith and worthwhile human experience to be reflected in our daily lives is a challenging and fulfilling task. Its degree of success depends on – in addition to prayers, of course – a devised strategy, ideally following an in-depth debate encompassing the need to ‘give Jesus to people’ creatively, caringly and effectively and for the whole Catholic community to be worthy witnesses of God’s love.