Benedict XVI sweeps THE carpet from under divorce lobby’s feet by commending Malta’s stand on indissolubility of marriage
Karl Stagno Navarra
Pope Benedict XVI made a triumphant entry into Valletta yesterday evening, as thousands of people thronged the main roads to the chants of ‘Viva l-Papa’ and waving Maltese and papal flags along the route he was driven in his Popemobile to the Palace where he met local authorities and emerged on the balcony to hear children sing him ‘happy birthday’.
Greeted at the airport by President George Abela, the Pope and his entourage flew to Malta from Rome’s Fiumicino airport, defying the threat of his Alitalia aircraft being grounded because of the enormous ash plume from an Icelandic volcano that has caused travel disruptions in more than 20 European countries.
Many journalists who were meant to cover the Popal visit were left stranded in various airports, an event that was considered by some to be a ‘blessing in disguise’ given the enormous interest stirred by the media for this visit, being the Pope’s first exit from Rome since new sex abuse scandals committed by clerics have rocked the Vatican.
But Pope Benedict stopped short of making any reference to the scandals, even though he had heard Malta’s President George Abela make an important statement about the matter.
Instead, the Pope opted to talk about marriage, and the ‘defence’ he expects the Maltese people to make of the ‘sanctity of marriage’ while also dwelling on the ‘sacredness of human life’.
He said: “Indeed, Malta has much to contribute to questions as diverse as tolerance, reciprocity, immigration, and other issues crucial to the future of this continent. Your Nation should continue to stand up for the indissolubility of marriage as a natural institution as well as a sacramental one, and for the true nature of the family, just as it does for the sacredness of human life from conception to natural death and for the proper respect owed to religious freedom in ways that bring authentic integral development to individuals and society.”
In the context of a politically divided nation, shortly to face an election campaign in which divorce is likely to feature prominently, the Pope’s remarks are likely to be interpreted as a direct interference in the country’s political affairs.
Opposition leader Joseph Muscat has already promised that he would propose divorce legislation if elected prime Minister, and that he would allow his Parlaimentary Group a free vote on the issue.
For all this, it was a media-conscious President George Abela who upstaged the Pope, with a speech many foreign journalists found more intriguing than Pope Benedict’s own address.
“Those of us who believe are fortified by these fundamental values enunciated by the Church and, though we acknowledge that church members, even its ministers, may at times, unfortunately go astray, we are left in no doubt that these values have universal application and their validity transcends both time and space,” the President said,
“It would be wrong in my view to try to use the reprehensible indiscretions of the few to cast a shadow on the Church as a whole. The Catholic Church remains committed to safeguarding children, all vulnerable people and seeing that there is no hiding place for those who seek to do harm. It is therefore the Church and even the State’s duty to work hand in hand to issue directives and enact legislation so that effective, transparent mechanisms are set-up together with harmonized and expeditious procedures in order to curb cases of abuse so that justice will not only be done but seen to be done.”
This candid reference to the ongoing sex abuse scandal contrasted sharply with the Pope’s studied avoidance of the same issue.
The President also dwelt on marriage and what he defined as the ‘secularization’ of the Maltese family, faced by influences from “Western-world lifestyles.”
He stressed that the majority of Maltese still believe in monogamous marriage, based on the relationship between a man and a woman, open to the pro-creation of children, and consequently to the formation of a family, the bedrock of a nation,” he said.
Escorted by 12 police out-rider motorcycles, the Pope was driven in his Popemobile through a number of localities where hundreds greeted him with flowers, flags and in some places even band-marches were played.
The air of festivity that gripped the nation yesterday evening impressed many in the Pope’s entourage, as a deafening sound of children filled St George’s Square and literally left the Pope speechless.
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