A public conversation of sorts is unfolding around the potential acquisition of HSBC Malta by APS Bank, a diocesan enterprise. Two weeks ago, we and 150 others (their number has increased to date), wrote to the bishops of Malta and Gozo, appealing for sober, participative pastoral discernment, alongside expert examination of technical aspects of the acquisition.
The pastoral justification seems to be this: the Church needs stable, independent funding to sustain its charitable, social and welfare services: dividends from a controlling shareholding in a major domestic bank would henceforth provide this financial security, just as revenue from property holdings did until the 1990s. If deeper pastoral reflection is taking place, the deliberations are certainly opaque and not participative.
Here is an opportunity to exercise the gifts of discernment and synodality, in accordance with the vision of the Church that is fleshed out in the final document just published by the Synod on Synodality: ‘Towards a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission’. The pope’s radical desire that the Church might become poor, for and with the poor, is also relevant: a poor, discerning, synodal Church is authentic Good News for a world afflicted by endemic crises and conflict.
What is meant by “a poor, discerning, synodal Church”? Is this relevant to the acquisition of HSBC Malta by a diocesan bank?
In 2015, Pope Francis declared: “A Church that is faithful to the Lord has to be humble, poor and trusting in God… We should say ‘no’ to a Church that is attached to money, ... that thinks of how to earn money.” His words call to mind the part that divine providence, working with innumerable benefactors, plays in sustaining the works of mercy.
Id-Dar tal-Providenza and many other initiatives bear witness to the extraordinary generosity that has nourished our people for centuries. Generosity is not limited to funding: it includes the unpaid labour of thousands of lay volunteers, men and women religious and diocesan priests. Furthermore, it supports charitable institutions and missions across all continents.
A poor Church is frugal: it lives within its means; builds great works incrementally; trusts divine providence; calls forth the talents and virtues of its members; places the poor at the heart of every venture.
A poor Church values grace before financial security; favours interdependence over self-sufficiency; builds vibrant, inclusive communities in preference to institutions; places its members’ gifts at the service of the common good rather than narrow interests.
In 2015 Pope Francis declared: ‘A Church that is faithful to the Lord has to be humble, poor and trusting in God’
Our appeal is that, in communion with the pope, the Church in these islands may unambiguously commit to becoming poor, for and with the poor. Consequently, we must answer honestly the question whether the acquisition of HSBC Malta would promote an ever-fuller realisation of this vision. Acquisition will undoubtedly strengthen a widespread perception that the Church is wealthy. A wealthy Church – even if only perceived to be so – cannot radiate light and act as salt in a country where the number of poor people grows steadily while the gulf between rich and poor widens.
This is where discernment and synodality are relevant.
Discernment is not simply a decision-making technique. The Church understands discernment on matters affecting the faith-community and the collective mission to be a community experience, which the bishops lead and the Holy Spirit illuminates.
Community discernment requires minds that are shrewd as serpents and hearts that are innocent as lambs (Mt 10:16). It requires leaders who listen attentively, even to the least among the faithful, and processes that encourage wide, responsible, fearless participation.
To paraphrase the synodal document, a discerning Church assembles for dialogue, deliberation and decision-making, motivated by the desire to draw closer to people and to nurture human relationships, in order that the pilgrim People of God may build the kingdom of God together with Christ, in communion with all humanity.
Canon law provides elements of this ‘synodality’ in the form of representative institutions convening lay people, religious and clergy. Given the implications of a decision concerning the future of APS Bank, would it not be prudent for the bishops to convene these representative bodies, their counsellors, technical experts, the bank’s negotiators and laity representing the faith-community?
Such an assembly would reflect on all aspects of the putative acquisition, with the bishops participating as “first among equals”. Suitably planned and facilitated, the November session of the annual diocesan assembly could serve this purpose. If preparing a different topic for the assembly proves too difficult, then a similar exercise could be held a few days later, that is, if one truly believes in a synodal discernment process.
According to the synodal document: “In a synodal Church, the authority of the bishop… is inviolable… it both serves unity and legitimate diversity… Such an exercise of authority, however, is not without limits: it may not ignore a direction which emerges through proper discernment within a consultative process, especially if this is done by participatory bodies” (#92).
In conclusion, therefore, although they will not be bound by the direction emerging from the diocesan assembly, Malta’s bishops will benefit from the exposition of various issues and insights, as well as listening to the heartbeat of the faithful. They will have the comfort of knowing that the people of God are walking with them as they take a decision that will profoundly affect the character and mission of the Church here.
The authors are active in various Church ministries, including important ministries on the parish, national and international level of the Church.