The Church and the community

We are in a time when it is clear there is need for thought and feeling about the organisation and activity of our Church.

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The small natural communities of past and more rural times, when, more or less, all lived within sight of their parish church, are now eclipsed by the expanding towns and cities, with their large populations.

This gives a much greater need for a real community focus, where people can meet, communicate and welcome newcomers, now quite often from abroad. Clearly, we have our main inspiration and strength from the Eucharist. I think it is also necessary that individuals and groups react to offer time and effort to evangelism and to engage in activities that help each other and people outside the Church in the many ways, formal and informal, that the historic Church has done.

Special attention must continue to be given to children, adolescents and older people so they may grow appropriately in the love and faith of the Church.

When we do all this, or some part of it, inspired by our rituals and led by the Holy Sacrament, we avoid a “dead church” and breathe apostolic virtue into our society, which it needs so much.

Christopher John Linskill – Ħamrun

Legal firearm ownership 

In the article ‘Murders in Malta are increasingly involving firearms, data indicate’ (January 11), Times of Malta fails to distinguish between the legal and appropriately controlled ownership and use of firearms and the known fact that murders in the absolute majority of firearm-related cases infallibly involve illegally held unregistered guns.

Times of Malta quotes Eddie Attard, a former police officer and a recognised crime writer, as its source of information.

Surely, no one more than such a learned person should confirm facts on the use of unregistered firearms in crime, especially when his expertise is used in an alarmist article intended to shed a bad light on all legal owners of firearms.

Mark Mifsud Bonnici – San Pawl tat-Tarġa