Priest's advice

I refer to Carmelo Lia's letter entitled Priest's Advice Was Right (June 23), specifically his statement that the "priest's advice was correct and it was based on the fundamental Christian principle that, to seek forgiveness of sins from God, first you...

I refer to Carmelo Lia's letter entitled Priest's Advice Was Right (June 23), specifically his statement that the "priest's advice was correct and it was based on the fundamental Christian principle that, to seek forgiveness of sins from God, first you yourself must forgive others and their sins against you. This is pure theology which we profess when saying the Lord's Prayer".

Whatever happened in the Gozo case goes beyond theology. It is about the role of the priest in the community which even theologically is a pastoral one.

This means that on a human level, the priest is not only perceived as a "confessor" but also as someone to talk to, someone to turn to when in need of advice and as someone who can give good advice. The matter here was not about forgiveness, but about survival. So, not even by any stretch of the imagination can one justify the priest's advice as being correct.

Mr Lia's further comment that "she refrained from seeking outside help" is thus not the truth, because in her own way she sought the only help she could find, i.e. from her pastor. Statements such as those uttered by Mr Lia and other apologists are only bad publicity for the sterling pastoral work carried out by parish priests all over Malta and Gozo.

When will some people learn to admit that when something is wrong, no matter who does it, it is still wrong?

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