That was the year that was

Undoubedly, the two most important events in the Catholic world during 2005 were the death of Pope John Paul II and the election of Pope Benedict XVI. Other important stories were the end of the Year dedicated to the Eucharist and the Synod which concluded it.

The Schiavo case and the issues surrounding same-sex marriage also left their mark. Most probably the most important event in the local Church is the choice of Mgr Mario Grech as the new bishop of Gozo.

A new Pope

For Catholics, the passing of Pope John Paul aged 84 signified the end of an era. His 26-year pontificate was historic in terms of pastoral outreach, social involvement and global political impact. To many, the Polish-born Pontiff made the deepest impression in his final days, at the end of his dramatic struggle with infirmity. Few will forget the Pope's last public appearance at his apartment window three days before his death, when he tried to speak to the crowd but the words would not come.

When the Pope's death was finally announced late on April 2, more than 100,000 pilgrims were in the square. Many wept, but they also expressed relief that the Pontiff's suffering was over.

The Pope's death set in motion a period of official mourning and reflection that culminated in the election of his successor. Time-honoured traditions were followed, but in some ways this Papal transition was like no other in history. With Pope Benedict's inaugural Mass on April 24, the Papal transition officially ended. But in a less formal way, it continued throughout the year as long lines of pilgrims came to pray before Pope John Paul's tomb beneath St Peter's Basilica and as record crowds arrived to see the new Pope.

It was clear from the very beginning that the styles of Pope John Paul and Pope Benedict would be different. Little by little the different styles and their practical effects started to emerge. Less travel, fewer media events, more direct contacts, etc, are among the changes. Within the next few weeks many are expecting a substantial, if not radical, change in the Roman Curia. That will set the pace for the Church in the coming years.

Although Pope Benedict XVI inherited the Year of the Eucharist and the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist from Pope John Paul II, the new Pope left his mark on both. The Year of the Eucharist ended on October 23 at the closing Mass of the synod - a gathering Pope Benedict had shortened by one week while increasing the time for "free discussion" among bishops.

The world Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist ended with a call for Catholics to approach the sacrament with awe and allow it to transform their lives and the life of the world. After listening to the bishops' discussions for three weeks, Pope Benedict offered his own brief explanation of the Eucharist at the synod's closing Mass.

In the Eucharist, he said, Catholics contemplate how Christ fulfilled his own commandment to love God and to love one's neighbour as oneself. In an unusual move, Pope Benedict authorised publication of the proposals synod members had drawn up for his eyes only.

Same-sex marriage

Spain and Canada legalised same-sex marriages in 2005, while campaigns for or against it in the United States met with mixed success. This month the Constitutional Court of South Africa ruled that gay and lesbian couples have a right to marry and gave Parliament one year to rework the nation's laws. If Parliament does not do so, the court said, the words "or spouse" will automatically be inserted after "husband" or "wife" wherever either term currently appears in the country's laws dealing with marriage.

Also this month, Britain began implementing same-sex civil partnership legislation adopted in 2004. Gay and lesbian couples began registering on December 5 for such partnerships, which bring some but not all the civil benefits of marriage. At least 13 other European countries currently have some form of civil union or domestic partnership laws.

When Spain's Parliament adopted same-sex marriage legislation on June 30, just two days after Canada's House of Commons approved a similar bill, the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, called the legislators' actions "violent attacks aimed at the natural family - based on a union between a man and a woman."

Before Canada and Spain, there were only two countries in the world that had formally legalized same-sex marriages - The Netherlands in 2001 and Belgium in 2003. South Africa's entry will bring that number to five.

Schiavo's case and euthanasia

As Pope John Paul II was showing the world how to experience a true "death with dignity," the case of Terri Schindler Schiavo in Florida was demonstrating just the opposite - and leaving many around the world with questions about end-of-life medical care and their own eventual deaths.

Schiavo's death on March 31 also drew attention to the growing acceptance of assisted suicide and euthanasia in the United States and worldwide, and to "a culture in which human life is increasingly devalued and violated", as one US cardinal put it.

Cardinal Renato Martino, head of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, called Schiavo's death two days before Pope John Paul's "a homicide in which it is impossible to idly stand by without becoming accomplices."

Worldwide, The Netherlands continued to be the only country to allow euthanasia and assisted suicide, even for those who are not terminally ill. Swiss and Belgian laws permit it in some cases.

But new proposals came up in Britain, Mexico and before the European Parliament in 2005. And in another slide along the slippery slope, a commission formed by the Dutch government agreed to begin work in 2006 on guidelines under which doctors could legally euthanise "seriously suffering" newborns.

In memoriam

¤ Portuguese Carmelite Sister Lucia dos Santos, 97, the last of the three children who saw visions of Mary at Fatima in 1917; February 13, at her convent in Coimbra, Portugal.

¤ Italian Mgr Luigi Giussani, 82, founder and spiritual guide of the Catholic lay movement Communion and Liberation; February 22, of complications from pneumonia.

¤ Retired Cardinal Jaime Sin of Manila, 76, described as one of the most powerful figures in the history of the Church in Asia because of his leadership of non-violent popular movements that ousted corrupt Philippine presidents in 1986 and 2000; June 21, of multiple organ failure following a long struggle with kidney ailments.

¤ Brother Roger Schutz, 90, world-renowned founder of the ecumenical monastic community of Taize, France, on August 16, after being fatally stabbed by a deranged woman.

New bishop

The appointment of Mgr Mario Grech as the new bishop of Gozo put an end to the waiting period in our sister diocese and set a new beginning. We already commented on this development which we considered to be a very positive one.

For the archdiocese of Malta the most important thing was something that did not happen: the non appointment of a successor of Mgr Mercieca. We are still waiting and hoping that there will be a news spring next year.

We wish all our readers a Happy Christmas.