In Malta and Gozo, we badly need people with new and more original proposals: new blood and new enthusiasm. Admittedly, embarking on such a journey is very demanding.

Sadly, today, there are many people, especially among the young generation, who are in crisis and, in their search for truth, seek refuge in silence. Philosopher Blaise Pascal used to say: “Eternal silence embarrasses me. The moral law in my heart and the creation must fill my heart with the love of God.”

We need light, truth and, especially, decisions in our life, extraordinary gifts of God. Our Lord is never dumb, it is we who are deaf. Or, else, many of us wear masks without even realising it.

We must change our way of thinking but, more importantly, we have to bring about a conversion of heart. We should never forget that a country has no future if it ignores its history even if there has to be both a change of mind and of heart.

We are becoming too superficial and, crucially, we are putting aside the teachings of our faith. Once we make a wrong decision, we have to ask for God’s forgiveness because He is always merciful: we need to deepen truth in our daily life.

Political decisions have devastated our daily living: our country is shamed and its citizens humiliated.

There is need for a big revolution in our heart and, especially, in our decision-making. In doing so, man must go in search of God. Our heart has to listen to reason and our lives guided by the law of God.

We cannot fear making profound decisions and, in this regard, parents, educators and politicians have a lot of responsibility to bear.

There will always be deceiving people around, willing to cause confusion, distort our life and divide the rich and the poor. In the Proverbs, we read: “My Lord, do not give me neither poverty nor richness but give me the necessary food. Because, once I am satisfied, I will not renegade you and say: who is my lord? Otherwise, reduced to indigence, I will profane the name of God.”

I still cannot understand why some people in Malta are allergic to the clergy. It seems man in Malta and Gozo needs a pathological freedom and, therefore, he seeks a secure way out. But, then, when he encounters chaos, he calls God to intervene.

In this country, we keep abusing exhortations, preferring silence instead. Let us cry out with a thousand tongues to defend our dignity.

Our world is rotten because of silence. Yet, we can do something about it. As anthropologist Jane Goodall wrote: “You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”

Most people in Malta do not listen with the intent to understand but, rather, to reply. People are held captive within the fear of what other people think and whether this could have an impact on them. In our dear island, the sense of community is lacking.

There are too many wounded, abused and marginalised people. What matters is the colour of your skin. Let us look around us with dismay and, perhaps, even curiosity. We need to understand what is happening in Malta and Gozo, respecting the dignity of every citizen, whatever the colour.

Stop, reflect, pray and change the wrong direction we have taken in Malta- Fr Charles Cini

Respect is much more than a simple word. Respect has to be actively exercised. Respect is sincerity, loyalty and coherence. It is knowing how to look at others as you exactly would like them to look at you. If you were disappointed, do not disappoint others. If you have been wounded do not wound others.

We have to become choreographers of our emotions.

Let us look around us and in the eyes of people crying, suffering in solitude and living in despair before it is too late. Do something to respect their rights as human beings.

What are intellectuals, teachers and politicians doing to heal the wounds brought about by a profound human, cultural and economic crisis? Before being a committed Christian, one has to be an educated and a refined man, rich of good manners and values.

Regretfully, some problems remain unaddressed, whether because we are happy to accept them or, worse, we intentionally try to ignore them. Do the authorities know why certain violence occurs, bad manners prevail and lack of respect persists? Primarily, the worst violence is against our dignity as human beings.

We must not be conditioned by our mistakes or by the fear to succeed. In our daily life, with all its fears and difficulties, human beings must always be in search of happiness, truth, unity and, ultimately, God.

The spiritual and cultural euphoria so pronounced in our village feasts, sometimes boosted by drugs and alcohol, must never be in harmony with our daily life. Our dignity, as committed Christians, lies deep in the message of the teachings of God.

We have to admit that man is in deep crisis; tenderness is dying and completely disappearing from the depth of our human heart. Still, when we are in crisis, we must never be conditioned by crying and fear.

My last message is to all people of goodwill and, especially MPs, elected by the citizens to serve, defend and decide. Please, stop, reflect, pray and change the wrong direction we have taken in Malta. Tomorrow will be more difficult and too late. Future generations will condemn you.

But, perhaps, this generation is unwilling to change direction.

There are nations that destroy human beings through war and others through the way the country is governed in the name of democracy. Various heads of state have been motivated by deep economic interests though all is done in the name of democracy.

Is democracy dying in Malta?

Fr Charles Cini is a member of the Salesians of Don Bosco.