For those who uphold the sacredness of life and the flourishing of a healthy society, February 2 was a remarkable day.
The annual event organised by the Unborn Child Movement, led for so many years by Tony Mifsud, led to a number of coordinated and powerful messages by the highest representatives of Church and State.
The clear statement of the new Prime Minister, Robert Abela, had already sent a strong, reassuring announcement that his government would take a stand against appeals to legalise abortion. This unambiguous pro-life stand was again upheld by the current President, George Vella, who had already made his position clear on previous occasions.
In the oratory of St John’s Co-Cathedral, the President took an even more categorical position by stating that no one has the right to determine the killing of another. He left us in no doubt that abortion is equivalent to killing and is therefore not negotiable. Mattia Preti’s haunting picture of the beheading of St John served to strike home, in no uncertain manner, the cruelty of terminating life.
The President referred to the contradiction of arguments that on one hand aim to abolish capital punishment yet, on the other, promote the killing of the most vulnerable and innocent.
Logic should drive home the crucial importance of making consistent choices that respect life and the common good.
The health of a society is measured by the progress made by the most vulnerable
And here, the brilliant homily of Bishop Joe Galea Curmi presented the supreme value that should determine what really constitutes a civilised society. He referred to a principle he had read once and which had attracted his attention, namely that “the health of a society is measured by the progress made by the most vulnerable.”
He made clear that this worthy principle – defending the weakest in society – is what determines the humanity of society. This applies to nascent life, to the ill and elderly, and all those facing danger and death, like hapless immigrants in the open sea. He continued by pointing out that building a sound society demands that we not only safeguard life but also create an environment where it can grow and flourish, where the young adopt healthy lifestyles and where the physical environment is respected and protected with respect for future generations.
Above all, the bishop insisted that we are not against anything or anyone but that we are pro-life and proactively positive for what is good and wholesome, in the authentic interest of a really progressive society.
He made it clear that pro-life principles are timeless and should not be at the mercy of the mood of the times. He added that Malta should be proud of being pro-life and that if other countries do not share our values, we have nothing to be ashamed of.
Above all, proclaiming to be pro-life is not enough if our actions do not match what we claim to uphold. As an example, he then paid tribute to the NGO Life Network for providing support to women facing crisis pregnancies through their refuge Dar Tgħanniqa t’ Omm, and for having already saved young lives.
Ironically, the bishop’s theme matches almost word for word the first aims and principles laid out in the Labour Party’s statute manifesto of 2015.
One wonders whether this was the forceful statement that drew his attention?
Let us hope our politicians and civil society will live up to their declared values of placing pro-life policies at the centre of our future progress if we really aim to be a civilised society worthy of the name.