Regenerating the Moral and Spiritual Values of Our Society

By Vernon Khelawan

Fraternity – used by Pope Francis in his World Day of Peace message. Solidarity – a favourite of former Archbishop Edward Gilbert. What might these words uttered some 10 years apart tell us about Church and the work of creating a true Christian congregation?

During his tenure as head of the Roman Catholic Church in this archdiocese, Archbishop Gilbert stressed the need for solidarity, strengthening this call through three Synods. Now Pope Francis, using a different word, has called for the same thing – a more unified Church, with the common denominator being the recognition that ”we are all children of one heavenly Father, we belong to the same human family and we share a common destiny.”

These words can help to bring greater meaning to the Third Pastoral Priority – Regenerating the Moral and Spiritual Values of Our Society – because we together must quickly put in place strategies to stem the erosion of our moral and spiritual values, regain lost ground and save our society.

The start of a New Year gives us members of the Church a fantastic opportunity to use our gifts in restoring ‘lost’ values. We can select special families and pledge to assist them in understanding the role they must play as part of the society.

And as January 31 draws closer – the day when all the parochial plans and strategies for the Third Priority are to be submitted, this column urges all concerned, at whatever level, to become passionate about the task ahead.

There is need to take the “values” message to the homes, schools, social organisations and to the streets and to let, in the words of Pope Francis, “the courage of dialogue and reconciliation prevail over temptation for vendetta, arrogance and corruption.”