Is a layman’s revolution the solution to the problems inside Malta’s Catholic church?

A recent blog post by Dominican priest and the Maltese archdiocese’s resident gadfly, Fr Mark Montebello, predicted the “extinction” of the Church as we know it.

But how well-founded is this prediction? Indeed, does anyone outside the clergy still care?

Unhappy with the Church’s current direction, Montebello describes the Maltese Church as “showing itself to be obstinately incapable of being a ‘sign of hope’ in today’s society, to give happiness and hope to society”.

“In other words, it’s neither positive nor evangelical”, he writes.

Urging laymen to “unite and take over”, he describes an internal rift in opinion on how the Church can “relate itself positively, and evangelically, with today’s Maltese and Gozitan society”.

Fr Montebello’s criticism has been aimed, for the large part, at the institutional level of the Church. He denounced the “excessive clericalism”, which was in fact also criticized by Pope Francis in his encyclical Evangelii Gaudium.

The term, he writes “means that pastoral and ecclesiastical organization, the language, and the symbolism employed by the Church are tied to and formed by the clergy… the Pope insists that with excessive clericalism being one of the main problem of churches like ours, he implies that it is laymen, not the clergy, who hold the key to the solution to this challenge” – and insists that a change in mentality and a new meaning of ‘church’ are needed.  “Laymen must change from passive receivers to active donors… from objects of duty to subjects of rights”.

To what extent do the lay faithful agree with Montebello’s uncompromising views?

This question was posed to Emily Barbaro Sant, a member of Opus Dei, an organisation whose prelature enjoys unique status with the Vatican. Without hesitation she stated that she doesn’t share Fr Montebello’s views, describing them as “extreme”.

Disputing his claims of clericalism, she said that the Church in Malta was giving a great deal of weight to lay people and is attentive to their concerns.

Extolling the archbishop as “a very good man and preacher”, Barbaro Sant would not be drawn on Montebello’s criticism on his leadership, saying she was not the person to judge this matter, but did say the Church was “under bombardment” at the moment.

Pointedly, she added: “I have always believed dirty linen should be washed indoors. Montebello should have had the courage to discuss the problems with the Archbishop and not go to the press.”

On the other hand, a former Church school teacher, who wished to remain unnamed, said the Church was resisting the change that was sweeping Maltese society.

“The Church makes mistakes which, to an outsider, would make it look like an organisation that doesn’t administer religion, but politics.

“Firstly, the Church is a closed society which does not embrace change, while Maltese society has moved towards modernity... secondly, it’s still a political organisation where power is still an important currency.”

Alessandra Dee Crespo, Chancellor of the Church Court of Appeals and first Maltese woman to obtain the Licentiate in Sacred Theology, normally the reserve of the priesthood, says the Church, both local and Universal, is still adjusting to her place in the world following the rapid secularisation of society.

“She still has a unique voice, though, and judging from the excessive media coverage dedicated to her, even from secular news organisations, it is evident that she still matters.”

Crespo warns against the Church becoming “just another institution flogging her wares in the marketplace”, pointing out that the Gospel message is “not one of comfort but of discomfort because it entails making a radical change, literally turning from the path that leads to self-satisfaction, doing what one likes and not doing what one ought to,” leading to it being accused of being out of touch, of issuing diktats and of wanting to spoil people’s happiness.

Crespo argues that since the Second Vatican Council, the role of the laity was “rediscovered to reflect the fundamental equality of faithful in the Church” and share fundamental equality with priests, with different functions to perform.

But she claims that what Montebello advocates is a revolt of the laity, which would necessarily lead to the ‘protestantization’ of the Catholic Church.

“And yet if we look at the protestant denominations, we will notice that even they have leadership roles. Therefore, I am confused as to what Fr Montebello means by a ‘a new meaning of Church’ because his proposed model for a ‘new’ Church seems to imply doing away entirely with the particular role of shepherds.”

She says that what is needed is an enhanced synergy between priests and laity. “The opportunities to take a more active role in the Church are not lacking… It is mostly us [lay persons] who reduce Christianity to something which belongs exclusively to priests, thereby clericalizing the Church. Therefore the accusation of ‘excessive clericalism’ should not be solely laid at the institutional Church’s door.”

The 2012 divorce referendum may have kick-started a process of aggiornamento (keeping up with the times) in the Maltese Catholic Church. Prof. Roderick Pace, in a research paper on the growing secularisation of Catholic Malta, said the divorce referendum had indicated the extent of secularisation in Malta.

“Although the Catholic Church has lost a lot of its power, it is still very strong both as an institution and in religious practice. However, the referendum result has not left it unscathed. There is now acceptance at various levels that it must change its approach.”

Speaking to MaltaToday, Professor Pace elaborated. “The Maltese Church needs to shed its pomp and privileges, pageantry and ceremonies and the return of the Tridentine mass. It should stop interfering in the politics of the country and begin to speak louder and clearer than it has done so far on moral, ethical and civic issues (apart from the traditional issues like abortion)… and must help in the creation of a more humane and compassionate society centred on the human person, by continuously reminding society to reflect on certain moral goals.”
 
Partially agreeing with Fr Montebello, he says the clerical domination of the local church must go. “The problem with the Catholic Church in Malta is that laymen are seen as category 'B' to the clerics who are designated as category 'A'. Also, most clerics tend to assume a very patronizing air towards laymen. I would like to see a bigger involvement of the laity in the Church’s decision-making structures, so long as this does not translate into a bigger involvement of fundamentalists”.
 
“The Maltese Catholic Church has been declining for decades and is sliding down further… but it is audacious to predict its extinction,” Pace said. “The Church is a complex social organization and not all of its parts are rotting. Some are thriving.”

Pace predicts that it will either survive as a small conservative group or may indeed start growing again, assuming it reacts correctly to the signs of the times. And he likens Montebello’s appeal to Vatican Council II, which wanted the laity to be given greater responsibility in the Church and highlighted the “different but complimentary missions” of clerics and laymen, a view given new impetus by Pope Francis.

“There is no real lay participation in decision-making at the top echelons,” Pace continues, comparing their situation that of members of political parties, “herded to rallies and conferences to cheer and applaud decisions already taken”.

Pace identifies what Leonardo Boff calls 'Catholic Fundamentalists' as “the most engaged section of the laity, who together with like-minded clerics, pursue a conservative agenda”.

“To expect these well-intentioned fundamentalists to turn things around for the Church is to imagine that Genghis Khan could actually write a democratic Constitution,” Pace says, describing the semblance of a widespread, popular attachment to the Church as “a fiction”.

“To a large number of faithful, Catholicism is simply the parish saint and fireworks. The Church’s only hope for a comeback lies with a coterie of laymen, members of religious orders and clerics for whom the 'preferential option for the poor; and the refocusing of Catholic’s attention on the liberation of human beings is their main objective.”

And that means, Pace adds, that it is time for Catholics who are well versed in theology to challenge the fundamentalists on homosexuality, LGBT and the Church, divorcees, IVF, contraception and to create structures that give lay people, particularly women, “a real say in decision-making, ecumenism and the dialogue of religions... the present decision making structures are untenable,” he adds, advocating “energetic but consistent reform”.

The process of aggiornamento is underway therefore, but it is also still lagging behind. This is the view of retired schoolteacher and catechist Mariuccia Zammit, who, while actively volunteering in her parish, holds no official position in the church.

“Montebello’s arguments are not all wrong, actually some are very valid – it’s the way he delivers it that rubs the Church the wrong way and increases conflict.”

Criticising what she describes as “the resistance to change and a culture of silence” that she says will only bring further division to the Church, Zammit had no doubts as to the source of the problem – “people today, including some clergy are scared to be seen to have an opinion – we are supposed to be fearless disciples of Christ! A Christian should not just obey blindly”. Although obedience is a duty; there is also the duty to challenge the status quo and continuously bring about change for the better.

Echoing Prof. Pace’s view, Zammit said “we [the faithful], need a clear message from the Curia on where it stands on emerging issues. People need good, relevant and timely guidance but first of all, healing the existing rifts should take priority.”

Zammit remains positive, however. Noting the fact that the Church continues to permit Montebello, who is subject to a vow of obedience, to publish his blog, “shows a great deal of goodwill on their part. I see change is happening, but it will take time”.

Such is Zammit’s earnestness, it is hard not to agree with her. The question is: will Maltese Catholicism live to see it?