Ding ding, seconds out for another swipe from Malta’s archbishop at the Labour government

1. Archbishop Charles Scicluna is no soft touch: he worked alongside Cardinal, later Pope, Joseph Ratzinger aka God’s Rottweiler

Pope Benedict XVI

2. After assisting Ratzinger in the office that was once the Inquisition’s nerve centre, later becoming the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, he became the Vatican’s anti-paedophilia czar, as the chief prosecutor on all clerical sex abuse cases.

He was good at his job, such as bringing Fr Marciel Maciel Degoallado – a Mexican aristocrat priest who fathered several children because he liked to have his bit on the side – to justice (the veteran Catholic affairs reporter John L. Allen calls Scicluna a “hero”).

Forgive me, father? Marcial Maciel (left) with John Paul II

3. He came to Malta and was made auxiliary bishop in 2012 at a time when it was felt that Archbishop Paul Cremona’s authority was waning. After Cremona’s resignation he was made archbishop.

Our man in Rome. The curia brings back Scicluna to take over

4. Scicluna does not shy away from saying it as he feels: he told MaltaToday that silence was not an option for him.

He also took important stands, as expected, but more vocal than ever against… gay adoptions, the removal of religious vilification from the lawbooks, ‘priapic’ high-rise (that means small penis owners fantasising over 40-storey towers) and even malicious bloggers.

One of these guys is going to be washing dishes in Hell's kitchen

WHAT HE SAID NOW

In his Independence Day mass homily, which would have been attended by Joseph Muscat had he not been indisposed by his trip to the United Nations, Scicluna talks about the values of “unity, goodness, truthfulness, and beauty” as necessary for good governance by the State.

But in a nutshell, he’s talking about stuff that the Labour government is criticised for: a lack of good governance, neoliberal economics, and environmental degradation.

5. Here are the best quotes: the first one is about discrimination

How many Labourites does it take to fix a light-bulb?

“Every citizen has the right to belong to the commonwealth of the State and to benefit from the services of government irrespective of who he or she is, under the rule of law as an expression of the common good”.

6. This one is against ‘government for the rich’

Great handshake, now hand over the cheque

“When the common good is sacrificed to the selfish interests of the few, to a Pseudo-ethos based on the relentless quest for material gain at all costs, then we can say the State is sick.”

7. This one is against government spin, transparency and accountability

Panamapants rides again... Cartoon by Mark Scicluna

“Governance based on spin, on obscure dealings, and on a constant reticence to allow public scrutiny, irrespective of the myriad laws and the solemn promises, is definitely not good governance. Government based on the Orwellian disregard of the truth will one day implode.”

8. This one’s on the environment

Cartoon by Mikiel Galea

“Is not the uglification of our natural and historical heritage a symptom of a lack of this wisdom of the heart? A Government that continues to restore and protect our heritage, that will energetically defend the pristine cleanliness of our seas, that will only allow sustainable development: that is a Government that takes beauty to heart, that expresses the nation's wisdom of the heart.”

9. And here’s how some people reacted on Twitter