We need tenderness in a world marked by violence, aggression, and arrogance – The Archbishop

Homily by Archbishop Charles Jude Scicluna

Your Excellency, President of the Republic, Mrs Vella, Honourable Minister, Your Excellencies, distinguished guests, a special greeting to Papas Martin Zammit and Papas Emeritus George Mifsud.

Thank you so much, George, for all that you have done and for your excellent introduction to the theology of the icon.

I remember being in Damascus in 2008, before the troubles, when the local clergy told me: “You have one of our icons.” I replied, “Well, I don’t know whether it is yours, but we are taking good care of it.”

So, in Damascus, they know that in Malta we have not only a great devotion to this icon but also take great care of this very ancient and beautiful treasure. For us, it is an extraordinary experience to read the icon, to encounter it as it originally was – in all its beauty and splendour.

My main point today is that we need the intercession of Our Lady under the beautiful title of Our Lady of Tenderness. In a world marked by violence, aggression, and arrogance, we need tenderness. This is what the Pope highlights when he describes the style of the Gospel: it is closeness to people – proximity; it is compassion; it is tenderness.

Let us therefore pray that, through this extraordinary event – the restoration of this impressively large and beautiful icon to its ancient glory – we may convey a message to the world, a message we all need: that true strength lies in compassion and in tenderness.

We also ask for the intercession of Our Lady upon our islands. As we reflect on the protection of life from its very beginning, we need the intercession of the Mother and Child – the child clinging to his mother, that tender embrace of the Infant Jesus around her neck. He clings to her for safety, tenderness, and protection.

May this spirit guide every mother-to-be, and every mother who is actually helping her children to grow up into good citizens and Christians. May it help our society not to yield to pressures, wherever they may come from, but to continue respecting the sanctity of motherhood and of life, through the intercession of our Blessed Virgin Mary of Damascus.

✠ Charles Jude Scicluna
    Archbishop of Malta