"The Church is born and lives by the
Word of God" (par.17 of The Lineamenta,
XII General Assembly)
by Fr. Dominic Borg, O.C.D.
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Carmel,
Pope Benedict XVI has declared June 2008
- June 2009 the year of St Paul in celebration
of the 2,000th anniversary of the saint's
birth. It only takes a few minutes in reading
the Letters of Paul to discover how much
in love he was with Holy Scripture. One can
quote one reference after another unendingly
to manifest the truthfulness of this reality.
Indeed, St Paul would have liked to see in
his time the fulfillment of the prophesy
of the Prophet Amos: " The days are
coming, says the Lord, when I will send a
hunger into the country, not hunger for bread
nor thirst for water, but of hearing the
Word of God." (Amos 8.10)
Though we can rightly say that every age,
and every generation has experienced to some
extent this famine for the Word of God, it
is a fact that the hunger is being felt in
our time in a special way. We are being directed
to draw our attention to this fact, even
by the Pope himself. That is why it is not
a surprise that this coming October in Rome
the Synod of the Bishops is going to meet
to study and discuss together the Topic:
"The Word of God in the Life and Mission
of the Church". The working document
has been out for a couple of months, and
we, as Carmelites, following in the footsteps
of our forefathers and Carmelite Saints,
cannot but be enthusiastic about this event
that for sure will leave a very positive
impact on the life of the Church. To mention
just a few, St Teresa, St John of the Cross,
St Therese, St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
(Edith Stein), St Teresa of the Andes, and
Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, all of
these in their writings have manifested a
special love towards Holy Scripture. St Teresa
alone, in her writings, has more than 600
references to Holy Scripture. The importance
that St John of the Cross, and St Therese
give to Holy Scripture, cannot be over emphasized.
They have received their nourishment from
these Sacred Writings about which St Paul
in his letter to Timothy writes: "All
scripture is inspired by God and is useful
for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
and for training in righteousness, so that
everyone who belongs to God may be proficient,
equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy
3.16-17).
Many are those references both in the Scriptures
(Old and New Testament alike), the Doctrine
and Documents of the Church, and also in
the writings of our Saints, where the emphasis
on the importance of Sacred Scripture in
our lives is not lacking. However, without
doubt one cannot leave out this special reference
from St Paul: "For whatever was written
in former days was written for our instruction,
so that by steadfastness and by the encouragement
of the scriptures we might have hope. May
the God of steadfastness and encouragement
grant you to live in harmony with one another,
in accordance with Jesus Christ, so that
together you may with one voice glorify the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."
( Romans 15.4-6).
Dear brothers and sisters in Carmel, Prayer
and the Reading of Holy Scripture (especially
Lectio Divina) go hand in hand. The Carmelite
charism to meditate on the Word of God, day
and night, and to become a prayer, are for
sure our contribution, so that the words
of the Prophet Amos will be actualized in
our time!
The picture of St Teresa on the front of
this issue is an oil painting that Fr Martin
Borg has in his room in Malta. He has a very
good and clear knowledge about the life and
the person of St Teresa, and though he himself
is an artist, he has put down in detail the
information that he gathered from different
sources, and has asked the famous French
painter "Rengee" to paint this
picture for him. Thank you, Fr Martin, for
sharing with us this detailed picture of
Our Holy Mother.
The Congress of the OCDS in October is fast
approaching, so please do not leave it to
the last moment to book. You are also encouraged
to let others know about it, even if they
are not members of the OCDS. It is an opportunity
for us to evangelize.
We also take this opportunity to CONGRATULATE
our new Fr Provincial, Very Rev Fr Alfred
Grech, and promise him our prayers and support
!!
Our thanks go also to Very Rev Fr Victor
Mallia, the out-going Fr Provincial, for
all the support and hard work that he has
for sure manifested among us. May God reward
him and we assure him of our prayers.
Now that Lent is upon us, we continue to
prepare ourselves for the GREAT FEAST of
Easter, as we strive to open our hearts to
God's Word.
In the name of the Secretariat, and Our Province,
we wish you all a joyous and Happy Easter
full of God's Blessings of Peace.
Happy Easter to ALL of You !!
In Carmel,
Fr. Dominic Borg, OCD