The Theme
The Church in Malta Today: Communion, Participation and Mission
Why was this theme chosen?
Direction
given by the Holy See for the Universal Church.
Listening
to the various processes of discernment and studies that the Archdiocese has undertaken in recent years.
Reading the signs of the times in the local context
Among others, these include:
- the decrease in the number of priestly and religious vocations.
- the need for the laity to recognize and fully live their baptismal calling.
- cultural plurality.
- the changing reality of the digital world.
- the need for a more effective Christian influence in the secular and professional realm.
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The Church in Malta Today
… if the parish proves capable of self-renewal and constant adaptivity, it continues to be “the Church living in the midst of the homes of her sons and daughters”.
Evangelii Gaudium 28
Compared to other dioceses, the Church in Malta already displays significant elements of a synodal attitude, even if some aspects of it are limited or underdeveloped. Therefore, a realistic recognition is needed that there is room for further renewal so that these values can be lived out more fully, coherently and authentically in the current cultural context.
Today’s context is different from that in which many of the existing synodal structures were introduced. Accordingly, the Church in Malta is in a phase of maturation in which the issue is not a lack of structures, but rather the need for these structures to be renewed so that they may strengthen or regain their Christian authenticity, relevance, practicality, and sustainability in today’s context.
Pastoral systems require a continuous process of evaluation and reform, since their effectiveness depends on how well they are understood, relevant and inculturated. In a context where social and cultural changes are unfolding at a rapid pace, there is a need for structures to be regularly reviewed and updated.
In this light, the Church in Malta is called to undertake a serious evaluation of how it is living communion, participation and mission, so that its structures and initiatives are updated and adapted to the culture and society of today, and capable of adapting to the culture and society of tomorrow. The Incarnation of the Son of God in the concrete historical and cultural context remains a model for this work: just as Christ entered the culture of his time and continues to enter the culture of every time and place, the Church is called to live and fulfill her mission in an inculturated manner in the current and future contexts.
Materjal relatat
Communion
We are called to be builders of Christ’s communion, which is to take shape in a synodal Church where all cooperate in the same mission, each according to his or her charism and role. This communion is built not so much through words and documents as through concrete gestures and attitudes that ought to appear in our daily lives, including in our work..
Pope Leo XIV
Christmas address to the Roman Curia 2025
Communion constitutes the fundamental identity of the Church as the People of God, called to live unity in diversity. A community that lives in communion becomes a place of belonging and hospitality, where everyone feels welcome, and where God’s mercy is made concretely visible. This life of communion integrates parishes, religious congregations, ecclesial associations, different cultures and various generations into one body, which is Christ (cf. 1 Cor 12).
Communion is not only an organizational reality, but is a profound theological expression of the nature of the Church as an image of the Trinity, and as a community founded on the Eucharist (cf. CCC 813 and 1324). As the Document of the Synodal Assembly of Bishops (2024) emphasizes, communion goes beyond co-existence or functional collaboration; it is the fruit of the work of the Holy Spirit who unites all the members of the Church – clergy, religious and laity – into a living body where each person is recognized and valued. Communion therefore also demands coherence between the Eucharistic celebration and the concrete life of the community, in such a way that the Eucharist shapes the way members speak, cooperate, lead, and live.
In pastoral practice, communion requires that attention be given to the building of authentic relationships, not just to the organisation of activities. This involves healing relational wounds, working to overcome divisions, and committing to avoid any form of exclusion or invisibility. In this sense, authentic ecclesial renewal begins with the renewal of relationships both between individuals and among different entities.
Participation
Participation is a requirement of the faith received in Baptism.
Pope Francis
Opening of the Synod on Synodality
Participation reflects the universal call of all the baptized to contribute actively to the life and mission of the Church, according to their vocation and the gifts and charisms they have received. Every member of the Church is called to offer his or her contribution to the common good. Therefore, the mission of the Church is to awaken, recognize and help the gifts that God has placed within her members to flourish. When participation is lived well, the Church becomes more alive, creative and authentic and creates a space where the baptized recognize and feel part of God’s project. It is essential to create initiatives, structures and experiences that facilitate a concrete and effective expression of these gifts, including the involvement of those who traditionally remain on the periphery of ecclesial life.
Participation requires a review of decision-making processes and leadership methods, so that members of the Church are welcomed as co-responsible partners, and not just as secondary collaborators. This involves investment in formation, trust, delegation and the creation of an environment that promotes the development of individual charisms for the good of the community.
It is important that this process is not seen only as a functional response to the lack of priestly and religious vocations, but as an expression of the way the Holy Spirit is leading the Church at present.
Participation also involves the creation of spaces for genuine listening and community discernment. Pastoral councils and similar structures should be valued as essential instruments for the collective knowledge of God’s will.
This type of participation is not based simply on the collection of opinions or votes, but on a shared search for God’s will through prayer, reflection and openness to the Holy Spirit. This leads to each member not only to make his voice heard, but to be filled with zeal for the Church’s mission. As the psalmist prays, “zeal for your house has consumed me” (Psalm 69:9). This does not weaken leadership but on the contrary strengthens it.
Participation and co-responsibility are not experienced only by those in a position to make or influence decisions. Co-responsibility is experienced primarily in the fact that every Christian recognizes and fulfills his or her calling, both in secular life, that is, in family, civic, social and professional life, and also, if called to it, in the ministerial life of the Church. Participation means serving what God has called him or her to, in order to fulfill God’s mission in the world through the Church, as the Second Vatican Council teaches so well in the document Lumen Gentium § 31. It is a pity that sometimes the essentiality of co-responsibility through participation in secular life is forgotten, as if there is some separation between the mission of the Church that the laity carry out through their participation in the secular world, and the mission of the Church in the ministerial accompaniment of its same members.
Mission
By her very nature, the Church is outward-looking, turned toward the world, missionary. She has received from Christ the gift of the Spirit in order to bring to all people the good news of God’s love…Evangelii Gaudium encourages us to make progress in the missionary transformation of the Church…This missionary character flows from the fact that God himself first set out toward us and, in Christ, came in search of us…At the same time, in the life of the Church, mission is closely linked to communion.
Pope Leo XIV
22/12/2025
Mission expresses the intrinsic nature of the Church as a sent community. It demands that the Church maintain a continuous outward orientation, so that through witness and proclamation of the Word, the Church may lead men to an encounter with Jesus Christ. As the Document of the 2024 Synodal Assembly also emphasizes, the Eucharistic Church is intrinsically missionary. The Eucharistic celebration leads to the missionary mandate “Go”, which sends the entire community to carry the light of Christ into the world.
This implies a systematic formation of all members as missionary disciples, co-responsible for evangelization in everyday life – in the family, at work and in the social sphere – with particular attention to the human peripheries. A synodal Church looks at the world – in the words of Pope Francis – with the heart of Christ and, in the light of the Holy Spirit, feels called to reach out to everyone, especially those in need, the marginalized, and those who have distanced themselves from or never encountered Christ.
The mission stems from a fundamental pastoral question: how can the message of the Gospel be presented in a way that is meaningful, accessible, and understandable in the contemporary cultural context? This requires a method that meets people where they are, while promoting a Church that truly lives communion, where all the baptized feel invited and welcome to participate.
This question must be asked within every entity of the Church, because each one has something to contribute within its own sphere. It must also be asked at the diocesan level, since certain matters concern not only a particular entity or category, but the wider People of God.
In this context, the celebration of a Diocesan Synod represents a strategic step towards a deeper community discernment. For this process to be effective, it is essential that the synodal attitude is already deeply woven into the life and practice of ecclesial entities, so that the participants in the synod are prepared to contribute in a mature and responsible way to the desired outcome.
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