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Grand Master speaks on interfaith dialogue and humanitarian support
London 19 April 2012
Fra’ Matthew Festing, Grand Master of the Order of Malta, in speaking at the Hay of Seaton Memorial Lecture this week at the University of Aberdeen and at the British Academy in London on ‘Opportunities for Cooperation between the Faiths of the Middle East: a humanitarian view from the Order of Malta’, explained that the Order’s fundamental operating principle was - and still is - to care for the poor and the sick, whoever they are and from wherever they come.
The Order of Malta Holy Family Hospital, Bethlehem
His Highness traced the origins of the Order of Malta in the Middle East down to present day, noting from its foundation onwards that the Order has always been politically non-aligned. He said: ‘The Order is there to deal with realities,’ as he outlined its ongoing activities in the area, especially Lebanon and Palestine, and its involvement with UNESCO in concerns for care of the Holy Places – ‘All , not only the Christian ones.’ In Lebanon the Order runs 11 health care centres and collaborates in the south with the Imam Sadr Foundation; in Palestine the Order runs a maternity hospital in Bethlehem, the only one in the area. Three thousand infants, mainly Muslim, are born there each year. In Jerusalem an Order Foundation (Tantur) is currently developing an old people’s home for all denominations.
The week also saw His Highness open a new wing for the Order of Malta Dial-a-Journey in Stirling, Scotland, a 24-vehicle service which provides specialised transport for the elderly, the disabled, and people with special needs in Central Scotland .
Order of Malta’s 19th European Hospitallers Conference meet in Prague
Special focus on activities in Eastern Europe
Prague, 18 March 2012
The European Hospitallers of the Order of Malta, who are responsible for all medical and humanitarian activities of the Grand Priories and National Associations, met in Prague to review the Order of Malta’s works across Europe. Over 50 delegates from more than 24 countries took part in the three day conference. The meeting reviewed the medical, social and humanitarian projects developed by the Order of Malta on the continent, and exchanged information and best practices. Also attending were representatives of the three Associations of the Order in the United States, and of the diplomatic missions of the Order of Malta to the United Nations in New York and Geneva.
Special sessions included the work of the worldwide relief agency of the Order of Malta for humanitarian aid, Malteser International, and of the Order of Malta volunteer corps in Eastern Europe: Albania, Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine. The Eastern European countries, whose work has flourished since the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, report that care for the Roma, the Sinti and the homeless remains high priority, together with support for disabled children and the sick and lonely elderly in regions where a poor infrastructure leaves many in dire need.
HOLY SEE AND UK GOVERNMENT, UNITED IN THE STRUGGLE FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
Vatican City, 15 February 2012 (VIS) - Given below is the text of an English-language joint communique of the Holy See and the government of the United Kingdom concerning an official ministerial visit marking the thirtieth anniversary of the establishment of full diplomatic relations between the two States. The delegation, led by Baroness Sayeeda Hussain Warsi, met with Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. and was received by Pope Benedict XVI.
The communique states that the "Holy See and Her Majesty’s Government agreed on the urgent need for action to strengthen the universal commitment to religious freedom as a fundamental human right, and to its practical application with a view to promoting respect for all religions in all countries. The Holy See and the British government look forward to working together to combat intolerance and discrimination based on religion, wherever it is manifest.
"The Holy See and Her Majesty’s Government reaffirmed the need to promote integral and sustainable global development, based on the centrality of the human person and grounded in the principle of the inherent human dignity and worth of each person. Much progress has been made over the last decade in improving health and well-being for many people. However, there are still significant gaps and challenges in the long and complex path towards ensuring integral human development for everybody. Too many people are still hungry, too many people do not have access to education and to decent work, too many women die in childbirth. In view of these challenges we recognise a shared obligation to achieve a fair international financial and trade framework. And we will strive for a better future for all humanity, taking into particular account care for the poorest people in the world.
"Looking ahead to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development at Rio de Janeiro in June this year and to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change implementation process, we share the conviction that in order to take forward a human-centred and sustainable global development, there is a need to continue to strengthen the integration of its interdependent and mutually reinforcing pillars: the economic, the social and the environmental, as well as the connection between combating poverty and tackling climate change.
"The Holy See and Her Majesty’s Government share a commitment to work at the United Nations and other fora to strengthen the international focus on conflict prevention, disarmament, arms control and non proliferation, aimed at protecting human life and building a world more respectful of human dignity. As part of this effort, we look forward to positive outcomes in July to the final negotiations to agree upon a robust Arms Trade Treaty with a wide scope, and to the 2nd Review Conference of the UN Programme on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons.
"With regard to the changes which have occurred in North Africa and the Middle East, the Holy See and Her Majesty’s Government stressed the importance of undertaking real reforms in the political, economic and social realms, in order better to ensure the unity and development of each nation, in responding positively to the legitimate aspirations of many people for peace and stability. In this context, reference was made to the role which Christians can play and to the importance of inter-religious dialogue. The Holy See and Her Majesty’s Government expressed the hope for a resumption of negotiations in good faith between Israelis and Palestinians so as to bring about a lasting peace. They renewed their appeal for an immediate end to violence in Syria and stressed the need for co-operation to overcome the present crisis and work towards a harmonious and united coexistence.
"As the London Conference on Somalia approaches, the Holy See and the British Government encourage the international community to support a coherent strategy on Somalia in order to end the crisis there, placing as a priority the protection and welfare of the people of the Horn of Africa.
"Her Majesty’s Government welcomed His Holiness Pope Benedict’s support for the ongoing process of reconciliation in Northern Ireland, the establishment of stable, inclusive political institutions, and efforts to build a peaceful, stable and prosperous future for all parts of the community. Her Majesty’s Government and the Holy See agreed that the use of violence for political ends is deplorable, and must be set aside in favour of constructive dialogue for the well-being of the whole community.
"As the United Kingdom prepares to host the London Olympic and Paralympic Games, and to celebrate Her Majesty the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, both sides look forward to a year characterised by the spirit of the Olympic Charter and the Olympic Truce: at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.
"There was in addition a good exchange of views on a wide range of social, economic, political and cultural issues, including on developing the UK’s collaboration with the Vatican Museums. Both sides recognised in particular the role of faith and education in the development of a culture of social responsibility and the underpinning of a healthy society. In this context, appreciation was expressed for the significant contribution which the Catholic Church, and Christians in general, have made and continue to make to the good of British society. The Holy See emphasised the need to ensure that institutions connected with the Catholic Church can act in accordance with their own principles and convictions and stressed the necessity of safeguarding the family based on marriage, religious freedom and freedom of conscience. Both sides look forward to further strengthening their relationship by working together through their respective networks and global partnerships, including the Commonwealth of Nations, to promote the common good".
59th World Leprosy Day
Order of Malta on the ground in the most affected countries
Leprosy affects more than 210,000 individuals every year, of which 20,000 are children. The Order of Malta cares for leprosy patients on four continents, and has cared for sufferers of this disease throughout its nine hundred year history. Today, its assistance programmes operate in Asia (India, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam), Africa (Niger, Guinea, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Senegal, Mauritania, Gabon, Benin, South Sudan, Kenya), the Middle East (Egypt) and South America (Brazil).
In Europe, local fundraising action in
France marks the day
Over the weekend, more than 10,000 fundraisers from
Ordre de Malte France gathered in cities and towns
all over the country - 106 administrative divisions
– to support the fight against leprosy. The funds
they raised ensure continuing support from Ordre de
Malte France to treat the disease through
screening, home and clinical care and
rehabilitation, as well as training physicians and
health personnel, and financing research. The Order
of Malta in France, through its MALTALEP programme,
finances primary and clinical research into leprosy
in the developing world.
What is leprosy?
Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease that evolves
very slowly (incubation can be up to twenty years).
It primarily affects the skin, the peripheral
nerves, the mucous membranes of the upper airways
and the eyes. To date, there is no vaccine, but an
inexpensive, effective Multi Drug Therapy (MDT)
treatment has meant cure for more than 14 million
patients since 1982 (source: WHO).
Progress towards the goal of eradication
Thanks to donations and the involvement of both
professionals and volunteers, there has been
significant progress over recent years:
- In fifteen years, leprosy has been eradicated in 98 countries, but it is still present in roughly one hundred countries;
- Since 2002, the disease has sharply declined, but 65% of new cases appear in the most contagious form;
- In 2011, 2.5 million lepers were cured, but they suffer from severe crippling as a result of the disease.
Reintegrating patients thanks to plastic
surgery and rehabilitation
Because of the visible results of leprosy (hands
without fingers, leg amputations, blindness) many
thousands of sufferers are excluded from society.
The Order of Malta, through a number of its
organisations around the world, is implementing
early detection, health care, plastic surgery and
rehabilitation programmes in many countries to
assist patients to reintegrate professionally and
socially.
Grand Master’s New Year message for 2012
Dear Members, Volunteers and Friends of the Order
of Malta
As we celebrated the most joyous event in the Church’s calendar, the birth of Christ – and gatherings with family and friends in warmth and hospitality - we did not forget those whose lives are not so fortunate. Many of our Priories and National Associations are particularly focussed at this time in the year on bringing food and care and warmth to the homeless. They are part of the work our members and volunteers are involved in, right around the globe, in an atmosphere of Christian love.
The Order of Malta reaches out to those in great need, and during this past this year we noted an increase in natural disasters around the world. Many thousands suffered from floods, famine, earthquakes. We managed to provide humanitarian relief in many of these situations, but we see, too, that the calls on us everywhere do not diminish.
At the same time, our daily support for those needing our help goes on.
As the European Year of Volunteering has just drawn to its close, I wish to acknowledge the deep gratitude the Order feels for the untiring work that you, our thousands of volunteers, have carried out, together with our members, not only during this special Volunteer year which has marked your efforts internationally, but every year.
To be a volunteer in the service of the works of the Order of Malta is a demonstration of Christian charity and of our personal experience of Christ. Pope Benedict XVI has explained that ‘We also become visible instruments of His love in a world that still profoundly yearns for that love amid the poverty, loneliness, marginalisation and ignorance that we see all around us.’ As you go among those who need your help, you are witnesses to the importance of human dignity and the importance of love.
Throughout 2011 our volunteers all over Europe assisted in countless activities to help others. There are so many examples – from the homeless who come daily to our shelters, to the refugees who crowd onto the islands of Lampedusa and Malta or into our hospices in many European cities. There are the handicapped pilgrims whom so many of you accompany to Lourdes, and to your own national shrines; to the support you give the elderly housebound, and to those who are lonely or frightened or malnourished. There are the soup kitchens where you prepare nourishing food in the bitter winters; and there are those of you who sit and play with and read to the young in schools and orphanages in Eastern Europe. All these acts, however small, of kindness and of love, and of consistency and commitment, are what lights the world and what brings warmth and hope to those so in need. Every day you reflect the nine hundred year-old mission of the Order to care for the sick and the poor, no matter who they are.
Dear volunteers, the Order salutes you! Continue your work, never give up, never forget that the gesture you make can make another’s life happier.
Dear members, as we work together to provide healthcare, education, support for the handicapped, refugees, the elderly, the homeless, small children – the world’s vulnerable – I reflect that we have carried out this work for almost a thousand years in the name of Christ. And we will go on doing it. Your participation is vital to these untiring efforts, and I thank you all.
A very fulfilling 2012.
Fra’Matthew Festing
