Blindsided Serracino Inglott

I have just read the article written by Prof. Anthony Serracino Inglott (TMIS 28 August) in which he tried – most unsuccessfully – to tear to shreds the article written by Dr Michael Asciak in The Malta Independent on Sunday, the 21st August 2016.

The two men hold opposing views: Dr Asciak holds a medical and ethical view while Prof. Serracino Inglott holds only a medical one. And that is the difference! One sees the whole picture while the other is only able to see a part of it. I will not go into the intricate subject of emergency contraception as we have now all heard about it ad nauseam.

Malta has so far always been proud of its Catholic heritage. We can have different points of view without savaging each other in print. I am a Catholic and have tried to live as one. I am also a married woman with three children and eight grandchildren. Years ago, when we thought that three children were as many as we could afford, we were more careful in our sex life, that is all. I had self-respect and my husband respected me enough to follow my cycle.

Today, where is self-control and, most of all, real love? Why did marriages last longer before while today people separate at the least difficulty? Has contraception helped marriage or has it made both women and men more promiscuous inside the house and out?

Humanae Vitae – the encyclical written by Pope Paul VI – was against contraception as he foresaw what could happen if it was introduced: a wise man indeed. I must mention that it seems strange to me that there are more men than women speaking out that the Morning after Pill (MAP) should be banned. Where are the women?

This very much concerns them and will affect their children. So they should voice their concerns now.

Until recently Malta has had a Catholic conscience. Although, the modernists are more conspicuous in the media, I am quite sure that there are many people out there who object to the introduction of the MAP. I feel that the silent majority object to it in their heart of hearts! That is why I urge people to speak out now – they are needed in this debate. God in His goodness is a merciful and forgiving God but he expects us to use our conscience, take a stand and leave this world in a better – not worse – state than the one in which we found it!

Mary Hilda Camilleri Sliema