The Order of Malta’s Grand Commander in dialogue with the Cardinal Patron
We are publishing and sharing in advance the interview-dialogue between the Grand Commander of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Fra’ Emmanuel Rousseau, and Cardinal Patron Gianfranco Ghirlanda S.J., which highlights the spirit of collaboration and synergy in their relationship. The interview will be published in the next issue of L’Orma.
Your Excellency Fra’ Emmanuel Rousseau, what is the current status of the reform process initiated with the new Constitution of 2022?
Since 2022, the entire Government of the Order has strongly directed energies and resources to consolidate the process of spiritual renewal encouraged by Pope Francis and now confirmed by Pope Leo XIV. This is a process that helps us to emphasize our religious nature, strengthening the spiritual dimension and the role of members who have taken vows. It is not just a regulatory update but a profound renewal that requires time, dedication and prayer. In this sense, we are fortunate and honoured to be accompanied by Cardinal Ghirlanda, an expert in canon law with long experience in other religious institutes, and who played a fundamental role in drafting the Order’s new Constitution and Code.
Your Eminence Cardinal Ghirlanda, what are the developments in the reform process?
I was aware from the start that it would be a gradual progress, requiring balance and vision from the Order’s government, which has to reorganize the life of the professed Knights who come from very different cultural experiences. In a complex vocational scenario like today’s, it is necessary to understand the uniqueness of the Melitense vocation and to enhance its specific features with the aim of strengthening the mission of defending the faith and serving the least fortunate, according to the Order’s motto.
Fra’ Emmanuel Rousseau, what is the strategic priority in this sense?
The greatest challenge is to accompany new aspirants from all over the world in understanding and choosing the religious life. This requires solid formation and authentic discernment, issues that we address in constant coordination with the Cardinal Patron, a deep connoisseur of spiritual life. In this regard, we are surprised that some press articles, from which I strongly distance myself – in the name of the Grand Master and the entire Sovereign Council – insinuate doubts about the Cardinal Patron’s loyalty to us, something we have never questioned. On the contrary, we feel his tangible support and spiritual closeness to us, as well as the paternal support of the Holy Father Leo XIV.
Cardinal Ghirlanda, what does it mean today to promote the spiritual interests of the Order as article 5 of the Constitution recalls?
Above all, it means supporting the daily work of an Order with an increasingly global vocation, recognizing all its complexities. For this reason, I continue to assure my full spiritual closeness to the Order of Malta and its government led by Grand Master Fra’ John Dunlap. Over the years, I have witnessed the valuable work carried out in more than 130 countries worldwide, in emergencies, natural disasters, conflicts, and in helping the most diverse forms of poverty. Similarly in Lourdes, during the annual Pilgrimage organized by the Order of Malta, I directly witnessed the invaluable service offered to thousands of sick people with extreme care and dedication. For this reason, I feel compelled to openly condemn the distorting sense of certain defamatory articles that definitely do not represent the work carried out by the members of the Order’s government, their management capacity and their moral uprightness and integrity. Instead, the work carried out through diplomatic activity and humanitarian works around the world should be described, as well as in Italy by the Association, through the St. John the Baptist hospital and by the Rescue Corps, at the forefront in the Mediterranean and alongside tens of thousands of the poor in all regions of our country.
Fra’ Emmanuel, are humanitarian works therefore the true face of the Order of Malta?
The mission of service to the most vulnerable, which our 13,500 members, together with more than 200,000 volunteers and employees, carry out even in the most remote corners of the planet, is what demonstrates and makes our faith visible. As we read in the Letter of St. James, “show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds,” so our works would not be possible without our foundational charism. The Order of Malta is first and foremost a religious order, and it is from spirituality that our humanitarian mission draws strength and hope, a widespread and complex organizational machine sustained by the work of all associations and entities operating under the aegis of the eight-pointed cross. Added to this is the intense activity of the diplomatic network, which supports and facilitates humanitarian projects, also making a significant contribution in terms of the promotion and advocacy of international humanitarian law, at a time when credible witnesses are needed in today’s increasingly dramatic crisis scenarios.
Card. Ghirlanda, is it this variety of experiences that represent the Order of Malta in the third millennium?
Certainly. And while we see humanitarian works flourish and multiply with extraordinary richness and quality, diplomatic relations and cooperation agreements grow, we can be grateful for the great work of the Order’s government and all the people who are part of it, to be supported and accompanied with prayer and closeness.
