(ANS – Gizo) – Solomon Islands Prime Minister. Hon. Gordon Darcy Lilo joined Catholic services at St Peter’s Catholic Cathedral, Gizo, visited the St Peter’s Training Centre and helped a public dialogue with constituency members at the newly constructed youth centre hall at St Peter’s compound, yesterday morning Sunday March17. He was welcomed by the Salesian bishop of Gizo, bishop Luciano Capelli, and has focused on mercy, as Pope Francis also did in his first Angelus.

The Prime Minister in his address referred to Bishop’s Luciano’s Homily on the Gospel account of the woman caught in adultery and agreed that forgiveness is further above the law: “Punishing with the full power of the law is one option, compassion and forgiveness shown to a person can transform him/her… The person’s dignity is far above his/her failures” he said.

This is exactly what the St Peter’s Training centre aims to do: to show mercy, compassion and service to people who might have offended or might offend the law by offering them a chance to be forgiven and to undertake a journey of conversion through an education to form him/her into a good Christian and an honest citizen as Don Bosco did. The gift of education shows trust and respect for the offender’s dignity and rebuilds him/her into a positive member of the Church and society.

Thus the PM agreed to offer a new chance to juveniles why might have offended against the law by giving them an alternative to show their good will. He will recommend “alternative sentencing” for juvenile offenders to give them this last chance. This step is indeed in the right direction in the prevention of criminality and re-orientation of our youth to higher values as good Christians and honest citizens.

The Catholic community of Gizo rejoices at this option of mercy above blindly applied justice in the case of juveniles who have lost their way – because they probably never experienced parental care and love, and underlines the similarity between these thoughts and what Pope Francis said on the Sunday Angelus.

Published 18/03/2013