Foreword [Mapping a moral consensus : calibrating an ethical compass for the future - Festschrift in honour of Mgr Professor Emmanuel Agius on the occasion of his seventieth birthday]

Abstract

This publication is not just a celebration of the length of life of Mgr Professor Emmanuel Agius, as though this in itself were some personal achievement, but of the fruitfulness of a life that has been mostly dedicated to academia. Though he has had various roles in the Church for several decades, Professor Agius also believes that academia and pastoral work are not two distinct fields. On the contrary, he has always held that academia itself is a form of pastoral work and has encouraged his younger colleagues to see it in this light. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Professor Agius, who faithfully serves as a priest in his hometown of Qrendi, has long been ‘a university man’, an expression that is dear to him, feeling totally at home within any academic setting as is the prestigious institution to which he has given his all, namely the University of Malta. Imbued with his distinct passion for his alma mater, he would often use the expression “to love the Faculty”, naturally referring to the Faculty of Theology wherein he has been an inspiration to countless students and academics alike.