Next Monday, Archbishop Paul Cremona O.P. and Bishop Mario Grech will be at the Vatican for the ad Limina visit of the Archdiocese of Malta and the Diocese of Gozo.
This so-called ad Limina visit is held regularly in order that the bishops may give account of the diocese for which they are responsible. Normally this visit is held every five years and includes a number of meetings with dicasteries of the Roman Curia, including the Secretariat for the State, Congregations, Tribunals, Councils and Pontifical Offices.
The meetings include an audience with Pope Benedict XVI, which will take place on Monday morning. During this audience, besides Archbishop Cremona and Bishop Grech, there will also be present Archbishop Emeritus Joseph Mercieca.
The ad Limina visit of the Maltese bishops is spread over five days; they are expected to return to Malta on Friday 1st June.
In the history of the Catholic Church, one can find reference to ad Limina visits ever since the 16th century, in the Constitution ‘Romanus Pontifex’ of Pope Sixtus V. 300 years later, in 1909, Pope Pius X issued a decree stating that bishops were to give account of their diocese to the Pope every five year. Presently, the obligation to hold an ad Limina visit is also stipulated in the 1983 Code of Canon Law.