News from the Church in Malta
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In the past few days, the Lord allowed me to visit Iraq, carrying out a project of Saint John Paul II. Never before has a Pope been in the land of Abraham. Providence willed that this should happen now, as a sign of hope, after years of war and terrorism, and during a severe pandemic… Read more »
While welcoming the strong drive towards COVID-19 vaccination for school staff members which is currently underway, the Secretariat for Catholic Education and the Church Schools Association call for greater urgency and a more balanced vaccination roll-out amongst staff in all schools (State, Church and independent schools).
This follows reports that a number of Church schools have still not received any appointments for vaccinations for staff members… Read more »
Read more »Ballot starting at 11 am …
L‑Arċidjoċesi ta’ Malta qed tippubblika direttivi ġodda għall‑jiem ta’ qabel u waqt il‑Ġimgħa Mqaddsa ta’ din is‑sena. Dawn il‑miżuri ta’ prevenzjoni kontra l‑imxija tal‑Covid‑19 qed jiġu ppubblikati wara li bħal‑lum xahar il‑Knisja ħabbret li f’Malta u Għawdex mhux ser jiġu organizzati pellegrinaġġi u purċissjonijiet tar‑Randan, u wara li nhar il‑Ġimgħa li għadda ġew sospiżi l‑laqgħat tal‑gruppi li jsiru b’mod fiżiku.
Il‑miżuri l‑ġodda ppubblikati llum jistabbilixxu li fil‑knejjes jistgħu jintramaw biss ix‑xbihat qaddisa tar‑Redentur, tal‑Vara l‑Kbira (jew Kurċifiss) u tal‑Madonna tad‑Duluri… Read more »
On the second day of his Apostolic Journey to Iraq, Pope Francis traveled to Ur of the Chaldeans, the birthplace of the three major religions—Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.
His meeting there was billed as the highpoint of his efforts to promote interreligious dialogue and fraternity in the Middle Eastern nation.
“This blessed place brings us back to our origins, to the sources of God’s work, to the birth of our religions,” the Pope said in his speech to representatives of the three Abrahamic religions… Read more »
In 2010, 48 worshippers including women and children, and two young priests were killed in a terrorist attack at the Syro-Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of Salvation in Baghdad.
More than ten years on from that horrific event, Pope Francis came to this place of worship on Friday, the first day of his Apostolic Visit to Iraq.
There he met with bishops, clergy, religious, seminarians, catechists and lay leaders, noting that they were “gathered in this Cathedral of Our Lady of Salvation, hallowed by the blood of our brothers and sisters who here paid the ultimate price of their fidelity to the Lord and His Church.”
Virus of discouragement
Addressing those present, the Pope told them never to lock down their apostolic zeal in the face of daily challenges, especially during this time of pandemic… Read more »
Reflection for the third Sunday of Lent by Archbishop Charles Scicluna.
Gospel: John 2:13-25 Read more »
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Fid‑dawl tad‑direttivi l‑ġodda maħruġa mill‑awtoritajiet tas‑saħħa, l‑Arċidjoċesi ta’ Malta qed tissospendi minnufih il‑laqgħat tal‑gruppi tagħha li jsiru b’mod fiżiku, inkluż is‑sessjonijiet ta’ katekeżi tat‑tfal.
Filwaqt li tapprezza li għadd ta’ laqgħat diġà qed isiru online, l‑Arċidjoċesi tkompli tinkoraġġixxi biex, fejn hu possibbli, dawn l‑inizjattivi pastorali jkomplu b’mod virtwali. Din id‑direttiva terġa’ tiġi kkunsidrata wara l‑11 ta’ April li ġej.
Il‑Knisja tkompli tħeġġeġ biex nitolbu lil Alla għas‑saħħa tal‑poplu tagħna u biex nieħdu ħsieb xulxin billi nosservaw id‑direttivi għall‑ħarsien tas‑saħħa… Read more »
Itma’ u Libbes is the 2021 Lenten campaign organised by the Archdiocese of Malta through the Caritas Parish Diaconia Network, together with Newsbook.com.mt and 103 Malta’s Heart, aimed at alleviating those struggling in strained circumstances. The campaign will fundraise money to pay for healthy meals to be given to those in need, as well as to collect re-usable clothes which are still in very good condition… Read more »
The Pope boarded an Alitalia A330 at Fiumicino airport on Friday morning to begin his visit to the Middle Eastern nation of Iraq.
The papal plane took off at 7:45 AM, and is due to land at Baghdad’s International Airport around 2 PM local time. This will be the first time a Pope visits Iraq.
Pre-trip encounter
Before leaving the Casa Santa Marta on Friday morning, Pope Francis met briefly with around a dozen Iraqi refugees living in Italy.
The refugees are assisted by the Community of Saint Egidio and the Auxilium Cooperative… Read more »
