Pastoral Letters

Pastoral Letter for Lent 2017: Choices pleasing to the Lord

11/03/2017

  • “Rise and do not be afraid” (Mt 17, 7). These are the words that Jesus told his disciples – Peter, James and his brother John – following his experience on Mount Tabor. They witnessed his glory; they heard the voice of the Father about Jesus: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”  When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground, and were filled with awe.  But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise and do not be afraid” (Mt 17, 5-7)…

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Pastoral Letter for Lent 2016 – Christ our medicine for our illnesses

13/02/2016
  • Who amongst us is not familiar with illness? We are all subject to falling ill, but not everyone faces illness in the same way: there are those who accept their illness, however then there are those who struggle and succumb to the heavy weight of their malady; furthermore, on several occasions, family members and those close to the ailing person also suffer.  When referring to illness, we are not only referring to physical ailments, but also to other illnesses which affect our interpersonal relationships, mostly those within the family; sicknesses which corrode relationships in the ecclesial community and several other areas of society…

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Pastoral Letter at the beginning of the Jubilee of Mercy – Merciful Like The Father

12/12/2015
  • “Merciful like the Father”. This is the important message which the Jubilee of Mercy, inaugurated by Pope Francis, wants to convey to us all. Jesus himself declared that we should “be merciful just as the Father is merciful” (Lk 6:36). Mercy: a sign of God’s love The Good News may be summarised in Jesus’ own words: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:16)…

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Pastoral Message for Lent 2015

14/02/2015
  • Fasting: Waiting – Anticipation – Feeling at Home – Forgiveness

  • Dear Christian brethren,

    At the start of Holy Lent 2015, and in preparation for the journey we shall make together during this time, I wish to share this short message with each and every one of you.

    On one occasion, the Pharisees and Scribes questioned Jesus as to why his disciples were not fasting…

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Pastoral Message for Advent 2014 – Welcoming the light of Jesus

28/11/2014

  • I greet you, people of God of the beloved Diocese of Malta, at the beginning of Advent 2014.  As the Apostolic Administrator of Malta, until a new Archbishop is appointed, it is my privilege to address you at the onset of this important season which prepares us for the great feast of Christmas, the celebration of the birth of the infant Jesus…

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Pastoral Letter for Lent

01/03/2014

  • Pastoral Letter for Lent

  • Our Share in Building Society

  • Dear brothers and sisters,

    Throughout our history as a people, in an attempt to build our nation and uphold our dignity, we have taken great strides and accomplished many goals.  It is impossible to refrain from commemorating the important anniversaries which our nation is celebrating this year.  Many contemporary Maltese and Gozitan citizens, as well as some who lived before us, have toiled so that our country may retain the dignity and the position which it deserves, equivalent to that enjoyed by other peoples.  We should express sincere feelings of gratitude towards our brethren who have laboured on our behalf throughout history in order that this may come to fruition…

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Ittra Pastorali – Avvent 2013

30/11/2013
  • Pastoral Letter for Advent 2013
  • Christmas: The Feast of the Betrothal of the Lord with His People

  • The liturgical period of Advent and Christmas brings to mind the expectation and the coming of our Lord among us.  As we read in the first paragraph of the Letter to the Hebrews: “At various times in the past and in various different ways, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets; but in our time, the last days, he has spoken to us through his Son, whom he appointed to inherit everything and through whom he made everything there is” (Heb 1, 1-2)…

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Pastoral Letter for Lent 2013

16/02/2013

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A Time of Prayer and Charity

Dear brothers and sisters,

The period of Lent has just commenced in the Liturgy of the Catholic Church.  The Catholic Church does not only follow the  civil calendar. Human time is sanctified when the Church lives the experience of the life of Jesus throughout the Liturgical year.  The Liturgical year, in its entirety, follows the Solemn Feast of Easter, that is, the authentic account of the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus from the dead… Read more »