Trevor De Giorgio, Balzan
Bells should ring during village feast
A lot has been said and written about the decision taken by the Balzan parish priest to stop the ringing of the church bells after nine in the evening. One fully understands that certain residents might feel that the ringing of such bells in the early hours of the morning might cause an inconvenience. But I believe that an exception should be made during the village feast celebrations. Such activities form part of our traditions and render these celebrations unique. Every locality has its own form of traditions surrounding the celebration of the village feast.
Ideally, a form of compromise could be reached whereby the parish priest would allow the ringing of the church bells during the celebrations, when after all, the village square would be alive with activity. Once the celebrations end, then the church bells can fall silent again. In a time where the safeguarding of our cultural identity is a priority, action must be taken to protect our traditions.
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E. Azzopardi
Jul 13th 2008, 00:35
Tradition. Everybody tries to hide behind "tradition'. Why dont' women wear the "ghonella'' any longer?? That is tradition for you.
kenneth cauchi
Jul 12th 2008, 21:04
Yes bells ring every thursday as a rememberance of the Last Supper The fact that one gets a reply from parishoners means that the bells still forward their message. Zejtun bells form no din but rather grace the two piazzas since they are a harmonically scientifically tuned set of bells in B flat major. I am proud to state that I am the campanologist that was entrusted to compose the notes for this splendid set of bells cast in 2005. Bellringers are on the verge of being almost phased out, and the team of three dedicated people in Zejtun that keep this weekly short commitment should be thanked. I think 15 mins of bell ringing once a week with a splendid set of bells is indeed a treat for any listener whether a bell lover or not. As for the term pealing or tolling, bells peal during joyous periods and toll for funerals. For the benefit of all I appeal for bell ringers to be moderate and considerate during all ringing sessions and for your readers to focus on other noise pollution sources.
Karen M. Zammit Manduca
Jul 12th 2008, 14:43
This morning I was woken early by what sounded like a fog horn. It was the horn of a truck announcing to the person requiring a service from the owner that he had arrived.
Resigned to waking early (not exactly my hobby!), I decided to make the most of the extra time and sit in my back yard with my lace. First the bangs of fireworks from a nearby town started and soon after a crane working a street away.
How I would prefer to hear church bells ringing rather than these awful sounds!
A.Charles
Jul 12th 2008, 14:39
In Zejtun, every Thursday at 18.15, the church bells are rung for a whole 15 minutes and the din they cause in the 2 piazzas in front of the church is deafening. When I ask about this "tradition", the answer is always "because its Thursday". As Trevor De Giorgio wrote, church bells should be rung during village feasts..
WJ Gatt
Jul 12th 2008, 10:46
What about those expensive useless bangs going on till late at night?
Maria Zammit
Jul 12th 2008, 10:26
I do so agree but I'd like to be given an explanation as to why the Parish Priest decided to stop the church bells from ringing.
I'm sure there is a reason and to be honest I'd like to know what it is. Aren't we entitled to be be given a reason for this decision? Gone are the days that we have to accept anything because someone says so without qualifying why. It only causes more complaints when understanding might lessen confrontation.
Why after 9pm and not after 11pm?
J. Borg
Jul 12th 2008, 10:24
Do bells 'ring' or toil?