Malta set to greet Pope Benedict
Video: Paul Spiteri Lucas
Pope Benedict arrives on the island of Paul at 5 p.m. today on a 26-hour visit which has been dogged by controversy for the Holy See and the Maltese organisers.
It will be the third Papal visit to Malta and the first by Pope Benedict, who became pontiff five years ago.
Pope Benedict, who turned 83 yesterday, will follow on the footsteps of Pope John Paul II, who came here in 1990 on the first ever papal visit and returned in 2001 to beatify Gorg Preca, Adeodata Pisani and Nazju Falzon.
Pope Benedict had kept up that process when he made Dun Gorg Malta's first saint during a rain-drenched ceremony in St Peter's Square in June 2007.
He promptly accepted President George Abela's invitation to visit Malta when the President went to Rome on his first overseas visit after assuming office last year.
The scenario of the latest visit could not be more different from the others. In 1990 Malta was heading towards EU membership and reporters looked out for any papal references to the then controversy - he only uttered one sentence, saying that Europe needed Malta's faithful witness.
The short visit in 2001 by an ailing Pope John Paul II was concentrated on the beatification ceremony.
This time around, reporters, Maltese and foreign, will be looking out for any references by the Pope to the child sex scandals which have clouded the church over the past few weeks.
The local Church has insisted that the purpose of the visit is spiritual, based around the 1950th anniversary of the shipwreck of St Paul in Malta. Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said it is an opportunity for the Maltese to re-examine their values.
Malta remains a bastion of the Catholic Church in Europe, with the highest figures of Sunday Mass attendance. But those figures have been dropping fast. Perhaps of bigger concern for the Church is support for the introduction of divorce, which appears to be growing. Another issue is ethical issues in artificial procreation.
Pope Benedict will be welcomed at the airport by, among others, President Abela, the Prime Minister, the Apostolic Nuncio, and the Archbishop and will deliver a speech in reply to President Abela's greeting.
He will then be driven in the Pope Mobil to Valletta, past one of the sources of one of the local controversies ahead of the visit - the monument in Luqa.
Hundreds of elderly persons will greet the Pope outside St Vincent de Paule Home, while 5,000 children will welcome His Holiness on the Palace Square in Valletta. After meeting Malta's political leadership at the Palace, the Pope will be driven to St Paul's Church in Rabat. He will pray at St Paul's grotto and address Maltese missionaries from a stage on the church parvis.
The highlight of the visit will be reached tomorrow morning with Papal Mass on the granaries. The Church, reacting to a controversy over the non-married partners of MPs, has insisted that everyone, independently of his state or status, is welcome. The Pope will cross Grand Harbour from Kalkara in the afternoon and greet youths at the Valletta Waterfront. Well over 9,000 young people have registered to attend.
The logistical preparations for the visit appear to have gone smoothly - no surprise for an island that has hosted a superpower summit, CHOGM and two previous papal visits. The Press Centre at the Hotel Excelsior is already a hive of activity. On the Granaries, the altar where the Pope will concelebrate with 700 priests is ready, chairs have been laid out for VIPs and the infirm and the area is being transformed into a paradise of plants and flowers.
(The full programme and the routes to be followed by the Pope can be seen here: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100415/papal-visit/popes-routes-announced )
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23 Comments
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X Bonanno
Apr 19th 2010, 17:39
Il-poplu TA risposta bil-pulit! Grazzi lil kulhadd tas-success tremend. Grazzi lill-Papa
Michael Mifsud
Apr 17th 2010, 15:32
VIVA L-PAPA !!
Christian Sciberras
Apr 17th 2010, 18:10
The comment above is best accompanied with:
VIVA PN
...or political party of choice. Anyway, you do get my point.
Joe Zammit
Apr 17th 2010, 15:20
Our deep and genuine love is always for the Pope, whatever name he bears. Our oneness is with the Pope whoever he may be. For the Maltese and Gozitans the Pope is the Head of their Catholic Church and he has been so for the past 2000 years.
Our conversion to Christianity and Catholicism is clearly narrated by St Luke in the Acts of the Apostles, Chapters 27 and 28. By God's providence we have been converted to Christ by one of the Apostles himself, St Paul.
Dylan Olliver
Apr 17th 2010, 14:35
Your Holiness, we welcome you as the Vicar of Christ on Earth. May God be with you.
Christian Sciberras
Apr 17th 2010, 18:09
Actually I'm just a humble Times of Malta reader. Not a priest even.
Alfred Grech
Apr 17th 2010, 13:59
WELCOME TO OUR ISLAND AND TO OUR HEARTS, YOUR HOLINESS!
Sara Galea
Apr 17th 2010, 13:38
'The Pope mobil'. Class!
Eric Gahn
Apr 17th 2010, 13:32
I hope The Times is referring to Malta the rock and not the people. I am part of Malta the people and the Pope here is not going to do anything for me.
John Azzopardi
Apr 17th 2010, 13:22
Welcome to the Maltese Islands and Happy Birthday to the Pope. Hope he gets a break on his hectic schedule to Malta and be energized by the Maltese and Gozitan's Catholic faith and culture.
g ellul
Apr 17th 2010, 13:15
@ m azzopardi
alienate?
The definition of alienate reads "arouse hostility or indifference in where there had formerly been love, affection, or friendliness".
That was definitely not the intention of our President!
m.azzopardi
Apr 17th 2010, 12:42
@ g ellul
As if the President of Malta invited Pope Benedict to visit our beloved country to alienate us from the financial crisis that hit most parts of the world. Some people never change.
P. Sammut
Apr 17th 2010, 12:38
I hope that after the Pope leaves the island, the government will treat the population in the same manner. I am expecting that all roads now to be done as all of the Maltese citizens use them. The government should not change MAlta just to look nice with the Pope. This is Malta and we cannot show him another face.
Timmy Farrugia
Apr 17th 2010, 12:34
10x pope from my car which is now enjoying smoother rides!!! :)
Charles Micallef
Apr 17th 2010, 11:41
May Pope Benedict blesses all of us on his 1st visit to our Island and also bless all the roads resurfacing works while he is being driven through our streets……..for which the Maltese Drivers will be eternally grateful to His Holyness..........!
Stefan Engelbert
Apr 17th 2010, 11:21
Airports in Mailand, Turin, Venedig and Bologna are closed!
G.Micallef
Apr 17th 2010, 10:47
Dear Pope Benedicr, Welcome to Malta! God Bless You.
mario camilleri
Apr 17th 2010, 09:58
May the visit of Pope Benedict brings peace and unity to our dear Malta,and may all the Maltese greet and welcome the ancestor of Peter. VIVA L PAPA.
A Caruana
Apr 17th 2010, 11:37
Correction: Successor (not ancestor) of Peter but Viva l-Papa all the same. And may God bless him, all the faithful and anyone of good will.
g ellul
Apr 17th 2010, 09:56
I'm glad this Papal visit, if anything, has generated a bit of business: flowers, tarmac, flags,carpets, sound systems etc. And the people's attention for these couple of days is deviated from electricity bills, costly fuel, gas and ever-increasing car licences etc. to focus on the magnificence of Pope Benedict.....
God bless the Pope!
Rocco Cauchi
Apr 17th 2010, 09:49
Welcome to the Pope, and let us listen with faith and humility to whatever he has to tell us.
On the logistics of the visit, I do not want to sound pessimistic but there are two tactical points which are bothering me:
1. The Floriana stand designer has said that a considerable part of it is constructed or cardboard. Given that tomorrow is being forecast to be rainy (water) and thundery (fire), will the Pope be located in a safe enough place to avoid any mishaps? What about the other persons who will be on the stand?
2. I understand that at the Waterfront the youths will be gathered along the pier, one side of which is exposed to the sea but for interspersed mooring points. What if a rush or an accident occurs and the youths are pushed to the edge with the danger of someone falling into the sea? Has this been catered for?
Can any last minute arrangements be made to cater for these dangerous situations, if they actually exist?
Elaine Sultana
Apr 17th 2010, 15:08
The area around the quay where the concert is going to be organised is surrounded by barriers and they are set 1 meter away from the edge. There should be no problem and security will make sure that no one steps outside these barriers
Joe Zammit
Apr 17th 2010, 09:38
The Pope will say what the Holy Spirit will inspire him to say to the people of Malta and Gozo and not what the media is expecting him to say. Christ did not say what the people wanted him to say but what he wanted to say.
The Catholic Church is not a weathercock. That's why she has had many martyrs.