The Paola feast of Our Lady of Lourdes will go ahead after a court turned down a band club’s request to stop the parish priest from organising it. The request was filed just 24 hours before the festivities.
Mr Justice Geoffrey Valenzia said it was “amply” clear that the band club was not going to suffer irremediable damages.
The Lourdes Philharmonic Society of Paola claimed Fr Christopher Galea had prevented it from taking part in the feast – celebrated this weekend – breaching a contract signed three years ago.
The society contended that an agreement signed in February 2007 provided that the band club receives payment for services rendered and also obliges Fr Galea to consult it about band services.
It had claimed that this year not only did the priest fail to pay the club but that he also made arrangements with other philharmonic societies from other villages without consultation.
But in his counter-reply filed yesterday morning, Fr Galea pointed out that, as parish priest and spiritual leader of the community, he was ultimately the organiser of the feast – which was ultimately a religious ceremony.
Also, the agreement included a condition that gave him the right to terminate any obligations or contracts in unforeseen circumstances that were unsuitable for the feast.
The counter-reply stated it was the band club which had decided to back out of the agreement and arbitrarily ask for more money.
When Fr Galea refused, the band club said it was only prepared to play during the procession.
His decisions were always taken after consultation with the Curia and Fr Galea’s first duty was towards the parish’s pastoral good.
Mr Justice Valenzia said the issue had been dragging on for years and nothing happened recently to merit the need for an injunction.
“Any financial damage is remediable and does not necessitate the exceptional procedure of the warrant for injunction that was requested a few hours before the festivities,” he said.
As a result, he turned down the band club’s request and ordered it to pay costs.
Following the decision, Fr Galea walked out of court to be greeted by a group of Paola residents who applauded and cheered as soon as they saw him.
But almost an hour after the court’s decision, the society said it was going to file a lawsuit against Fr Galea for breach of the 2007 contract.
Also, the society said it was going to close its offices this weekend to “avoid any provocation or fights” – a decision that was taken following consultation with the society’s officials.
The society did not rule out the possibility of organising a separate feast “for them” if it did not reach an agreement with the parish.