Gerry Cowie, Croydon, Surrey, England
Our Lady in the streets of London
I’d like to thank the Maltese once again for Malta Day which took place in London on September 11. It was a pleasure to receive Archbishop Paul Cremona and those Maltese who came to London especially for the event.
The choir from Gozo sang beautifully and I found it a great pleasure to join in all the hymns in the Maltese language. I was priviliged to be asked to carry the banner of Il-Bambina in the procession at the beginning of the Mass and afterwards through the streets of London to the Chapel of Ease in Horseferry Road.
It is rare that Our Lady makes her presence known in the streets of London in this “post- Christian” era, and again I thank Malta for coming to London to make this rarity possible!
I look forward to Malta Day UK next year and am pleased that it has become firmly established as a regular event.
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Gerry Cowie
Sep 28th 2010, 11:27
I pity Mr Vella Zarb for his usual anti-Catholic outburst and mockery of the event. I would point out that the pastizzi etc were not free! The weather was perfect all day.
Any truly patriotic Maltese person would not mock this event which promotes his country but instead publicise it. But then Mr Vella Zarb has little to do with his time. One wonders.......
I met Bernard Xerri and spoke to him at length. He really did put a lot of hard work into making the day such a success and is a credit to his nation. He is a true patriot.
wally vella-zarb
Sep 28th 2010, 14:40
The subject of my comment was the numbers present at the cathedral vis-a-vis taking part in the procession, but then, understanding plain English was never your forte, was it?
Gerry Cowie
Sep 29th 2010, 11:04
@Wally - I see through your comments every time! Your aim was to say something to belittle the event because 1/ I wrote the letter and 2/ You cannot resist a dig at religious issues! Why else you even bothered to comment - along with your friend William - I cannot even begin to imagine! You were not there and no doubt you would have avoided the event had you been in London.
But then effective spin was never your forte, was it!
Either say something sensible and meaningful or just say nothing if you can possibly resist the temptation!!
Mary Fisher
Sep 27th 2010, 22:55
@ John Grima
I fully endorse what he says regarding the very hard work put in by two very special people in London and these are Bernard Xerri and his wife Barbara who work relentlessly for the Maltese Community and especailly for the Malta Day in London to be such a successful event. Heartfelt thamks go to the pair of them.
John M. Grima
Sep 27th 2010, 19:14
I have never, so far, had the opportunity to attend this celebration of Malta Day in London, UK. However, I know two people who works very hard, organizing and preparing for this feast, year after year. We thank and congratulate Benard and Barbara Scherri of London, England
wally vella-zarb
Sep 27th 2010, 18:01
"Westminster Cathedral was full to the brim with people and the procession was joined by well over 100 faithful persons" Where did all the others go? It wasn't raining, was it ? Did they just go for the prospect of free 'pastizzi'? One wonders...
Mary & Geoffrey Fisher
Sep 27th 2010, 17:29
This was a superlative occasion. We flew to London especially to be there for the 10th anniversary of Malta Day and what wonderful memories we have got! It was lovely to see all the Maltese assemble and greet each other with brotherly love whether they knew you or not. It was amazing how Westminster Cathedral got so full of people from different countries and how proud we were to be Maltese and to be allowed to have our own little Festa on the Piazza in front of the Cathedral watched by all and sundry and being approached by several foreigners asking us what it was all about and us proudly telling them that such a tiny country got to celebrate our specail day in the Capital of the UK and we even got the chance of going into procession behind Our Lady with our heads held up high and proud of our faith. Please allow us to congratulate ALL who had anything to do with the organisation of this event and we sincerely hope to keep returning year after year. Thanks also to our Archbishop for being present there. Well done Malta in London!
Gerry Cowie
Sep 27th 2010, 15:19
I wish to correct the misleading impression Mr Flynn gives below of Malta Day and the carefully chosen and heavily biased "source" he has quoted in order to attempt to sully the Church. He was not present and it is a pity he has seen fit to comment so. Malta Day has been running for several years now. It was a day-long event, including stalls and displays of Maltese history, culture, costume and food in the large hall of Westminster Cathedral. It culminated in a mass followed by a procession through the streets bearing Il-Bambina's statue. Westminster Cathedral was full to the brim with people and the procession was joined by well over 100 faithful persons. It was attended by people who live in Malta, Many Maltese patriots who work here in London and also tourists who wished to particpate. I was there so I can speak truthfully about what I witnessed of this wonderful occasion.
LJ Saliba
Sep 27th 2010, 10:08
@ Carmel Pule'
Bottles of beer on Brewery conveyor belts do not rush across each other's path, as they are all going in the same direction.
Pule' Carmel
Sep 27th 2010, 10:44
So true,but I meant the paths to be like the spagetti junctions,they do cross each other above and below,each keeping to a particular path without hitting each other.Sometimes they jam. The other day I met one of my students who works in a brewery.He tells me that the old method of ensuring that bottles are absolutely clean or filled up is now done through image processingset fromabroad!!!. Every bottle is analysed as our20 Euronote is image processed when we buy petrol using the automatic machine. I guess in a city with all those cameras around we are now being treated like bottles of beer on a conveyer, the camera can see if we are clean, where we are going and so on. I know of factories in Japan where the only living creature in it is THE CAT all else is machines! I see city life like that in a city with most chasing SUCCES not knowing exactly what it is! I know of a Maltese person in New York who was going to assist an old lady who had fallen to the ground, An American stopped hhim and said, " Do not, she will sue you for pushing her!!"
Pule' Carmel
Sep 27th 2010, 09:48
People in large cities rush across each other's path without salutations, as bottles of beer on the conveyer belts of a modern brewery. I did it for 15 years. It is recouraging to see that a touch of humanity, touching the hearts of a small community can add a touch of warmth in a cold city. In saying that, I am not sure that in the streets of a modern cosmopolitan city, all international traditional cultural activities, especial the noisy ones, would be allowed. As long as the function has a serene atmosphere to it , it is useful to remind the city dwellers that there are other components in a human to cater for, as peace of mind and serenity, which is not so easy to find in a cosmopolitan city. Well done to the organisers