Simonne Pace catches up with Anton Cassar, a commissioner of the Archconfraternity of the Holy Crucifix of Ta’ Ġieżu church in Valletta, who says he hasn’t missed out on a single Good Friday procession since he was four years old.

A lot of the statues are adorned with fresh flowers, an unusual characteristic of this procession.A lot of the statues are adorned with fresh flowers, an unusual characteristic of this procession.

It was so peaceful and still inside Ta’ Ġieżu church, off St Paul Street, which is solemnly preparing for its Good Friday procession, that you could hear a pin drop.

Almost all the statues have been taken out of the oratory adjacent to the Franciscan Minors’ convent and placed below their respective station according to the Way of the Cross – under each nave of the church.

Preparations for this year’s Good Friday procession kicked off on Ash Wednesday.

The main attraction is undoubtedly the impressive Miraculous Crucifix, sculpted in the 1630s by the Sicilian Franciscan friar Umile Pintorno. Held in great devotion by many Maltese and visitors to the church, the Holy Crucifix gives the archconfraternity its name.

Apart from organising Valletta’s Good Friday procession, the Archconfraternity of the Holy Crucifix also celebrates the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross on September 16 with a procession.

Jesus Christ chained (Il-Marbut ).Jesus Christ chained (Il-Marbut ).

Anton Cassar, 49, one of three commissioners of the archconfraternity, who has been taking part in his hometown’s Good Friday procession ever since he was four years old, says that together with his fellow commissioners Dione Montfort and Nazju Cumbo and other dedicated volunteers, he is seeing to the last few details and would like to have everything ready for the solemn event.

About 400 people take part in Valletta’s Good Friday procession, which is one of the oldest in Malta. Although it evokes a sombre mood to commemorate the death of Jesus Christ, the procession is a colourful display of biblical costumes and life-size statues representing several moments from the Passion of Christ. Some of the statues, sculpted by big names like Saverio Laferla and Pietru Pawl Azzopardi, date to the 1730s and 1830s.

The centuries-old procession has been accompanied by the La Valette Philharmonic Society since 1878. In fact, the band has become synonymous with the annual Valletta procession. However, documents discovered by the late Franciscan priest, Fr George Aquilina – who, says Cassar, was an avid scholar and historian who was sorely missed by the archconfraternity – show that the procession already enjoyed some form of musical accompaniment as early as 1673.

The La Valette band plays funeral excerpts, while the Salesian Girls and Boys Brigade beat their drums and sound their bugles to create “slow marches for soldiers” and add to the solemnity of the atmosphere during the procession.

“In olden times, the Good Friday statues were usually carried on the shoulders of hardworking stevedores and customs officials, who were usually the archconfraternity’s kind benefactors, who helped by contributing large sums of money in order to make sure the Good Friday procession took place,” reminisces Cassar, who is extremely passionate about his role.

In olden times, the statues were carried on the shoulders of stevedores and customs officials, who were the benefactors of the archconfraternity

“One interesting aspect of the Good Friday celebration in Valletta is that during the procession, the statue bearers stop with each statue at each crossroad – never in between – as the streets in Valletta are all parallel to each other.”

A years-old tradition of the Good Friday procession in Valletta is that each statue is beautifully decorated with rows of differently-coloured fresh flowers. This, Cassar points out, is not a common custom and can only be seen in a few other villages in Malta and Gozo.

Another original characteristic of the Valletta procession is the fact that the statue of the Dead Christ (Il-Monument) is carried by four bearers.

The bearers are totally covered by the monument’s drapery and are guided by a man to make their way along the route.

Another Valletta tradition that has died down in recent years is that in the run-up to the Good Friday procession, the Archconfraternity of the Holy Crucifix used to hold a procession every Friday through the streets in Valletta with one of the eight Passion statues, starting with the Agony of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The procession exits Ta’ Ġieżu church, proceeds down the steps, turns up St Ursula Street, on to St Christopher Street, Merchants Street, Melita Street and down St Paul Street on its way back into the church.

“The last part of the procession is tough for the participants, especially for the bearers,” says Cassar, who will soon retire from his full-time job with the Armed Forces of Malta.

“However, hard work pays off, especially when you hear people say that having been to the Valletta Good Friday procession was just like being to the Holy Land.”

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.