On August 11, 1980 I was invited by Archbishop Joseph Mercieca to be the new parish priest of St Gregory the Great parochial community after spending six happy years at Our Lady of Lourdes parish, Paola.

I spent 13 beautiful years at St Gregory’s, where I met very good catholic families and learnt so much from them. I tried to serve them as best I could.

During those years, pressure was put on me and my fellow priests to change the statue of the patron saint. In fact, one day I was shown the miniiature model of a completely new statue, whose sculptor I would not like to mention.

Those who contacted him had not been invited neither by me nor by any parish constituted body. In fact, some of them did not form part of the parish community of St Gregory.

With God’s help I never succumbed to this pressure, as I followed my conscience. I always communicated with my ecclesiastical superiors.

During those 13 years of ecclesiastical responsibility, I never commissioned any intervention on the statue I inherited from my two predecessors. The story published in The Sunday Times of Malta (July 13, 2014) reported that the restorer, Fr Charles Vella, a friend of mine, “had to strip layers of accumulated paint, which included black ‘lip-liner’ around the mouth and thicker eyebrows that made the saint look sterner”.

I categorically state that I never commissioned such things. What I did was invite the late sexton and some volunteers to dust it gently.

I congratulate Dr John Seychell Navarro for what he did to bring the statue to its original state.

He had to endure mental suffering, tension and extra work during the past months. I am witness to this.

Fr Victor Scicluna, the present pastor, should also be congratulated after all this ordeal.

I will be happier, when the occasion arises, to revisit my former parish church, which I am indebted to.