Fr Avertan Fenech was born in Mosta.

His meek voice prevented him from being a prolific preacher but Avertan Fenech’s life of virtue and prayer have not gone unnoticed, 74 years after his death.

The Carmelite friar has just been put on the long path to sainthood after Archbishop Charles Scicluna signed the edict, paving the way for official documentation to start being collected.

Fr Avertan was born in Mosta in July 1871, to Duminku Fenech and Maria Attard. 

Within the Carmelite Order in Malta, he spent 26 years mentoring novices to the priesthood.

His dedication came to the fore during the Spanish flu pandemic between 1918 and 1919 when he took personal charge of the care of novices who contracted the flu that killed more than 800 people in Malta.

Fr Avertan’s virtues of spiritual rectitude and prayer continued despite being paralysed by a stroke in 1932. He spent 11 years in a wheelchair, unable to communicate properly.

Mgr Scicluna’s edict argues that Fr Avertan was not a preacher but conveyed Christ’s message by leading an exemplary life.

“Now at this point in time [throughout his paralysis], he shone as an example of virtue and unity with God as he accepted God’s will,” the edict said.

Mgr Scicluna also posited him as a beacon of dignity in today’s culture that discusses whether people with terminal illnesses should have their life terminated out of mercy.

Fr Avertan died in November 1943, and his confessor testified that he had never committed grave sins.

On the 70th anniversary of his death, Fr Avertan’s remains were reburied at the St Roque chapel in Mdina, forming part of the Carmelite priory. Believers still visit the room to which he was confined before his death and the crypt where he is buried.

The life of this priest, deemed by many at the time of his death to be a holy man, will now be subject to scrutiny as part of the process to become a saint. The beatification process is the first stage and it starts with documenting the life and virtues of the man.

Mgr Scicluna’s edict calls on anyone possessing any writings, diaries, letters and other private communications linked to Fr Avertan to forward them to the chancellery at the Curia.