An ancient and deeply rooted Catholicism
St. Paul's shipwreck on the small island bearing his name is said to have been the founding element in the introduction of the Christian religion to the island of Malta. And that was over 2,000 years ago. When governed by the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, the Maltese archipelago represented a pocket of resistance to the advance of Islam in the Mediterranean, and victory during the great siege is said to have exalted the Christian faith of the Maltese. A faith that would last until independence in 1964. On that date, the Maltese Constitution made the Roman Catholic religion the official religion of Malta, giving the Church the right and duty to provide religious instruction in schools. However, according to the same constitution, every citizen has the right to freedom of worship, whatever his or her religion. Until 1994, Malta would have no municipalities, just parishes in which the church was the main meeting place, and whose beauty and grandeur were to reflect its prosperity, enabling it to compete with others. Although today the Church has theoretically fewer prerogatives, religion continues to weigh heavily on the daily lives of the Maltese: organization of practices and patronages, divorce until 2011 and the right to abortion. In this area, in June 2023, Malta adopted a law authorizing abortion, albeit very restrictively (in cases of vital danger to the mother and non-viable foetus). Religious education is compulsory in both state and private schools, and the Church is involved in social debates such as in vitro fertilization and the ban on abortion.
The network of parishes remains extensive: 313 churches for 63 parishes in Malta and 45 churches for 15 parishes in Gozo, often with a primary and secondary saint, and therefore several festas. It's easy to visit these churches, as many Maltese associations organize tours in a bid to recover their heritage. According to statistics, 98% of Maltese are Catholics, but the situation is changing, with only half the population attending mass every Sunday. Given the overwhelming majority of Catholics, the presence of other faiths is hardly visible. However, there is a small Muslim community with a new mosque in Paola. Protestants meet at St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral in Valletta.
Virgin Mary, Festas and Holy Week
The network of parishes is placed under the patronage of the saints, with a particular focus on the Virgin Mary. Her popularity is extraordinary, and she is venerated by people of all ages and backgrounds. Weeks are dedicated to her in August in many villages of Malta and Gozo, where the population gathers every evening in the main square. Some recite the rosary, others look out from the terrace of the nearby café... In the age of the T-shirt bearing messages and slogans, it's not uncommon to see trendy young boys wearing the Virgin Mary flocked on cotton. The other particularly venerated saint is the apostle St. Paul, but fervor also accompanies "secondary" saints such as St. Publius, converted to Catholicism by St. Paul and first bishop of Malta, and St. Agatha, virgin and martyr. This fervor is particularly evident during the festas. Introduced at the end of the reign of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem to distract peasants from their work, they only really became widespread towards the end of the 19th century with the establishment of Band Clubs . They are prepared many weeks in advance, and churches are overloaded with ornaments for the occasion. The first three days, the triduum, are devoted to prayer. The festas feature parades of brass bands and concerts in the village square, giggifogu fireworks displays, and processions accompanying the patron saint in which all generations mingle. An impressive number of festas take place between June and September, but they actually start in February and last until December. If you're in Gozo around mid-August, don't miss the three-day Festa de la Santa Maria in Victoria. It's one of the most famous in Malta. Unlike today's festas, whose purpose is more to strengthen bonds between inhabitants, Holy Week celebrates the passion, death and resurrection of Christ in a serious and contemplative manner. It begins on the preceding Friday with processions accompanying Our Lady of Sorrows. One of the highlights is of course Good Friday, celebrated in Qormi, Zejtun, Rabat, Mosta, Naxxar, Valletta, Cospicua, Vittoriosa, Senglea, Zebbug, Ghaxaq, Luqa, Gharghur and Paola, with historical re-enactments. On Easter Sunday, celebrations mark the resurrection of Christ. In Vittoriosa, Senglea, Cospicua and Qormi, the morning is devoted to processions through the town, carrying a statue of the risen Christ. The procession is accompanied by a brass band, and the young men carrying the statue do so running. This celebration is particularly important in Vittoriosa. This Sunday is also an opportunity for families to get together, enjoy a good meal and exchange gifts. Easter eggs are made, and the Maltese housewife concocts a local specialty, figolla: a special dough cut into various shapes: a lamb, a woman, a basket or an eight-pointed cross. Two identical shapes are glued together and filled with marzipan. As for beliefs and legends, Malta is also known for its double clocks. Many churches have two clocks, one in each bell tower, following the classic plan of Baroque churches. One gives the true time, the other the wrong information, like a split between the devil and the good Lord, good and evil, truth and error. Legend has it that while the inhabitants know which is the right time, the devil, who wants to disturb and tempt them during mass, ignores it and, lost before these two contradictory clocks, ends up getting the wrong time and abandoning his prey.
