Fl-okkażjoni ta’ Jum il-Ħajja, iċċelebrat kull sena fl-ewwel Ħadd ta’ Frar, Mons. Isqof Mario Grech, Amministratur Appostoliku għal Għawdex bagħat Ittra lill-Poplu ta’ Alla dwar il-ħidma favur il-ħajja mwettqa minn Dar Ġużeppa Debono.
Aqra minn hawn il-verżjoni bil-Malti: insahhu-fostna-l-kultura-favur-il-hajja.pdf
English version of Bishop’s Grech Letter: reinforcing-a-culture-promoting-life.pdf
Published on August 23, 2019
in Homilies.
Omelija fis-Solennità tat-Tlugħ fis-Sema tal-Verġni Marija
Katidral tal-Assunta, il-Belt Victoria
Il-Ħamis 15 ta’ Awwissu 2019
L-E.T. Mons. Mario Grech, Isqof ta’ Għawdex
LEJN KNISJA MISTIKA
Għalina l-Insara, l-Għid tal-Assunta huwa festa singulari. Mhux ta’ b’xejn li l-kotra jagħmlu shut down, iwaqqfu r-rutina tal-ħajja mgħaġġla ta’ kuljum biex jistrieħu u jieħdu r-ruħ. Jien nixtieq li Santa Marija, barra li tkun mument ta’ relax, tkun ukoll okkażjoni biex nieqfu nirriflettu dwar kif nistgħu ntejbu l-livell tal-ħajja tagħna. Santa Marija tielgħa s-Sema qed tgħidilna biex nerfgħu qlubna ’l fuq, għax aktar ma nitilgħu ’l fuq, aktar naraw ’il bogħod! Il-bniedem għaqli jkun jixtieq jara x’hemm fix-xefaq! ħasra li llum sirna nxommu biss sa imneħirna. Continue reading >>
69/2019
A Pastoral Letter
by His Excellency Mgr Mario Grech
Bishop of Gozo
on the occasion of the Feast of the Assumption
and the Conclusion of the Marian Year
MARY THE ROAD TO JOY
I was still at the Seminary when the Servant of God Dun Mikiel Attard recounted to us how once, returning to Malta by boat after a stay in Italy with the poor, he accosted a young man, a foreigner, and asked him what is joy. The young man opened a bottle of beer, sipped it and showing him the bottle, replied, “This is joy!”. It so happened that a storm began to blow and the boat began to rise up and down with the waves to such an extent that many felt seasick. This young man was one of them and he was so sick that he ended up feeding the fish! When the boat docked in our Grand Harbour Dun Mikiel gently asked him what had become of his joy. The young man apologised and told him he had been joking when he replied to him before the way he did.
Going by research conducted in these last few years, our country is one of the foremost places where one can live happily: possibly we are the happiest people worlwide! This is an impressive result, but how true is it? And what standard does one use to measure joy? I feel that today there are many who are asking the same question posed by Dun Mikiel, the more so when it seems that true joy is becoming more of a rarity. We find ourselves surrounded by so many sad situations which weigh down heavily on the mind and heart. It is enough to think of the storm clouds gathering over certain married couples who are seeing their dream of a happily married life vanish into thin air; or to see the proliferation of new social problems leading to a diminishment of mental health among us and in so many other countries. Continue reading >>
69/2019
Ittra Pastorali
tal-E.T. Mons. Mario Grech
Isqof ta’ Għawdex
fl-okkażjoni
tal-Festa ta’ Santa Marija u l-Għeluq tas-Sena Marjana
MARIJA T-TRIQ TAL-FERĦ
Kont għadni s-Seminarju meta l-Qaddej ta’ Alla Dun Mikiel Attard irrakkontalna li darba, waqt li kien ġej lura bil-vapur lejn Malta wara esperjenza mal-foqra fl-Italja, resaq fuq żagħżugħ barrani u staqsieh x’inhu l-ferħ. Iż-żagħżugħ fetaħ flixkun birra, legleg ftit minnu u, waqt li wrieh il-flixkun, qallu: “Dan huwa l-ferħ!”. Ġara li matul il-vjaġġ qam il-maltemp, il-vapur beda jogħla, tant li kien hemm diversi li ddardru. Fosthom kien hemm dan iż-żagħżugħ, li tant għamillu deni li għalef il-ħut! Xħin il-vapur daħal il-Port il-Kbir tagħna, Dun Mikiel b’ħafna mħabba staqsieh x’kien ġara mill-ferħ tiegħu. Iż-żagħżugħ skuża ruħu u qallu li kien qed jiċċajta meta kien tah l-ewwel tweġiba.
Skont stħarriġ li sar f’dawn l-aħħar snin, pajjiżna hu fost l-aktar pajjiżi fid-dinja fejn wieħed jgħix ferħan, jekk mhux ukoll l-aktar poplu ferħan fid-dinja! Ħaġa sabiħa, imma kemm tassew hu minnu dan? U x’kejl jintuża biex inqisu l-ferħ? Personalment inħoss li llum ħafna huma dawk li qed jagħmlu l-istess mistoqsija li għamel Dun Mikiel dwar x’inhu l-ferħ, iktar u iktar meta bħal donnu l-ferħ veru qed jiskarsa. Madwarna hawn diversi sitwazzjonijiet ta’ diqa li jtaqqlu l-moħħ u l-qalb. Biżżejjed insemmu s-sħab iswed li hawn fuq ċerti koppji miżżewġa li, f’temp ta’ ftit żmien, qed jaraw il-ħolma ta’ ħajja ferrieħa fiż-żwieġ issirilhom suf; jew it-tkattir ta’ problemi soċjali ġodda li qed iżidu sitwazzjonijiet ta’ nuqqas ta’ saħħa mentali fostna u f’tant pajjiżi oħra. Continue reading >>
Published on June 2, 2019
in Letters.
OPEN LETTER TO CHRISTIANS AND MUSLIMS ON THE OCCASION OF THE MARIAN YEAR
As time goes by we are progressively seeing an ever increasing number of foreigners living and working among us. It would be really silly of us to think of them as a threat or as a purely economic resource. It is a real pity that there are those among us who are tempted to regard them as some kind of inferior class of people and so they despise them even with violent acts or they take advantage of their vulnerability. This is the case when they are exploited by being made to work for a pittance without the benefit of social security as required by law, or when they are offered shelter at rental rates far higher than is normally the case.
Their presence among us does not constitute simply a social and cultural challenge, but it has also a religious dimension. Indeed among these foreigners there is a sizeable presence of Muslims, both those coming from African countries and those from Eastern Europe…
Read the Letter in English: open-letter-to-christians-and-muslims.pdf
Aqra l-Ittra bil-Malti: ittra-miftuha-lill-insara-u-l-musulmani.pdf
Photo: Virgin Mary and Jesus, old Persian miniature. In Islam, they are called Maryam and Isa.
68/2019
Ittra Pastorali
tal-E.T. Mons. Mario Grech
Isqof ta’ Għawdex
NINTELQU F’DIRGĦAJN OMMNA MARIJA
Meta llum qegħdin niċċelebraw Jum l-Omm, nixtieq insellem lill-ommijiet kollha. Ma nsibx kliem biex infisser min hi l-omm! Imma biżżejjed nistaqsu lil min tilef lil ommu jgħidilna xi jħoss xħin isejħilha u jibqa’ bla tweġiba! Il-missier għandu r-rwol tiegħu fil-ħajja tal-ulied, imma l-preżenza tal-omm tisboq kollox u lil kulħadd.Għandna djun kbar lejn ommijietna. Hija l-omm li meta nitnisslu tilqa’ ħajja ġdida fi ħdanha, u minn dak il-waqt ħajjitha ssir stennija kontinwa: l-ewwel tistenna li tarana nitwieldu, imbagħad tibqa’ dejjem wara l-bieb tad-dar tistenniena ninġabru. Min jaf kemm hawn ommijiet li jgħaddu ljieli sħaħ imħassbin u anzjużi jistennew lil uliedhom jidħlu d-dar! Ma rridu nagħmlu xejn biex nirbħu mħabbtiha, għax l-omm tħobb lil uliedha bi mħabba tal-ġenn. Hija ma tħobbx lil uliedha għax huma bravi, sbieħ jew kapaċi, imma tħobbhom għax huma sempliċement uliedha. L-omm ma titgħaxxaqx b’uliedha għax huma għandhom xi ħaġa li tagħmilhom persuni ideali, imma tħobbhom għax huma tagħha. Proprju għax huma tagħha hija tħobbhom, anki jekk mhumiex perfetti fiżikament, mentalment, moralment u spiritwalment! Continue reading >>
67/2019
Ittra lill-Poplu ta’ Alla
tal-E.T. Mons. Mario Grech
Isqof ta’ Għawdex
NITOLBU BL-INTERĊESSJONI TA’ UN MIKIEL ATTARD
Kien bħal-lum 60 sena ilu li l-Qaddej ta’ Alla Dun Mikiel Attard irċieva l-ordinazzjoni saċerdotali. Għandna tassew għax inkunu grati lejn Alla li, fost l-għadd sabiħ ta’ saċerdoti twajba li kellna u għandna fid-Djoċesi, huwa tana lil Dun Mikiel, li f’ħajtu kien bastun sod li ħafna serrħu fuqu matul il-mixja tagħhom wara Kristu. Fih sibna sieħeb li kien jaf lil Alla u lill-bniedem.
Peress li l-proċess djoċesan tal-Beatifikazzjoni u l-Kanonizzazzjoni ta’ Dun Mikiel kważi wasal fit-tmiem tiegħu, u billi Ommna l-Knisja titlob li qabel ma tiddikjara persuna beata jew qaddisa Alla jagħmel miraklu bħala konferma tal-qdusija ta’ dik il-persuna, nagħmlilkom sejħa biex b’fidi kbira tħabbtu fuq il-bieb ta’ Dun Mikiel u titolbu miraklu bl-interċessjoni tiegħu.Nhar il-Ħadd nibdew il-jiem għeżież tal-Ġimgħa Mqaddsa.
Bħal Dun Mikiel, ejjew nersqu taħt is-Salib tal-Feddej biex, fuq l-eżempju tal-Verġni Marija Addolorata, li Dun Mikiel tant kien iħobb, inħallu l-ħarsa feddejja tas-Salvatur tibdilna fi bnedmin ġodda.
Mogħtija mill-Kurja tal-Isqof, illum, il-Ġimgħa 12 ta’ April 2019, Tifkira għażiża tad-Duluri.
+ Mario Grech
Isqof ta’ Għawdex
FB: https://www.facebook.com/dunmikielattard/
Minn ġol-Kappella tas-Santwarju Ta’ Pinu, fejn is-Sibt li għadda (6 ta’ April 2019) iltaqa’ u talab ma’ grupp ta’ ħabsin mill-Faċilità Korrettiva ta’ Kordin, l-Isqof Mario Grech stieden lis-soċjetà tagħna tibdel in-nuċċali li bih tħares lejn dawk li jkunu jiskontaw piena l-ħabs.
Fl-omelija tal-quddiesa, li għaliha kien preżenti grupp ta’ tletin priġunier, akkumpanjati minn tnax-il uffiċċjal tal-Faċilità, l-Isqof ta’ Għawdex saħaq li “l-Vanġelu ta’ Ġesù Kristu jedukana biex naraw aħjar”. Continue reading >>