Our group of Magnificat pilgrims meets at the airport. A common love for the Liturgy of the Hours unites these people from the four corners of France. We leave Paris under the gray, humid cotton sky of early autumn. The plane took off, drawn by the call of Malta.
This name has always sounded to me like the fine chiseling of a precious jewel set in the blue box of the Mediterranean. A precious archipelago between Sicily, Tunisia, and Libya. Familiar and mysterious at the same time, the cradle of a profoundly Western history with an Eastern, Byzantine patina. Soon the plane breaks through the opaque sea of clouds, the sky turns blue and I dream of this island approaching.
Malta’s history is objectively rich and complex. Its territory is as small (316 km2) as its palimpsest of cultures is dense. The first humans settled in Malta around 5,200 BC, long before the construction of the Cheops Pyramid. The Phoenicians arrived in 800 BC and the Greeks 100 years later. In 400 BC, the Carthaginians from North Africa took over the island, and 200 years later it was the turn of the Romans.
A shipwreck that changed history
In 60 A.D. a shipwreck changed the history of the island. The unfortunate sailor was none other than ... St. Paul! Providence would eventually give this shipwreck its full meaning. He spent three months on the island and introduced Christianity to Malta, a legacy that continues to this day as Catholicism is the official state religion.
In the Middle Ages, Christians coexisted peacefully with the Arabs who occupied the island between 870 and 1090, adding a layer to the Maltese language and eventually making Malta the most “eastern” of the Mediterranean islands. In 1090 Count Roger reconquered Malta, and in 1127 Sicilian rule drove the Arabs from the island. In 1530, Emperor Charles V gave Malta to the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, the future Order of Malta. They defeated the Ottomans in 1565 and covered Malta with magnificent churches until Napoleon took over the island in 1798. In 1800, the Maltese rebelled and Malta then came under British protection until independence in 1964.
The plane approaches and the island appears, its contours chiseled against the blue of the sea. Malta feels like a refuge. It embodies the paradox of islands: a land where people dream of the sea and expeditions, while sailors at sea dream only of its gentleness as a place to rest. It’s a window to another place and a delightful refuge. It is both departure and return. The distant and the certain. Seen from the air, the perimeter of the island is dotted with boats coming and going. From the smallest fishing boat to the largest container ship, everything speaks of activity, trade and exchange at this crossroads of the Mediterranean.
As soon as the plane door opens, the air is incredibly mild. Autumn is sweet as honey. The bus driver drives in the left lane – a reminder of the British! The walls are blond from the sunlight. You think you see Tunisia to the right, Sicily at the next intersection. Bell towers everywhere. A rolling language reminiscent of the oud and Arabia. One recognizes without recognizing. This richness, this mixture, is seductive and unusual. In Malta, centuries and cultures mix as if they were all present at the same moment.
Valletta
The first major visit of the pilgrimage is to Valletta, the capital of Malta and the flagship of what the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem built. The city bears the name of its great master and founder. When Jean de Valette observed the rocky shores upon his arrival, he realized that the island needed to be protected and fortified. He built Fort St. Elmo, which played a decisive role in the battle against the Ottomans in 1565. Outnumbered by Suleiman the Magnificent’s men – 6,000 to 40,000 – the knights and the Maltese managed to repel their enemies, the greatest military power at the time, in just three months. All the courts of Europe, grateful and admiring this feat, immediately sent substantial gifts to the Knights of Malta, making Valletta an extraordinary city.
Built on a checkerboard plan in the relatively short span of two centuries, the city is superbly unified and elegant. Blonde stone, gleaming against the blue sky, is everywhere. The city boasts no less than 320 remarkable monuments, a unique density that has earned it UNESCO World Heritage status. The Mass at Tal-Madonna ta’Liesse (Our Lady of Liesse, in Maltese) is a pilgrim’s delight. It’s a real link between France and Malta. The history of this church is a medieval novel that you can discover here. This vigil for St. Therese of the Child Jesus ended with a talk by Pierre-Marie Varennes on Theresian spirituality – so beautiful that the audience asked for the text. Our day ended in the peace of Compline. The eyes of the pilgrims were already filled with wonder and their hearts joyfully expectant for all that lay ahead.
