Archbishop Joseph Mercieca has died. He was the Archbishop of the Malta from 1976 to 2006, and succeeded the formidable Monsignor Gonzi, who had been Archbishop for as long as anyone could remember. (In fact Monsignor Gonzi was Archbishop from 1943-1976, but seemed to have been there for an eternity, being over 90 when he retired.)
Some people thought Monsignor Mercieca was weak, but this was not the case. He was certainly very different from Monsignor Gonzi, who was a powerful prelate indeed.
I met the archbishop but once. He was making his solitary way into the Cathedral in Mdina, via the side door, and I was just leaving the Cathedral, so I fell to one knee and introduced myself. This would have been about twenty-five years ago.
The archbishop’s funeral was yesterday in Saint John’s Co-Cathedral, Valletta, one of the world’s most beautiful churches; and his burial follows in the Cathedral in Mdina, a splendid baroque church that stands on a site first consecrated, we believe, by Saint Paul.
The contemporary Church can learn a great deal, I think, from the example of Monsignor Mercieca, his humility, gentleness and faith. May he rest in peace!
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