Malta still commemorates St. Paul’s shipwreck

The island fortress of Malta bears witness to a heroism and devotion that will long be famous in history.

During the Second World War, the Axis powers resolved to bomb and starve Malta into submission by attacking its ports, cities, and Allied shipping supply lines.

Tragically, this peaceful island paradise sustained catastrophic damage from 1940 to 1942, the result of constant Italian and German bombings. In fact, Malta is one of the most intensively bombed places in the history of warfare. 

As Malta rebuilt in the wake of World War II, many Maltese emigrated to countries such as Canada and Australia in search of work. 

The post-war Prime Minister of Malta, Paul Boffa, was in office from 1947 to 1950 and was very fond of Canada and Canadians. He was also a devout man whose nephew, a Dominican priest who lives in Malta today, relates how he stood on the docks greeting and consoling those who were setting sail for a new life.

The Prime Minister used to say that in his long career he had worked with many people from various nations, but he believed the kindest were Canadians. 

In those years a number of Maltese immigrants came to British Columbia, a small colony of them settling in Powell River on the Sunshine Coast. 

The Maltese who settled there are now in their third generation. In Powell River they felt at home on the ocean where they helped built a thriving new parish, Church of the Assumption.

This led to the arrival from Malta of six courageous nuns, members of the Missionary Sisters of Jesus of Nazareth, who founded Assumption School in 1961.

These pioneer sisters had great devotion to St. Paul due to the fact the saint spent three months in Malta after he was shipwrecked on the island around 60 A.D. The sisters taught this devotion to their students. 

In Malta, Paul is traditionally believed to have washed ashore at St. Paul’s Bay, where he met the Maltese people and experienced their hospitality, while suffering a series of misfortunes, including a snake bite on the beach when he first arrived.

Malta, which is visible on a clear day from Sicily, was long believed from pre-historic times to be a sacred place. The inhabitants who welcomed Paul were a religious, albeit pagan, people. 

When they saw Paul emerging from the waters and surviving a snake bite on the hand without harm, they concluded he was a god. His fame quickly spread and caught the attention of the governor of the island, a man known as Publius. 

Publius received Paul for three days at his home, entertaining him courteously, as related in the Acts of the Apostles. 

During this encounter the father of Publius was sick with fever. Paul entered the room, prayed, laid hands on him, and healed him. Suddenly, all the diseased on the island were coming to Paul to be healed. 

The result was Christianity’s fame spread and Christ was honoured with praise and thanksgiving. 

Paul effectively became the founder of the Maltese church, achieving great fame as he preached, baptized, celebrated the Eucharist, and worked miraculous healings. 

A popular site that Maltese families are fond of visiting is the 17th-century Collegiate Church of St. Paul in Rabat. Also known as St. Paul’s Grotto and catacombs, it is built atop where Publius’ home is believed to have stood.

The Roman foundations are still visible today, including the cave where tradition says St. Paul stayed. The cave stands out among a maze of other catacombs, all pointing toward this one. Archeologists believe many families over the centuries buried their dead near where the saint had lived, prayed, and worked his miracles.

The areas, used as air raid shelters during World War II, are open today for tourists and pilgrims to explore. 

Inside the cave of St. Paul is a Carrara marble statue of the saint donated in 1748, as well as a silver lamp in the shape of a ship hanging from the ceiling. 

The outside facade of the church has a colourful mosaic of Christ from the Vatican Mosaic Studios. Installed in 1951, it depicts Christ extending his arms wide with the caption Venite Ad Me Omnes (“Come to Me All”). 

Various other sites in Malta commemorate the memory of St. Paul such as the Metropolitan Cathedral of Malta in neighbouring Mdina. Another is the much-visited Collegiate Church of the Shipwreck of St. Paul, founded in 1570 and one of the oldest churches in Valetta. 

Finally, one that deserves mention is the charming little St. Paul’s Church on Valley Road in Birkirkara, which celebrates the area where according to tradition St. Paul once preached. This forgotten gem has fascinating post-war ceiling paintings by Briffa that are a national treasure, vividly depicting the courageous adventures of St. Paul.

The ceilings were recently restored, revealing the artist’s strong and luminous palette and bringing to mind a fitting quote from St. Paul: “Be watchful, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong” (1 Cor 16:13).

J.P. Sonnen is a travel writer, tour operator and history docent with Orbis Catholic Travel LLC.