SENGLEA THROUGH THE AGES - 23& 24
The sufferings and sadness Senglea went through World War II.
1939: 3rd September: Great Britain and France declared war against Germany. Malta, being a colony of Great Britain, found itself in war on the side of the British. The first feast which was cancelled was that of Senglea. The streets were left in complete darkness. The fireworks were not set off. The bands did not come to play their usual marches. On the 8th September the statue of Marija Bambina came out with the usual procession, but more like a pilgrimage with the reciting of the rosary all along the way that with the usual pomp and celebrations.
1940: Parish Priest Bonanno was installed as Monsignor on the 3rd April. Dun Manwel Brincat replaced him as Archpriest.
1940: 11th June: During the first air attacks carried out by the Italians, the dockyard was hit; glass panes of the church were shattered; the people of Senglea started their evacuation from the city and shelters began to be dug.
1940: The feast of Marija Bambina was only celebrated inside the church. The statue remained in a save place in the entrance to the sacristy. Mr Granville lent the church a statue which was very similar to the actual statue of Marija Bambina so that it could be exposed during the ceremonies.
1941: 16th January: A horrifying air attack by the German air force. The main target was HMS Illustrious which was berthed at the dockyard. Many areas of Senglea were hit including the church. The picture of Our Lady of the Chain (Madonna tal-Katina) was destroyed. The Oratory of the Blessed Sacrament and the chapel where the Blessed Sacrament was kept were completely destroyed. The roof of the nave where there was the altar of Our Lady of the Rosary was also destroyed. Senglea was one complete derelict site. Twenty one persons died among them Canon Professor Dun Gwann Theuma.
1941: 19th January: During four separate air raids many homes were destroyed and extreme damage was caused to the main aisle of the church. The altar of Our Lady of the Chain was destroyed. The steeple on the right hand side of the church was also hit.
1941: The statues of Marija Bambina, Jesus Christ the Redeemer, other statues and many precious articles were taken out of Senglea for safe keeping. They were taken to Naxxar, Birkirkara, Mdina and with trustworthy families.
1941: 8th September: During the times the Basilica was destroyed, the Chapter of Senglea celebrated the feast of Marija Bambina at Naxxar.
1941: 28th December: The Bishop of Gozo, Mons. Michael Gonzi came to Senglea to administer the Sacrament of Confirmation. The ceremony was being held in the sacristy but had to be continued in the shelter because of further air raids.
1942: 9th April: A direct hit destroyed the cupola and the canopy over the main altar. The main pilaster near the pulpit was also destroyed.
1942: 11th April: Further damage was caused to the back end of the church behind the main altar. The Oratory of the Crucifix too sustained a lot of damage because the roof caved in and the falling debris destroyed the artistic pavement of the Oratory.
1942: 20th April: some good news at last. The Senglean Mons. Emmanuel Galea, who for some time was the Theological Canon and Secretary of the Capitol, was appointed as Bishop of Tralles in Asia and so became the third Bishop from Senglea. The other two were Mattei and Gaffiero.
1942: 28th April: Fourteen persons were buried alive following a horrible explosion of a bomb near a shelter.
1942: 18th October: In a moving ceremony, similar to the one held on the 13th September in Valletta, a commemoration was held of the awarding of the George Cross to our islands by King George VI on the 15th April 1942.
1943: 20th June: King George VI paid a historic visit to Senglea. He was accompanied by the Archpriest Brincat. In his diary, King George VI wrote: I met the Rev. Can. Manwel Brincat who did all he could to alleviate the sufferings of the people of Senglea.
1943: The statue of Marija Bambina was brought back to Senglea and taken to the church of St Philip. This church was to serve as temporary parish church and so for some time all ceremonies were held in this church.
1943: 8th September: While the procession with the statue of Marija Bambina was passing through the marina, the Admiralty Superintendent of the Dockyard gave a note to the Archpriest Manwel Brincat informing him that Italy had surrendered. The Te Deum was sang in the church of St Philip as thanksgiving to God and Our Lady that finally Malta could breathe freely again after four miserable years of indescribable hardship and sufferings.
SENGLEA THROUGH THE AGES - 24
The Fraternity of the Crucifix – its history
By 1715 the Fraternity of Charity in the parish of Senglea had nearly lost all its importance. This Fraternity was set up in 1615 and for many years took care of the burial of the poor of the parish. The members of the Fraternity used to carry the cadavers of the poor from their homes to the church. In the register of the death kept at the Collegiate we found it noted every time the Fraternity took care of the burial of some person. It is noted down. In the first year of the period when the Archpriest was Testaferrata, especially in the years between the year 1697 and the year 1699, the poor used to be buried in the cemetery of the parish. We are not sure though what part did the members of the Fraternity actually played because it seems that by that time their enthusiasm had waned a lot and the Fraternity needed a boost of some sort. Most of the member of the Fraternity of Charity were poor themselves. The poor always found it difficult to find people to pray for them after their demise. So Pawlu Haxisa left a legacy of three hundred and seventy five skudi and from the interest accrued on this sum, a yearly Mass would be said for the repose of the members of the Fraternity and whose burial was taken care of by the Fraternity itself because they were too poor to afford a decent funeral. So these poor members of the Fraternity, who during their lifetime took care of the poor of the parish of Senglea, were assured of prayers for their souls once they passed away.
In the beginning of 1710, the Fraternity of Charity which already had close connections with the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ moved closer to its connection with the Crucifix when the principal feast of the altar of Our Lady of Charity was changed. The feast started to be celebrated on the 3rd of May, the liturgical day which commemorates the day the Cross of Our Lord was found.
The group ‘solidarity with the agonized’ which was set up on the 10th March 1640 had very closed connection with the altar of Our Lady of Charity. From records dated 1710, we know that the group was made up of both men and women. The members used to pay a fee of five irbajja a month. They during their agony the Blessed Sacrament used to be exposed for the adoration of the faithful for about three hours. On their death solemn Mass was said and fifth other low Masses were said for the repose of their souls.
After a short while, a new Fraternity was set up in close connection with the altar of Charity and the main scope was to revive past traditions. After some time we found this note in relation to the new fraternity: A new Fraternity for men with the title of the Fraternity of the Crucifix has been set up and approved by the Bishop which will have the altar of Our Lady of Charity as its altar. The degree was issued on the 18th September 1715. This degree was issued after a request was made and was registered in the Bishop’s Curia on the 26th September 1715.
The way things happened it was obvious that this was a new fraternity. Its role was to take on the charitable work previous carried out by the Fraternity of Charity for the past 100 years. This new fraternity did not set up shop on its own and for many years was known as the Fraternity of Charity and of the Crucifix. Officially the Fraternity of Charity and of the Crucifix and the group of the agonized were three different entities for the administration side of the Collegiate and this was creating some confusion.
The newly set Fraternity of the Crucifix was approved on the 18th September 1715. It was given the permission to use the same regulations as those used by the fraternity of Valletta. One of the obligations imposed was that they celebrated their feast on the 3rd May, the day of the discovering of the Cross of Our Lord. The Bishop kept the option that he or his successors could change the regulations if they find the need to do so. The garb of the fraternity was also approved. It was dark brown which was full length to the top of the feet, where they wore sandals. The members had a hood to cover the face; a black cope and a rope tied round their waist.
(This information was taken from Vol. II of the History of Senglea, pages 181-184).