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Mass in Malta on the occasion of St. Josemaría Escrivá’s feast day

July 12, 2005

Tags: June 26, Malta
The church of Our Lady of Victories
The church of Our Lady of Victories
VALLETTA –At the annual Mass held in Malta on the occasion of St. Josemaría Escrivá’s feast day, there was a crowd that would have pleased the saint himself. On June 18th, the church of Our Lady of Victories in Valletta was filled with men and women of every age and walk of life. People from a wide array of different professions and ordinary jobs all gathered together for the solemn celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which the saint acknowledged to be “the root and centre of the interior life.”

The celebration was presided by Msgr. Joseph Bajada, the President of the Regional Tribunal (Second Instance) of the Maltese Episcopal Conference. He gave a homily in which he explained a number of the fundamental teachings of the Founder of Opus Dei, including the universal call to sanctity and the need for the ordinary lay faithful to seek God in their ordinary work and duties. Among the other five priests who concelebrated the Mass was Rev. Fr. Stephen L. Brock, a priest of the Prelature of Opus Dei and the Holy Cross, who teaches Philosophy at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome and who travels to Malta regularly to attend activities there.

As John Paul II said on October 7th, 2002 the participants of his canonization, “Saint Josemaría was chosen by the Lord to proclaim the universal call to holiness and to indicate that everyday life, its customary activities, are a path towards holiness. It could be said that he was the saint of the ordinary. He was really convinced that, for whoever lives with an outlook of faith, everything offers an opportunity for a meeting with God, everything becomes a stimulus for prayer. Seen in that way, daily life reveals an unsuspected greatness. Holiness is really put on everyone's doorstep.”

This is a message which has found resonance with some Maltese. As one young teacher who attended the Mass with her mother and nephews said, “What I like about St. Josemaría is that he speaks to you directly, about the things which are really relevant to your life.”