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People's Sunday
The People's Sunday celebrations are held on the first Sunday of Lent at Żabbar, Malta, popularly known as Ħadd in-Nies, are living recollections of the centuries-old devotion to Our Lady of Graces (''Il-Madonna tal-Grazzja''). The Maltese name of Ħadd in-Nies, People's Sunday, is an indication of the large number of visitors who used to go to Żabbar to render thanks and pray at the feet of Our Lady. For many centuries, people from all walks of life, locals and foreigners, participated. On 6 March 1927, Archbishop Dom Mauro Caruana OSB participated in the renewed religious celebration of People's Sunday; today Archbishop Charles Scicluna is visiting the Żabbar Sanctuary of Our Lady of Graces, to meet the clergy, and above all participate in the pilgrimage of People's Sunday. Evidence of the earliest devotion to Our Lady of Graces came to light in 1954 with the discovery of a late 15th-century fresco in the early Melitan-style chapel of St Domenica in Żabbar. The earliest sur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Żabbar
Żabbar ( mt, Ħaż-Żabbar, ), also known as Città Hompesch, is a city in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It is the sixth largest city in the country, with a population of 15,404 as of March 2014. Originally a part of Żejtun, Żabbar was granted the title of ''Città Hompesch'' by the last of the Grand Masters of the Order of St. John to reign in Malta, Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim. Etymology The name of the city probably derives from the Maltese word ''tiżbor'', the process of pruning trees. Indeed, a number of families who specialised in pruning, ''żbir'', are known to have lived in the vicinity of this village during the Middle Ages. Other possibilities of this derivation exist. Żabbar was also the surname of an important family that was known to have lived in the area. Ħaż-Żabbar could also have been a corruption of Ħas-Sabbar (the consoler village), because people from all over the island used to visit the village to pray to Our Lady of Graces for consola ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stations Of The Cross
The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The stations grew out of imitations of the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem, which is a traditional processional route symbolising the actual path Jesus walked to Mount Calvary. The objective of the stations is to help the Christian faithful to make a spiritual pilgrimage through contemplation of the Passion of Christ. It has become one of the most popular devotions and the stations can be found in many Western Christian churches, including those in the Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, and Methodist traditions. Commonly, a series of 14 images will be arranged in numbered order along a path, along which worshippers—individually or in a procession—move in order, stopping at each station to say prayers and engage in reflections associated with that station. These devo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Holidays Based On The Date Of Easter
A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tradition of cultural or religious significance. Holidays may be designated by governments, religious institutions, or other groups or organizations. The degree to which normal activities are reduced by a holiday may depend on local laws, customs, the type of job held or personal choices. The concept of holidays often originated in connection with religious observances or associated with traditions. The intention of a holiday was typically to allow individuals to tend to religious duties associated with important dates on the calendar. In most modern societies, however, holidays serve as much of a recreational functions as any other weekend days or activities. In many societies, there are important distinctions between holidays designated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maltese Culture
The culture of Malta reflects various societies that have come into contact with the Maltese Islands throughout the centuries, including neighbouring Mediterranean cultures, and the cultures of the nations that ruled Malta for long periods of time prior to its independence in 1964. History The culture of prehistoric Malta The earliest inhabitants of the Maltese Islands are believed to have been Sicani from nearby Sicily who arrived on the island sometime before 5000 BC. They grew cereals and raised domestic livestock and, in keeping with many other ancient Mediterranean cultures, formed a fertility cult represented in Malta by statuettes of unusually large proportions. Pottery from the earliest period of Maltese civilization (known as the Għar Dalam phase) is similar to examples found in Agrigento, Sicily. These people were either supplanted by, or gave rise to a culture of megalithic temple builders, whose surviving monuments on Malta and Gozo are considered the oldes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christianity In Malta
In the small Mediterranean island nation of Malta the predominant religion is Roman Catholicism. History of Christianity in Malta Saint Paul The apostle Paul's time in Malta is described in the Book of Acts (; ). Tradition holds that the church was founded by its patrons Saint Paul the Apostle and Saint Publius, who was its first bishop. The Islands of St. Paul (or St. Paul's Islets), in effect only one island during low tide, are traditionally believed to be the site where Saint Paul was shipwrecked in the year 60 AD, on his way to trial and eventual martyrdom in Rome. Establishment of the Archdiocese of Malta According to tradition, Publius, the Roman Governor of Malta at the time of Saint Paul's shipwreck, became the first Bishop of Malta following his conversion to Christianity. After ruling the Maltese Church for 31 years, Publius was transferred to the See of Athens in 90 AD, where he was martyred in 125 AD. There is scant information about the continuity of Christ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catholic Holy Days
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a prominent role in the history and development of Western civilization. O'Collins, p. v (preface). The church consists of 24 ''sui iuris'' churches, including the Latin Church and 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, which comprise almost 3,500 dioceses and eparchies located around the world. The pope, who is the bishop of Rome, is the chief pastor of the church. The bishopric of Rome, known as the Holy See, is the central governing authority of the church. The administrative body of the Holy See, the Roman Curia, has its principal offices in Vatican City, a small enclave of the Italian city of Rome, of which the pope is head of state. The core beliefs of Catholicism are found in the Nicene Creed. The Catholic Church teaches that it is the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Percy Badger
George Percy Badger (April 6 1815–February 21 1888) was an English Anglican missionary, and a scholar of oriental studies. He is mainly known for his doctrinal and historical studies about the Church of the East. Life ''George Percy Badger'' was born at Chelmsford on 6 April 1815. His father served in the British Army and in 1821 his regiment was transferred in Malta. After his father's death in 1823, George's mother decided to raise her sons in Malta, thus George Badger passed there his youth where he learned the Maltese language and Arabic, which he studied also in Beirut from 1835. On 8 January 1840 Badger married Maria Wilcox in Valletta. He returned to England in 1841, and after some theological studies at the Church Missionary College, Islington, he was ordained Anglican priest in 1842. For his knowledge of the Near East he was appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury as delegate to the Christians of Church of the East in Mesopotamia and Kurdistan, and in this w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carnival
Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typically involves public celebrations, including events such as parades, public street parties and other entertainments, combining some elements of a circus. Elaborate costumes and masks allow people to set aside their everyday individuality and experience a heightened sense of social unity.Bakhtin, Mikhail. 1984. ''Rabelais and his world''. Translated by H. Iswolsky. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Original edition, ''Tvorchestvo Fransua Rable i narodnaia kul'tura srednevekov'ia i Renessansa'', 1965. Participants often indulge in excessive consumption of alcohol, meat, and other foods that will be forgone during upcoming Lent. Traditionally, butter, milk, and other animal products were not consumed "excessively", rather, their st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and falls on the first day of Lent (the six weeks of penitence before Easter). It is observed by Catholics in the Roman Rite, Lutherans, Moravians, Anglicans, Methodists, Nazarenes, as well as by some churches in the Reformed tradition (including certain Congregationalist, Continental Reformed, and Presbyterian churches). As it is the first day of Lent, many Christians begin Ash Wednesday by marking a Lenten calendar, praying a Lenten daily devotional, and making a Lenten sacrifice that they will not partake of until the arrival of Eastertide. Many Christians attend special church services, at which churchgoers receive ash on their foreheads. Ash Wednesday derives its name from this practice, which is accompanied by the words, "Repent, and believe in the Gospel" or the dictum "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Holy Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is a central figure of Christianity, venerated under various titles such as virgin or queen, many of them mentioned in the Litany of Loreto. The Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, Church of the East, Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches believe that Mary, as mother of Jesus, is the Mother of God. Other Protestant views on Mary vary, with some holding her to have considerably lesser status. The New Testament of the Bible provides the earliest documented references to Mary by name, mainly in the canonical Gospels. She is described as a young virgin who was chosen by God to conceive Jesus through the Holy Spirit. After giving birth to Jesus in Bethlehem, she raised him in the city of Nazareth in Galilee, and was in Jerusal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ex-voto
An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or to a divinity; the term is usually restricted to Christian examples. It is given in fulfillment of a vow (hence the Latin term, short for ''ex voto suscepto'', "from the vow made") or in gratitude or devotion. Definition Ex-votos are placed in a church or chapel where the worshiper seeks grace or wishes to give thanks. The destinations of pilgrimages often include shrines decorated with ex-votos. Ex-votos can take a wide variety of forms. They are not only intended for the helping figure, but also as a testimony to later visitors of the received help. As such they may include texts explaining a miracle attributed to the helper, or symbols such as a painted or modeled reproduction of a miraculously healed body part, or a directly related item such as a crutch given by a person formerly lame. There are places where a very old tradition of depositing ex-votos existed, such as Abydos in ancient Egypt. Ex-voto paintings Especially in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Żejtun
Żejtun ( mt, Iż-Żejtun ) is a city in the South Eastern Region of Malta, with a population of 11,218 at end 2016. Żejtun is traditionally known as Città Beland, a title conferred by the grandmaster of the Order of the Knights of Malta, Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim in 1797. Before that, the village was known as Casale Santa Caterina, named after its patron saint and parish titular. The old urban cores, called Bisqallin and Ħal Bisbut, largely retain their narrow medieval streets and ancient boundaries. Since at least the 19th century, the name Żejtun, or Casale Zeitoun, has referred to the settlement which developed around these two core villages. Together with a number of small hamlets in the vicinity, the bulk of the conurbation forms the city of Żejtun, administered by the mayor and the Żejtun Local Council. Over successive centuries, Żejtun lost a number of villages and hamlets that used to form part of its territory, which originally covered most of the s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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