(originally posted on Facebook, 18th April 2023)
The very first procession I ever watched was Our Lady of Sorrows in Valletta on Friday 13th April. It amazed me many times and I took notes to remember everything later. The procession started from and ended in the church of Ta’Giesu. I did not know that the beautiful statue of Our Lady of Sorrows would also be carried around a week later, in the Good Friday procession.
This photo is much more recent than 1973
The main celebrant was a very small and very old man. The next day I read in the newspaper this was Archbishop Michael Gonzi himself, a man who was going to be very important indeed in my studies. A large crowd followed the clergy, mainly women (quite a few barefooted) and old men (later some friends in Marsascala learned me rather naughthy Italian rhyme about old men returning to Church). Some prayed the rosary, others were happily chatting with each other. The procession, which stopped at each church they came across, was accompanied by the police.