Archbishop Charles Scicluna will lead the 9Oth annual pilgrimage to Lourdes organised by the Malta Society for the Transport of the Sick in Lourdes (UMTAL) between July 18 and 22. The archbishop will be accompanied by Fr Joe Mizzi, the spiritual director of UMTAL and the archpriest of Rabat parish.

This will also be the first pilgrimage under the guidance of UMTAL’s new president, Joseph Debono, consultant surgeon and Mater Dei Hospital director.

Applications are now open and everyone is welcome to join. A team of doctors, nurses, carers and lay volunteers are giving up their free time and enrolling at their own expense, to look after patients and ensure a safe and comfortable experience for all.

Applications are now open and everyone is welcome to join

Every year since 1930, UMTAL (Unione Maltese Trasporto Ammalati a Lourdes), a non-profit, voluntary organisation, makes this pilgrimage possible for people who would not otherwise be able to visit this Holy Sanctuary. Together with patients and volunteers, pilgrims attend all the various religious functions celebrated by the Universal Church such as the international mass, the adoration of the Holy Eucharist and the Aux Flambeaux evening procession.

Other mass celebrations, where the congregation participates in the sacraments of reconciliation and the anointing of the sick, are organised in Maltese. One of the highlights of this pilgrimage is the celebration of mass in Maltese at Our Lady’s Grotto.

Patients, volunteers or pilgrims wishing to join Archbishop Scicluna on this pilgrimage can send an e-mail to info@umtalmalta.org or call on 7922 6606.