Gozo Bishop Anton Teuma will conduct a pastoral visit to the diocese’s 15 parishes between October 24 and May 25. The announcement was made by the bishop himself during a press conference in front of the cathedral in Victoria on August 10, feast of St Lawrence. The visit is the first one since he was appointed bishop of Gozo and the 32nd since the Gozo diocese was founded in 1864.
The theme chosen for the visit is “And he came to stay with them” (Lk 24:29), a citation from the bible of the meeting of the Risen Lord with the disciples of Emmaus.
Since the visit will be coinciding with the Ordinary Jubilee celebrated universally in 2025, carrying the theme ‘Pilgrims of Hope’, this will be an occasion for the proclamation of Christian hope for all Catholic families in Gozo, the bishop said. The visit will be formally announced on Sunday, September 22, through a pastoral letter.
The pastoral visit will be inaugurated during a solemn mass presided by Mgr Teuma at the cathedral the following Sunday, September 29, at 6pm.
The bishop will be visiting parishes and communities in the diocese with the aim of studying their condition and to strengthen their faith and their work of evangelisation. For this purpose, a questionnaire was handed out to parish priests so that any gathered material is passed on to the bishop and the commission accompanying him during his visits to the parishes.
Prior to each visit, a copy of the Gospel according to Luke will be handed out door to door. The faithful will also be encouraged to offer prayers for the spiritual advancement of the pastoral visit.
Visits will be characterised by a vigil and night of Eucharistic adoration in the respective parish churches.
In every parish, the visit will be inaugurated by mass on Sunday morning and will be concluded with another mass on the successive Saturday evening.
During the visits, the bishop will also find time to meet various members of the parish and conduct visits to the sick and the elderly. There will also be time for one-to-one talks and meetings.
The visit, as procured by canon law, involves also an examination of the parish archives, the properties, the sacred objects and other works of art pertaining to each parish, together with the supervision of registers, liturgical books and financial accounts.