Victoria is en fête for the feast of Santa Marija being celebrated at the Cathedral on Thursday. The Triduum starts this evening with homily by Fr Max Grech, secretary at the Apostolic Nunciature in Senegal. The Leone Band of Victoria and the San Girgor Band of Kerċem will play marches in Il-Belliegħa area of Victoria, today from 9.30pm, ending in front of the Leone Band Club in Republic Street.
Tomorrow, the Leone Band of Victoria and the St Joseph Band of Għaxaq will play marches from 9.30pm, followed by an audio-visual show and a street party in front of the Leone Band Club.
On Tuesday, the San Lawrenz Band of Vittoriosa opens the celebrations with a band march at 9pm, to be joined later by the Leone Band and the Santa Marija Band of Żebbuġ. The statue of Santa Marija will be paraded around the streets of Victoria and then it will be raised on a pedestal at Independence Square.
On Wednesday morning, eve of the feast, the Cathedral Chapter will concelebrate Mass at 8am, followed by the Te Deum. There will be Mass for children at the Cathedral at 10am, followed by the Tal-Bandiera march at 11am during which children will carry a huge flag from the Cathedral Square down to the Leone Band Club, where it will be raised on the club’s roof at noon. The traditional Paljijiet march by the Leone Band will be held at 5.30pm.
Gozo Bishop Mario Grech will lead the translation of the relic at 6pm, followed by Pontifical Vespers. Vicar General Tarcisio Camilleri will lead a sung Mass at 7.30pm with the participation of the Cappella Sanctae Mariae. Archpriest Joseph Sultana will commemorate the 44th anniversary of the crowning of the Assumption altarpiece. In the evening, there will be a grand march along Republic Street with the participation of the Leone Band and the St Sebastian Band of Qormi, followed a synchronised ground fireworks display at Pjazza Savina.
On Thursday, feast day, Mgr Grech will lead a Pontifical Mass with the participation of the Cathedral Chapter. After Mass, Mgr Grech will confer Ġieħ il-Parroċċa on a number of parishioners.
The traditional horse races along Republic Street will start at 2.30pm. The procession with the statue of Santa Marija will leave the Cathedral at 6.30pm. An aerial firework display by Vampa Organisation starts at 7pm. The statue of Santa Marija will be accompanied inside the Ċittadella aux flambeaux at around 10.30pm.
The Santa Marija traditional agricultural and industrial show will be open at Rundle Gardens on Wednesday between 5pm and 11pm and again on Thursday between 7am and 1pm.
The 54th edition of Il-Għid tal-Assunta, the Cathedral annual published on the occasion of the feast of Santa Marija, features researched articles related to the 400th anniversary of the Blessed Virgin of the Assumption at Ta’ Pinu as well as a detailed chronicle of the salient events that took place at the Cathedral during the past year. The cover, designed by Paul Falzon, shows a solid silver sanctuary lamp, dated 1728, that has been recently restored.