One of the most memorable highlights of the year 1924 undoubtedly remains the visit to Malta of a holy relic – the mummified arm of a reputable Spanish holy man, St Francis Xavier.
The organising committee did not expect the rapturous welcome it received.
The relic of St Francis Xavier’s arm, housed in the Jesuit church in Rome, which toured Malta in 1924. Postcard by Salvatore Lorenzo Cassar
Crowds gathering on the Floriana granaries to greet the relic of St Francis Xavier.
The arrival in Grand Harbour of the MV Ljubljana with the relic of St Francis Xavier.
The relic arrived in Malta on May 26 aboard the MV Ljubljana, decked in British and papal flags. Car owners were invited to join a carcade to accompany the relic from Grand Harbour to the Jesuit church, with a long detour through Floriana.
Over 75 cars turned up – in 1924!
Heightened popular hysteria characterised the relic’s stay in Malta. A contemporary observer described it as “a veritable collective religious furore that verged on insurgency giving rise to concerns.
Many were the graces received, and the reawakening of faith and piety in the population was a highly positive, and surely supernatural, outcome of that unforgettable sacred event”.
The relic on an open truck passing through Merchants Street, Valletta.
Crowds assembled in Valletta to pay homage to St Francis Xavier. All images from the author’s collection.
Faithful gathered in front of St John’s Co-Cathedral to salute the relic of St Francis Xavier.
A military guard of honour salutes the relic in Valletta.
The relic visited many parishes, and some privileged private homes, everywhere provoking uncontainable enthusiasm.
The authorities considered cancelling the Gozo visit, unsure if they could guarantee public safety.
Francis Xavier (1506-1552), co-founder of the Jesuit Order, known as the Apostle of the Indies, became famous as a missionary in the East.
The knights of the langue of Aragon commissioned from Mattia Preti a magnificent altarpiece with his effigy for St John’s Co-Cathedral.
The wayside shrine of St Francis Xavier in Marsa, refurbished after the 1924 visit of the relic.
Last farewell festivities on June 1, 1924, in honour of the relic of St Francis Xavier.
Mattia Preti altarpiece of St Francis Xavier in the chapel of Aragon, St John’s Co-Cathedral.
Publishers seized the occasion and issued numerous photo postcards, prominent among them Salvatore Lorenzo Cassar and a mysterious firm, Lauri & Co.
They show salient events, the concourse of the population and the solemnity of the ceremonies.
Some of the wayside shrines of St Francis, including one in Marsa, were upgraded in the wake of this upsurge of faith.
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