I come from Vittoriosa, and as a child I was an altar boy in the church of the St Scholastica monastery, Vittoriosa, prior to becoming a Carmelite friar. My vocation was inspired by the Benedictine nuns at this monastery.
The nuns who live in St Scholastica Monastery live under the rule of St Benedict, particularly in prayer through the Liturgy of the hours, the Lectio Divina and other silent prayers said throughout their day.
The Benedictine nuns take three solemn vows, namely those of chastity, poverty and obedience, as well as the vow of stability, by which the nuns do not move from the place where they entered the order as nuns, as is required of them following St Benedict’s rules.
From history we know that in 1496 a group of young girls entered this new monastery where Donna Maria De Bordino, after leaving St Peter’s Monastery, devoted herself to the spiritual teaching of these six girls, which also allowed new vocations to flourish.
The Vittoriosa monastery was set up following the initiative of Bishop Jaymo de Valguarnera around the time when the Spanish Emperor was expelling Jews from their land. It was opened following the need for a better consecrated life as many other places around the world were doing at the time.
The new monastery was situated in Vittoriosa where the Jewish community had previously been, but since the side of the bastion where it was located was very exposed, they feared an attack, so they rejoined the Benedictine community in Mdina. It was Bishop Gargallo who seperated the two monasteries once again in 1578, and on April 24, 1604, the Benedictine community arrived in Vittoriosa to occupy the old Magisterial Palace.
The first monastery of the nuns of St Ursula was set up in in Valletta in 1595. Although the place where they lived was not comfortable they stayed there for 40 years until they asked Grand Master Lascaris for a better monastery.
The monastery’s history is very rich and fascinating. Today the building has every necessary comfort, and those who have the chance to visit it will truly be amazed by what they see
The Grand Master agreed to the nuns’ request to be transferred, and they were given the Order’s Infirmary in Vittoriosa which had been closed since 1574. The nuns entered the new monastery on 30, 1652, without any ceremonies or celebrations.
Over time, works were carried out to refurbish the building. In Bishop Balaguer’s report on his second visit in 1657, he noted that a new choir had been made and a new refectory was under way.
The church of the monastery
With time, the need for a larger and more appropriate church arose. The monastery church was rebuilt in 1680 in a Baroque style, on plans made by Lorenzo Gafà. The costs were covered by the Noble Lady (Donna) Aloisietta Dorel Pecos to honor the Holy Family as she had survived the plague that had hit Malta hard in 1675. She also donated sacred garments and other sacred objects, which can still be admired to this day.
According to history, the new church was blessed by Vicar General Famucelli on July 14, 1680. In 1694, a new bell tower was built, and in November 1739 a new sacristy was added. Later, in 1748, Michelangelo Romano enlarged the presbytery and took charge of all repairs that needed to be done.
The church of St Scholastica in Vittoriosa.The church was consecrated by Bishop Labini on September 29, 1787. The painting of the main altar was painted by Mattia Preti. In addition to the Holy Family, St Benedict and St Scholastica are also represented.
At the same time that the church was being built, refurbishment was also under way on the monastery itself. From March 15, 1679, until the end of May that year, a new lodging was built leading to the dormitory, creating four new rooms surrounding the parlor for use by the community, as well as stairs that led to the roof of the new church.
Between March 1717 and April 1719 more extensive works were carried out on the monastery. With the permission of the Grand Master, they were even allowed to dig a well as it would not impact the military architecture of the bastions.
During the French occupation and during World War II the nuns sought refuge by rejoining the Benedictine community in Mdina.
The monastery’s history is very rich and fascinating. Today the building has every necessary comfort, and those who have the chance to visit it will truly be amazed by what they see.
I encourage readers to pray for the community of Benedictine cloistered nuns so that the Lord may send them more vocations for the benefit of souls and the sanctification of the Church.
Fr Hermann Duncan is a member of the community of Carmelite friars in Balluta.