In the last few days, various personalities paid a visit to the Seminary. On Thursday April 11th we welcomed in our midst a priest from the community Missionary Servants of the Poor of the Third World. He talked to us about the beneficial work of his community as missionaries in Third World Countries, especially in Peru. He said explicitly that the greatest need of mankind, and so the greatest gift that man can bestow to another, is God. For more information one can visit the website of this community: www.msptm.com or facebook: Missionary Sptw-uk.
During the first weeks of April, the community of the Seminary from the Archdiocese of Malta spent some days in Gozo. On Friday evening, April 12th, we joined the community at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Ta’ Pinu. This evening of prayer, on the occasion of the Year of Faith, was led by Fr Daniel Xerri, Rector of the Gozo Seminary, and Fr Jimmy Bonnici, Rector of the Malta Seminary. At the beginning of the service, Fr Daniel invited all the seminarians to put their trust in Our Lady, who should be for each and every one of us a model, a mother and a guide. Just as she lived her faith to the full, so are we, through the intercession and with the help of Our Lady, called to do the full, the will of God the Father.
During the service, Fr Jimmy reflected on the readings from the Sacred Scripture. He talked about the beauty of faith that makes a person always ready to open his heart to God: “By faith Abraham sojourned in the promised land as in a foreign country…” (Heb. 11,9). Like Abraham, who in his life never stopped exploring and doing the will of God, Mary, too, embraced God entirely throughout her life. The answer “Here I am” which she gave to the angel Gabriel was not a mere reciprocation of a greeting: her whole life was an assertion of this affirmative answer. For this reason, we have to believe that Our Lady is really a mother to us all: we have to acknowledge her love and eventually show her respect. The more we open ourselves to the will of God and the more we ask help from our Mother Mary, the further and deeper will we be able to strive in life.
Confession of faith and the act of self-commitment to Our Lady brought to an end the evening of prayer. When we went back to the Seminary, we had dinner and we shared our experiences.
