Church of St Lucy, Valletta

Church of St Lucy
Church of St Lucy
	Knisja ta' Santa Luċija ta' Sirakuża
	Church of St Lucy
	35°53′47.2″N14°30′51.6″E / 35.896444°N 14.514333°E Coordinates: 35°53′47.2″N14°30′51.6″E / 35.896444°N 14.514333°E
Location	Valletta
Country	Malta
Denomination	Roman Catholic
History
Status	Active
Founded	1570
Dedication	Saint Lucy
Architecture
Functional status	Church
Style	Baroque
Administration
Archdiocese	Malta
Clergy
Rector	Joseph Grech Cremona

Last updated May 11, 2019

The Church of St Lucy is a small Roman Catholic church situated in Valletta, Malta. The church was built in 1570 and features a titular painting above the high altar and the corpse of St Lucian, the martyr.

Valletta is the capital city of Malta. Located in the south east of the island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population in 2014 was 6,444, while the metropolitan area around it has a population of 393,938. Valletta is the southernmost capital of Europe.

Malta, officially known as the Republic of Malta, is a Southern European island country consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 80 km (50 mi) south of Italy, 284 km (176 mi) east of Tunisia, and 333 km (207 mi) north of Libya. With a population of about 475,000 over an area of 316 km² (122 sq mi), Malta is the world's tenth smallest and fifth most densely populated country. Its capital is Valletta, which is the smallest national capital in the European Union by area at 0.8 km². The official languages are Maltese and English, with Maltese officially recognised as the national language and the only Semitic language in the European Union.

History

The church of St Lucy was built in 1570, four years after the construction of the city of Valletta began. It was originally dedicated to St Francis of Paola, a statue of whom is on the corner of St Lucy's street just opposite the church. The first Dominicans who went to Valletta from Birgu first administered the sacraments from this church before their church was constructed. The church was rebuilt with money paid by the wine merchants of Valletta.^[1] After the church was rebuilt, it was dedicated to Saint Lucy and Saint Vincent Ferrer.^{[ citation needed ]}

Saint Francis of Paola, O.M. was an Italian mendicant friar and the founder of the Roman Catholic Order of Minims. Unlike the majority of founders of men's religious orders, and like his patron saint, Francis was never ordained a priest.

Birgu, also known by its title Città Vittoriosa, is an old fortified city on the south side of the Grand Harbour in the South Eastern Region of Malta. The city occupies a promontory of land with Fort Saint Angelo at its head and the city of Cospicua at its base. Birgu is ideally situated for safe anchorage, and over time it has developed a very long history with maritime, mercantile and military activities.

Lucia of Syracuse (283–304), also known as Saint Lucy or Saint Lucia, was a Christian martyr who died during the Diocletianic Persecution. She is venerated as a saint by the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Orthodox Churches. She is one of eight women along with the Blessed Virgin Mary who are commemorated by name in the Canon of the Mass. Her feast day, known as Saint Lucy's Day, is celebrated in the West on 13 December. St. Lucia of Syracuse was honored in the Middle Ages and remained a well-known saint in early modern England.

The church building is listed on the National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands.^[2]

The National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands (NICPMI) is a heritage register listing the cultural property of Malta. The inventory includes properties such as archaeological sites, fortifications, religious buildings, monuments and other buildings. The NICPMI is under the responsibility of the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage (SCH) which was founded in 2002 to replace the Antiquities Act. The NICPMI was established on 16 December 2011.

Works of art

The titular painting on top of the high altar depicts the Immaculate Conception with Saint Paul, Saint Lucy, Saint Vincent Ferrer and Saint Clare. Beneath the high altar one can find the corpse of St Lucian the Martyr brought from the cemetery of Priscilla in Rome.^[3] The side altar are dedicated to St Francis of Paola and St Paschal Baylon.

In Christian theology, the Immaculate Conception is the conception of the Virgin Mary free from original sin by virtue of the merits of her son Jesus. The Catholic Church teaches that God acted upon Mary in the first moment of her conception, keeping her "immaculate".

Paul the Apostle, commonly known as Saint Paul and also known by his Jewish name Saul of Tarsus, was an apostle who taught the gospel of Christ to the first-century world. Paul is generally considered one of the most important figures of the Apostolic Age and in the mid-30s to the mid-50s AD he founded several churches in Asia Minor and Europe. He took advantage of his status as both a Jew and a Roman citizen to minister to both Jewish and Roman audiences.

Vincent Ferrer Valencian Dominican friar

Vincent Ferrer, O.P. was a Valencian Dominican friar, who gained acclaim as a missionary and a logician. He is honored as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church and other churches of Catholic traditions, like the Iglesia Filipina Independiente.

Feast day

The feast of Saint Lucy is celebrated every year from 1 December and ends on the liturgical feast of the saint on 13 December.

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References

↑ "Valletta (St. Paul)". thechurchinmalta.org. Archdiocese of Malta. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
↑ "Church of St. Lucy" (PDF). National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. 27 August 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
↑ Scerri, John. "Valletta". Malta-Canada.com. Retrieved 4 November 2014.

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[1] "Valletta (St. Paul)". thechurchinmalta.org. Archdiocese of Malta. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 6 November 2014.

[2] "Church of St. Lucy" (PDF). National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. 27 August 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2015.

[3] Scerri, John. "Valletta". Malta-Canada.com. Retrieved 4 November 2014.