After a long summer of worrying whether feast morning band marches will be stopped or not, feast enthusiasts can now put their mind at rest. Band marches will remain but will be held under stricter controls and no more “surprises” will be tolerated.

The church yesterday launched a consultative document ‘Restoring feasts together’, which supposedly evaluates various aspects of the way Maltese celebrate their feasts.

A quick skim through the document gives the reader a very vague idea of what is expected from the feast organisers leaving many pending questions unanswered.

Archbishop Paul Cremona, pro-vicar general Anton Gouder and chaplains’ college president Eric Overend launched the document at the curia yesterday.

He pointed out that the document covers only village feasts and not other church feasts such as Good Friday or Easter. The aim of the document is to restore the spiritual nature of feasts and to make feasts an activity that all the family can participate in, said the archbishop.

Unless the band marches are properly controlled within three years, they will be prohibited permanently. Rivalry between band clubs will have to stop, there should be less alcohol consumption, and participants must be decently dressed. Marches cannot be held during liturgical ceremonies. Unless there are logistical difficulties, in those localities where there are more than one band club, the march cannot pass in front of another band club.

No new band marches shall be introduced during the feast days as per 1995 regulations. No new decorations known as “surprises” that are usually launched during band marches or musical programmes will be allowed. Balloons and flags will be the only decorations permitted. “The band clubs’ committees and civil authorities will have to shoulder responsibility of what happens during band marches. We all know that band marches have degenerated our local feasts,” said Fr Gouder.

Despite the expectations, the document does not say much about regulating fireworks. Fireworks must be held within the parameters stipulated by the law including times to let off petards, licensing, petards sizes and health and safety. The church authorities are committed to cooperate with the civil authorities to improve on the present regulations. Fr Gouder explained that it is in the process of starting discussions with the justice and home affairs ministry. Regarding ground fireworks, the church stipulates that these should not disturb Church functions.

The document also goes into the issue of feast church bell ringing. Bells must be rung only during liturgical actions in moderation and not for profane purposes. No ringing is allowed between 1pm to 4pm and 11pm to 6am.

An inventory of street decorations has to be drawn up. Decorations can only be set up or replaced according to the parish chaplain’s concession. No new feast decorations can be bought except for those ordered till 15 July. As from 2013, no new decorations will be allowed unless required. Fr Gouder said that emphasis would be made to spread out the concentration of street decorations in the village core. Even street decorations have become an excuse of rivalry, he explained when asked.

Certain practices, which were never approved by the church concerning church decorations, need to be corrected as these have given the leeway to further competition.

The congregation’s participation should be given due importance during internal church celebrations. Emphasis must not be placed on celebrations but on better quality.

There should not be celebrations when the titular statue is taken out of its niche. The statue must be placed within its proper perspective according to the church’s teachings. Statues should not resemble a pagan totem while their symbolic significance needs to be explained and highlighted throughout the feast. The ceremony requires a para-liturgical structure away from other distracting elements. The damask, for example, cannot be hanged after the statue is taken out of the niche. The statue must be stored away in its niche within two days after the feast.

The main feast sermon, known for their lengths, cannot be longer than 45 minutes and has to focus on the virtues and life of the saint. Any differences arising from prelates’ titles and distinctions have to be omitted while foreign bishops or priests can be invited only on special occasions after a request is submitted to the chancellery.

A limit will be placed on which anniversaries can be celebrated. Initially special anniversaries used to be celebrated every 25 years but over the years anniversaries were sprouting for every excuse. As from now onwards, anniversaries can only be celebrated every 50 years.

Processions must be accompanied with prayers and hymns. The exit and entrances times from the church will be clearly defined and the traditional riddles said in front of the statue, a practice popular in the southern villages, will have to stop. Thanksgiving inside the church should include all feast contributors and not a few sections.

Since 1983, the church has published various documents – five synod documents, 11 pastoral letters and four discourses of Archbishop Paul Cremona – that reiterate how feasts should be held.

The consultation period ends on 30 November. Feast enthusiasts and the general public can submit their opinion either via email on [email protected] or by post on Archbishop’s Curia, PO Box 29, Valletta, VLT 1000. The document will be available online on the curia’s website www.maltadiocese.org

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