I come from Vittoriosa, and as a child I was an altar boy at the church of the Monastery of St Scholastica in Vittoriosa, prior to becoming a Carmelite friar. I have chosen to write about this monastery since my vocation was inspired by the Benedictine nuns.
The nuns who live in the Monastery of St Scholastica live by the rule of St Benedict, particularly in prayer through the Liturgy of the Hours, the Lectio Divina, and other silent prayers said throughout the 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 they entered as nuns, as is required of them following St. Benedict’s rules.
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 built on 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, similar to what many other places around the world were doing at the time.
The new monastery was in Vittoriosa where the Jewish community had previously lived; however, 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 separated the two monasteries again in 1578, and on 24th April 1604, the Benedictine community arrived in Vittoriosa to occupy the old Magisterial Palace.
The first Benedictine nunnery was established in Valletta in 1595. Although the place where they lived was not comfortable, the nuns stayed there for 40 years until they asked Grand Master Lascaris for a better monastery.
Grand Master Lascaris welcomed the nuns’ suggestion to be transferred to a new place, and gave them the Order’s Infirmary in Vittoriosa which had been closed since 1574. The nuns entered the new monastery on 30th October 1652 without any ceremonies or celebrations held.
Eventually, work was 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 installed and a new refectory was being built.
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 Gafa. The costs were covered by Lady (Donna) Aloisietta Dorel Pecos to honour the Holy Family as she had survived the plague that 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 14th July 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 was consecrated by Bishop Labini on 29th September 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 being carried out on the monastery itself. From 15th March 1679 until the end of May that year, new quarters were built leading to the dormitory, four new rooms surrounding the parlour 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 work was 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 the Second World War, the nuns sought refuge by rejoining the Benedictine community in Mdina.
The monastery’s history is very rich and fascinating but it is not possible to relate more in this article.
Today the monastery has every necessary comfort, and those who have the chance to visit will truly be amazed by what they see.
Brothers and sisters I encourage you to pray for the community of Benedictine cloistered nuns so that the Lord sends them more vocations for the benefit of souls and the sanctification of the Church.
Fr Hermann Duncan O.Carm
Balluta