Blessed Dun Gorg Preca is to become the first Maltese saint after the Congregation for the Causes of Saints yesterday approved the second miracle attributed to the humble priest who founded the Society for Christian Doctrine in Malta.

A date will be set for his canonisation after a decree on the miracle is sent to Pope Benedict XVI for approval and after the Pope seeks the advice of the cardinals who are in Rome when he calls a Consistory.

The announcement was made yesterday evening by Archbishop Joseph Mercieca at the end of the celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of Dun Gorg Preca’s priestly ordination at the seminary in Rabat.

Speaking to The Malta Independent, Mgr Arthur Said Pullicino, head of the Ecclesiastical Tribunal in Malta, said he does not believe the canonisation ceremony will be held in Malta because it will be an event “of relevance to the Universal Church. Now he is a saint for the whole world and not only for Malta and Gozo”.

Even though the society is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year and there is a possibility that the canonisation could take place in 2007, Church sources pointed out that 2008 will be dedicated to “The Holy Word of God” and Dun Gorg’s work focused entirely on spreading the Gospel.

The announcement was warmly welcomed by the members of the society yesterday. Commenting to this newspaper, one member said: “Without Dun Gorg, Malta would be a very different country for the simple reason that he instilled in common people strong social and religious values.”

A young seminarian told The Malta Independent that Dun Gorg is a model for those who want to become priests: “He lived and maintained strong links with people and he was always available to those who needed him.”

Yesterday’s approval by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints was the second miracle attributed to Dun Gorg. The first miracle that led to his beatification was the miraculous healing of Charles Zammit Endrich on 3 February 1964.

The second miracle, which centres around the healing of a baby with the intercession of Dun Gorg Preca, goes back to July 2001, two months after he was beatified by Pope John Paul II on his second pastoral visit to Malta.

According to the Curia, the baby developed liver complications and was treated by local paediatricians at St Luke’s Hospital. The baby’s condition worsened and she was taken for specialised treatment to King’s College Hospital in London.

On 14 July, the doctors said the baby needed a liver transplant, its only hope of survival; however, the donor liver was not compatible. During this very difficult period, the family prayed to Blessed Dun Gorg Preca to intercede on the baby’s behalf and the baby was touched with a glove used to exhume Dun Gorg’s body.

On 20 July, the baby’s condition improved and the liver started to function properly. Four days later, the doctors decided the baby no longer needed a transplant. Today, the child is a healthy five-year-old and attends school regularly.

In July 2004, the local ecclesiastical authorities began studying the case to decide whether it should be passed on to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, in Rome.

On 17 December 2004, the Congregation decided that the process begun in Malta was valid and on 23 February of last year, medical experts gave their favourable opinion on the case. On 30 October 2006, the Congregation’s theologians gave a favourable opinion and this led to the final approval yesterday.

Spiritual leader

Dun Gorg Preca left an indelible mark on Maltese society and contributed a great deal to the evangelisation of the Gospel among children and youth in society.

Born in Valletta on 12 February 1880, Gorg was the seventh child in a middle-class family of nine. His father, Vincent Preca, was first a merchant and then a sanitary inspector. His mother, Nathalie Ceravolo, was a teacher.

Feeling that he was being called to join the priesthood, he moved from the lyceum to the seminary where as a young student he distinguished himself in his studies, especially in Latin.

One priest, Fr Ercole Mompalao, recognised certain qualities in Gorg and said to him: “Preca, you will grow up and will be befriended by people who respect God. You will be blessed because of them, and they because of you...”

As a seminarian, he used to go to Grand Harbour, board the foreign ships there, and introduce himself to Greek, English and French sailors by offering them a cigarette. Knowing that a group of youngsters were in the habit of meeting together regularly, Blessed Gorg Preca struck up a steady friendship with them. Soon the group of youths who met in the vicinity of the Hamrun parish church grew so that premises had to be rented where their meetings could be held.

At the time, the Church kept a wary eye on all new activities and organisations, fearing some novel teaching would permeate and damage the traditional teaching. When word came to the ears of the Vicar General, Mgr Salvatore Grech, that a group of youths was meeting regularly to talk about God, alarm bells started ringing.

This concern was compounded by the fact that many people were flocking to hear this priest and his followers talking about God in a simple and clear way.

According to the society’s biography of Dun Gorg, he was aware of the situation but also realised that the people’s knowledge was not based on a solid grounding in the scriptures and therefore they were easily influenced.

Well-organised catechetical teaching did not exist for the common people.

However, Dun Gorg believed that people had to be taught to be able to be convinced of their beliefs.

“Using his charismatic force and personality, he wielded a silent army for Christ: men and women who, without radically distinguishing themselves from common people by dress or uniform, would nevertheless be so well instructed and formed in their spiritual life that they would quietly shine forth before others with their example in their everyday life, whether at home or at work,” the society describes the rationale behind Dun Gorg’s activity.

From these small group meetings, the Society of Christian Doctrine, better known as MUSEUM, came into being. Today, there are over 100 centres and it has 1,100 members who teach around 20,000 boys and girls in Malta, Gozo, Australia, Peru, the Sudan, the United Kingdom, Kenya and Albania.

Despite the good work that Dun Gorg and his followers were doing, he still found strong opposition from fellow priests and the Church. However, his determination and faith paid off. Those who were against him soon found themselves trusting him and encouraging his society to grow.

Blessed George Preca passed way on 26 July 1962 at about 7.45pm. Some 20,000 people attended his funeral in Hamrun.

The cause for the sanctification of Gorg Preca started in 1975.