The Blessed Dun Gorg Preca will be declared a saint by Pope Benedict XVI during a ceremony to be held at the Vatican tomorrow.

When the news that a second miracle attributed to the priest from Hamrun had been approved by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints spread like wildfire one evening last January, it was evident that Catholic Malta will celebrate its first saint.

Christianity arrived in Malta nearly 2,000 years ago, and although historians believe that was at least one period in the country’s history that the Maltese had changed religion, it remains the foundation of our way of life, our culture, our civilisation.

For many years, the Maltese questioned as to why Catholic Malta was never visited by a pope and never had a saint. Well, Pope John Paul II set foot in the country twice in 1990 and 2001, and now Malta will have its first saint too.

It was Pope John Paul who had beatified Dun Gorg during his second visit, together with Adeodata Pisani and Nazju Falzon. Six years later, the founder of the Society for Christian Doctrine will be declared a saint.

A process that started way back in 1975 has come to an end. It was however only 26 years later, in 2001, that Dun Gorg was beatified after a first miracle that had taken place in 1964 was attributed to the Maltese priest. The second healing, which led to the sainthood, was of a baby who developed liver complications in July 2001, and who was miraculously healed after the child was touched by a glove used to exhume Dun Gorg’s body.

It is fitting that Dun Gorg will be canonised this year, the 100th anniversary of the setting up of the MUSEUM Society, which is still very active among young people. The society provides lessons in catechism for children getting prepared for the First Holy Communion and Confirmation, but also offers space and time for young people to meet. Many children, especially boys, continue going to the Muzew well after their Confirmation age, simply because there they find many peers with whom they share a friendship and with whom they grow.

It would have been even better had the ceremony taken place in Malta, although it must be said that there was very little chance that this could have happened, and in fact the local Church immediately played down any expectations.

Still, a sizeable chunk of Malta will be in Rome this weekend to follow the ceremony in St Peter’s Square. At least 5,000 Maltese have flown or are flying to the Italian capital city just to be present when Pope Benedict declares Dun Gorg a saint. No doubt, many other Maltese will be in front of their television screens to watch the ceremony too.

The canonisation of Dun Gorg comes at an important time for the local Church, which needs to continue a renewal process that started with the change in its leadership. Last January, Archbishop Mgr Paul Cremona OP took over the headship of the local Church from Mgr Joseph Mercieca, and immediately showed that he wanted to take a different approach, effectively putting the Church under a new light.

Over the past months, the Maltese public has been inundated with news about Dun Gorg’s life and its effect on the society he lived in and the society we live in today. The sanctification of Dun Gorg has offered the Church an opportunity to continue working on a renewal of faith.

Whether this has actually taken place on a general level cannot be gauged. What is sure is that the canonisation of Dun Gorg has given everyone a chance to open his or her heart. It is now up to each and every one of us to accept or refuse the offer.