The 150-year old church of Maria Immacolata in Benghazi, Libya was recently adorned with new doors, donated by Construct Furniture of Luqa, and transported to Benghazi free of charge by Air Malta’s Cargo Systems. The church is currently being refurbished after it sustained substantial damage.

The Maria Immacolata church, which dates back to 1858, was opened for worship in 1877 but had to be closed in the wake of the revolution of 1969. Later in 1976, it was donated to the Catholic community of Benghazi, as a sequel to the Islamo-Christian Congress held in Tripoli earlier that year.

After much needed restoration work, the small church was re-opened for worship on 8 December, 1977. Twenty years later in 1997, the Apostolic Vicar, Mgr Silvester Magro, OFM, celebrated the inauguration of his ministry in this church. This came as a result of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Libya and the Holy See.

The new bishop added to and modified the church and the adjacent friary. The new halls serve as a meeting place for prayer purposes for various groups and different Christian denominations mostly Africans, and including a group from the Philippines and other groups from Pakistan.