BLESSED DUN GEORGE PRECA

The Consistory meeting at the Vatican 
has proclaimed Dun Gorg Preca as the first Maltese Catholic Saint.
He will be canonised in Rome on 3 June 2007.

Dun George Preca

The Servant of God
Blessed GEORGE PRECA (1880-1962)
Founder of The Society of Christian Doctrine

Canonised Dun Gorg Preca
as first Maltese Saint.

Society of Christian Doctrine M.U.S.E.U.M.

 

 Click HERE

Our Blessed Vergin Mary

Audio Clip Right ClickHERE

 

A short clip in Maltese from Ven George Preca
talking in an open air conference (Sajda)

Dun George Preca

Blessed George Preca (1880-1962) priest, catechist, founder

George Preca - seventh in a family of nine children,
son of a merchant and health inspector -
was ordained priest in his native Malta in 1906.

Within four months of his ordination,
he and a group of young lay people gathered to grow
in the spiritual life and to teach the Faith.

Fr Preca - known to the Maltese as ‘Dun Gorg’ -
gave several names to the society, which continue today.
‘MUSEUM’ stood for the latin initials of ‘Master,
would that the whole world might follow the Gospel’.

They are commonly known as the Society for Christian Doctrine -
Societas Doctrinae Christianae in latin
and Socjeta’ tad-Duttrina Nisranija in Maltese.

The members - men and women - are celibate,
lay workers, dedicated without reserve to the apostolate of catechesis.
Some live in community.

The Society went through some troubled times,
including his bishop closing all the centres.

Nonetheless Dun Gorg and the Society continued to spread the Gospel.
He was described by John Paul II as ‘Malta’s second father in faith’.

Dun Gorg died, revered by all, on 26 July 1962.

Today the Society carries out its work for Jesus Christ
in Albania, Australia, England, Kenya, Malta, South America and the Sudan

 

 Click HERE

 

Dun George Preca

Aspects of Spirituality
in Blessed Preca’s Writings

MORTIFICATION OF THE SENSES

Right Click HERE

 

Dun Ġorġ Preca bidel il-kelma M.U.S.E.U.M. fil-frażi bil-Latin:
Magister Utinam Sequatur Evangelium Universus Mundus.
Din tfisser: Mgħallem, mhux li kien id-dinja kollha timxi wara l Evanġelju!

________________

Father Ġorġ Preca changed the word M.U.S.E.U.M. to the Latin phrase:
Magister Utinam Sequatur Evangelium Universus Mundus.
This means: Master, would that the whole world would follow the Gospel!

 

 

"The word was made flesh"

A card with the words
Verbum Dei caro factum est.
Thanks to Fr George Preca,
devotion towards these words spread in the
Maltese islands and beyond.

I created this page today 7th.Febuary 2007 on the
M.U.S.E.U.M. Commemoration 100th anniversary.

PAGE HAS BEEN EDITED

L-Arċidjoċesi ta’ Malta   The Archdiocese of Malta

Right Click Photo Below

Mons. Pawl Cremona O.P.- Msgr Paul Cremona O.P.
ARĊISQOF TA' MALTA - ARCHBISHOP of MALTA
 
(Left) Mons. Mario Grech -Msgr Mario Grech 
ISQOF TA'GHAWDEX- BISHOP of GOZO
St. George Preca's relic during the canonisation ceremony was designed by Tarxien sculptor Renzo Gauci. It has an elegant shape, with four angels chisled on the corners, and a rather long window so that the tube with the saint's blood is clearly visible.
Saint George Preca
for the Canonisation of Blessed Gorg Preca in Rome
Right Click Maltese Flags
A Tribute to San George Preca (In Maltese)
 
DUN GEORGE PRECA
 
Blessed George Preca was born in Valletta, Malta, on 12 February 1880. He was ordained priest in December 1906. Early in 1907, he gathered around him a group of young men willing to dedicate themselves to teaching and the Christian formation of the young.

    The little group, inspired, guided and encouraged by this humble and holy priest, has now grown into the Society of Christian Doctrine M.U.S.E.U.M. with some 110 Centres and some 1100 Members (men and women) who all embrace celibacy for the Kingdom of God. They are established in Malta, and overseas. The Society of Christian Doctrine is a living monument to the holiness and inspiration of Fr George Preca.

    On May 9, 2001 Pope John Paul II during the beatification mass declared the three Maltese personalities, Fr George Preca, Nazju Falzon and Sour Adeodata Pisani as blessed

The Verbum Dei

Fr George Preca felt great gratitude to Jesus who was not ashamed to declare that he was one of us, his brethren. The expression that struck Fr Preca as the most beautiful was the precious sentence Verbum Dei caro factum est --- "The Word of God was made flesh" (jn 1, 14). His devotion to these words increased after reading the life of Venerable Sister Mary of the Sacred Passion (1866-1912). These very words were given to her by Our Lord himself as a powerfull means of help in times of temptations. 

 

The first time that Fr Preca used the words of the Verbum Dei was when his father was dying, on 5 December 1917. instances of alleged cures of people who faithfully accepted this devotion brought more and more people to think and speak of Fr Preca as a holy priest. However, it seems that he had acquired his reputation long before. He spread this devotion everywhere. He had those holy words printed on cards which he distributed all over Malta, and later on even overseas. His also wished that the Members of his Society wear badges with these words, thereby proclaiming their faith in Christ's incarnation

Blessed George Preca

Priest

May 9: Celebrated as an Optional Memorial.

Blessed George was born in Valletta, the capital of the Mediterranean island of Malta, and lived for a time in Valletta near the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. As a child, and according to the customs of the times, George joined the Carmelite Family by being enrolled in the Scapular. As a young man he felt called to the priesthood. He was ordained priest on 22 December 1906.

During the early months of 1907, the young Fr George began his mission by gathering around him and forming a small group of young men in their twenties. He instilled in them moral principles, the fear of God and an awareness of the infinite love that God bears humanity. These young men were the first seeds of the Society of Christian Doctrine, popularly known as MUSEUM, the initial letters of "Magister, Utinam Sequatur Evangelium Universus Mundus" ("Lord, would that the whole world follow the Gospel"). Fr George’s work was and is the religious education of young children, boys and girls and youth, undertaken by well-prepared lay people. The central theme of his spirituality and theology was the Incarnation: "Verbum Dei caro factum est" ("The Word of God was made flesh"). These words became the motto of the distinctive emblem of the Society and of his life.

Fr George was not satisfied with a minimal Christian life. As a child he wore the scapular and in later years wanted to commit himself more intensely to following the example of Our Lady and thus became a Carmelite Tertiary. He joined the Third Order on 21 July 1918 and made his profession on 26 September of the following year. At his profession he took the name of "Franco", after the Carmelite Blessed Franco of Siena. Fr George chose the name of this Blessed because he considered himself a great sinner… a characteristic of many saints. He really felt he was a member of the Carmelite Family, so much so that several times in his writings he calls himself a Carmelite and uses the name he took at his profession as a Tertiary rather than his own name. In 1952, in recognition of his untiring efforts to spread devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Fr George was affiliated to the Order.

He died at 82, on 26 July 1962. His presence and the influence of his spirit are still felt among all Maltese families. Fr George Preca is a saint of our times, not because of any extraordinary events recorded during his life, but above all because of the living monument that he left behind in the Society of the MUSEUM, today spread to Europe, Oceania, Africa and Latin America. Fr George has been a worthy son of Carmel, not just because he was a member of the Third Order or because he wore the Scapular and preached on Our Lady, but rather because he lived a life of intimate union with God and served his brothers and sisters after the example of Our Lady. He was beatified by John Paul II on 9 May 2001.

 

Death of Fr George Preca.

1963

The SDC Superior General Eugenio Borg requests Archbishop Michael Gonzi to consider the possibility of opening the Cause of Beatification of Fr George Preca.

03 Feb 1964

Extraordinary healing of Charles Zammit Endrich.

02 Dec 1964

Resolution made by the College of Priests in Malta, Christus Rex, to ask Mgr Gonzi to open the Cause.

29 Apr 1966

Msgr Archbishop Michael Gonzi promises to help.

Jul 1966

Publication of the first biography of Fr George Preca in Maltese.

24 Jul 1967

Fr Joseph Delia, s.j. appointed Assistant Postulator of the Cause.

29 Sep 1971

Official petition to the Holy See presented by Archbishop Gonzi and the S.D.C.

21 Feb 1972

Favourable reply from the Holy See.

13 Mar 1975

Nihil obstat granted by the Holy See.

09 Apr 1975

Authorization announced in a general meeting of the SDC Members by His Grace Mgr Joseph Mercieca.

24 Jun 1975

Decree of introduction for the Cause.

20 Sep 1975

Fr Mark Said, o.p. appointed Postulator.

25 Feb 1976

The first sitting of the tribunal presided by His Grace Joseph Mercieca.

1976 -1983

263 sittings; 88 witnesses; 1578 pages of the Acts.

08 Apr 1983

Conclusion of the Diocesan process.

13 Feb 1984

Tribunal requests list of Fr George Preca's writings.

02 Mar 1984

 A list of 135 writings of Fr George Preca forwarded.
 Judgment by the first Theologian Censor.
 Judgment by the second Theologian Censor.

21 Jun 1988

Decree regarding the non-Cultus i.e. to refrain from public veneration.

23 Jun 1988

Official closure of the Acts of the Diocesan Process.

24 Jun 1988

The Acts are delivered to Rome by the Vice Postulator Fr Paul Gatt, o.p. and Fr Joseph Fenech.

06 Oct 1988

Holy See officially releases a copy of the Acts.

27 Jul 1990

Mgr Rolando Zera appointed as  lawyer of the Cause.

19 Jun 1992

Decree on the validity of the Process super virtutibus.

14 Apr 1996

Mgr Charles J. Sicluna nominated Postulator.

21 May 1996

Nihil obstat of the Holy See regarding the new Postulator.

14 Feb 1997

Dott. Andrea Ambrosi appointed lawyer of the Cause.

22 Jan 1998

Positio super virtutibus presented to the Holy See.

16 Mar 1999

Unanimous favourable judgment on the heroic Virtues by the Congress of Theologians.

01 Jun1999

Unanimous favourable judgment by the Ordinary Congregation of Cardinals and Bishops.

10 Jun 1999

Unanimous favourable judgment of the Medical Consultancy regarding the healing of Charles Zammit Endrich.

28 Jun 1999

Reading of the Decree on the heroic virtues. Fr George Preca is declared
"Venerable".

22 Oct 1999

Favourable judgment of the Theologians Commission regarding the miraculous healing through the intercession of Fr George Preca.

11 Jan 2000

Healing with the intercession of the Servant of God Fr. George Preca confirmed as miraculous by the Congregation of Cardinals and Bishops.

27 Jan 2000

His Holiness the Pope signed the Decree confirming the miracle performed on Zammit Endrich in 1964 through the intercession of Venerable George Preca.

07 Jul 2000

Remains of Venerable George Preca exhumed and found well preserved.

21 Apr 2001

Remains of Venerable George Preca transported solemnly to the Chapel at Blata il-Bajda.

09 May 2001

His Holiness Pope John Paul II beatifies Venerable George Preca at the Floriana Granaries, MALTA

17 July 2002

Archbishop Joseph Mecieca and the Metropolitan Tribunal discuss possible second miraculous cure.

19 June 2004

The Diocesan process, which studied  the healing of a baby with the intercession of Blessed George Preca was officially closed during a celebration held at St Johns Co-Cathedral presided over by Archbishop Joseph Mecieca.

 

Blessed Dun Gorg Preca (1880-1962) - Founder of the Society of Christian Doctrine
 
George Preca was born in Valletta on 12 February 1880. He was the seventh of nine children born to a deeply Christian Maltese family. He grew as a sickly child. He studied at the Lyceum and at the Seminary.

A few weeks before George Preca was to be ordained priest, he fell seriously ill and his doctor lost all hope of recovery. However, Fr. George did recover, and was ordained on 22 December 1906. He would later attribute his recovery to the intercession of St Joseph

Even before his priestly ordination, Fr Preca felt that God was calling him to teach His people who were in dire need of Catholic instruction. About 1906, Fr Preca had already started writing a rule in Latin which he intended to send to Pope St Pius X asking for the setting up of a society of Permanent Deacons who would be able to help the Bishops in the people’s Christian formation.

Shortly afterwards he modified this project by starting to form a group of young men who would then be able to instruct others. He gave special formation to one particular young Dockyard worker, the Servant of God Eugenio Borg. Fr Preca explained to him at length the sacred passion of Jesus Christ according to the Gospel of St John. Eugenio Borg was to be the first Superior General of Fr Preca’s Society.

The beginning of the Society was at Hamrun during the early months of 1907 in a small room deprived of everything but rich in brotherly love and in instruction. The Society of Christian Doctrine (SDC) started with the motto of M.U.S.E.U.M., an acrostic for the sentence in Latin Magister, Utinam Sequatur Evangelium Universus Mundus - Lord, would that all the world follow the Gospel.

Not everybody understood this vision of Fr Preca. Some even turned his intentions upside down. Bringing the Bible and theology down to the grasp of workers and lay people was truly a novelty at the beginning of the 20th century. Much more startling was Fr Preca’s vision of forming lay men and women and then sending them to proclaim God’s word to everybody in public. On April 12, 1932, after 25 years from the beginning of the Society the Bishop of Malta Dom Maurus Caruana OSB approved Fr Preca’s Society and its Rule.

When government schools were few and attendance was not compulsory, the SDC Centres for Catholic instruction started opening from one parish to another.

People’s religious instruction was widely needed, for their Christian living centered mostly on the sacraments and popular devotions without not much depth in the teachings of the Church. Children and youths came daily to the Centres of Fr Preca whose catechists, apart from instructing, took them for outings and games together.

From the very beginning Fr Preca wanted to instruct both young and adults; but first and foremost he planned the formation of his dedicated and celibate catechists. After instructing children, youths and adults, Fr Preca’s catechists are to follow a daily one-hour formation together in every SDC Centre.

Fr Preca also taught through his writings. In spite of the language rivalry going on in Malta involving Italian and English, Fr Preca taught and wrote in Maltese, the language of the common people, so that everyone could understand. Fr Preca has about 150 publications in books or pamphlets to his credit.

His prayers are also numerous, and they reveal Fr Preca as a mystic constantly seeking God in everything. Fr Preca was also a confessor much sought for his consoling words. It seems that God even used Fr Preca’s ministry for some instances of healing.

Today Fr Preca’s charism is still alive and vocations in his Society are also numerous. In the 1950s Fr Preca himself sent six Members to evangelise in Australia. At present the SDC has Centres in the Sudan, Kenya, Peru, London and Albania.

Fr George Preca died at St Venera (Malta) on 26 July 1962. His mortal remains are preserved close to the Society’s Motherhouse at Blata l-Bajda. The Cause for his Beatification was initiated in 1975, and he was declared Venerable in June 2000.

Dun Gorg Preca was beatified on May 9th, 2001 by Pope John Paul II.
Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In the joy of Easter I make my own the words of the Risen Lord: "Peace be with you! Il-paci maghkom! I thank you for your warm welcome. It shows that the hospitality which once embraced the Apostle Paul (cf. Acts 28:2) is still to be found in Malta. I am grateful for the gracious words spoken on behalf of both branches of the Society by the Superior General, who expressed all your love for the Church and for the Successor of Peter.

The island of Malta is a rock rising from the sea, where the soil is often thin and the sun harsh. Even this place where we are meeting bears the name Blata l-Bajda, the "White Rock". Yet down the centuries Malta has been extraordinarily generous and fertile in the deeper ways of the Spirit. The unshakeable faith of the Maltese people has ensured that this rock has been the good soil of which the Gospel speaks. In this soil, Blessed Gorg Preca planted the Society of Christian Doctrine, where it has flourished in the century of its life. Unlike the fig-tree of the Gospel story which we have just heard (cf. Lk 13:6-9), you have produced fruit in abundance, and for that we give glory to God and thank him here today.

Not only did Dun Gorg sow the seed; he tended the sapling and fed the young tree so that it would grow strong and fruitful, as it has. You have flourished because you have roots reaching deep into Christ, and because you have been well nurtured by Dun Gorg's life of holiness.

To understand your vocation more deeply, consider the fig-tree. Its new leaves are a sign that summer is at hand (cf. Lk 21:29-31); in the hot season, its shade provides shelter from the sun; it gives abundant sweet fruit as food; and Scripture says that its fruit has healing power (cf. Is 38:21). This is an image of what you are called to be! As catechists, you are to provide sweet nourishment for all who hunger for God; you are to bring healing to those who are suffering for lack of light and love. If you do these things, you will truly be a sign of the springtime which the Holy Spirit is now preparing for the Church.

Wherever Dun Gorg went to preach he was followed by crowds of people. They were captivated by his words. Why? It was because they recognized in the preaching of Dun Gorg the voice of Jesus himself. It was the Lord to whom they were listening; they were drawn by the irresistible attractiveness of Christ who alone, they knew, could satisfy the deepest longing of their hearts. The beauty of holiness which is found supremely in Jesus and is reflected in today’s new Beatus will never fail to draw the human heart. It is certain that if we can show forth the face of the Risen Lord to the world then we shall touch and win souls in ways that will be surprising!

It is in the depths of contemplation that we discover "the glory of God which is in the face of Christ" (2 Cor 4:6). That is why your rule of life urges you to pray often and to meet regularly with your spiritual director, who serves as guide and companion on the path of your fidelity. To contemplate the face of Christ is to be filled with spiritual energy for the mission entrusted to you. Like Saint Paul, from contemplation you are called to go forth as missionaries: not just as teachers but as witnesses who can speak with power because you can say, like the first disciples: "We have seen the Lord!" (Jn 20:25). It was Pope Paul VI who wrote that "the people of our day are more impressed by witnesses than by teachers, and if they listen to these it is because they also bear witness" (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 41). This was true of Dun Gorg in a wonderful way, and it must also be true of you, his spiritual children. In his Letter to the Galatians, Saint Paul writes that God "was pleased to reveal his Son in me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles" (1:16). He does not speak of Christ revealed "to me" but of Christ revealed "in me". Once Jesus reveals himself to Saul on the road to Damascus, and once Paul opens his heart to receive the gift, the Apostle himself then becomes the revelation. He is filled with Christ, so that he can say in the same Letter: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (2:20). His whole life, all that he does, says and thinks, his body, mind, heart and soul, become the revelation of Jesus to the world. This is the mystery of the sublime vocation given not just to Saint Paul and Blessed Gorg Preca, but to each of you as well.

Your founder was especially devoted to the words: Verbum Dei caro factum est; based on the Prologue of Saint John’s Gospel: "The Word was made flesh" (1:14). Here in fact is the foundation of your vocation and apostolate. The Divine Word in a certain sense continually takes flesh in his Mystical Body, the Church. You are to help in this by doing for others what Dun Gorg has done for you. You are to plant the seed of God’s word in people’s hearts, so that Christ may live in them! You must teach everyone – children, young people, adults – to contemplate the face of Christ, to see the Lord (cf. Novo Millennio Ineunte, 16), so that the light of God’s glory which shines from the face of Jesus may shine forth from them as well. This is the "rooting of the Church in time and place [which] mirrors the movement of the Incarnation itself" (ibid. 3).

As you set forth and continue this sacred mission, let the words of your founder echo ceaselessly in your hearts: MUSEUM – Magister, utinam sequatur Evangelium universus mundus! Divine Teacher, may the whole world follow the Gospel! Entrusting you to the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Saint Paul and Blessed Gorg Preca, as well as Blessed Ignatius and Blessed Adeodata also beatified today, I impart my Apostolic Blessing to all the members of the Society of Christian Doctrine as a pledge of endless mercy in Jesus Christ, "the faithful witness and firstborn from the dead" (Rev 1:5). Il-paci maghkom!

 

MUSEUM commemorates 100th anniversary
By MaltaMedia News
Mar 7, 2007 - 11:07:25 AM

 

 

TheCatholicDoctrinew Society MUSEUM is commemorating its 100th anniversary since its foundation on Wednesday.

 The society was set up by Dun Ġorġ Preca in 1907, when he gathered a group of youths to discuss Catholicism in a building he rented in Ħamrun. The celebration of the society’s 100th anniversary has taken on special significance since Blessed Dun Ġorġ Preca will receive sainthood on the 3rd June 2007.

Activities to mark the setting up of the MUSEUM will start on Wednesday with the celebration of solemn mass and will continue throughout the rest of the year.

In turn, speaking of the society’s anniversary on Tuesday, Minister for Education, employment and Youths Louis Galea said “The MUSEUM is a providential project for religious formation as well as Catholic doctrine. It is additionally an excellent project that spread literacy and education among the Maltese and Gozitan populations. Local citizens can never show Dun Ġorġ Preca enough gratitude and all other MUSEUM members, both present and past, who dedicated their lives to teach youngsters and educate them on many different levels.”

Over 3,000 pilgrims to attend for Dun Gorg's canonisation by Dorian Cassar, di-ve news 

Curia officials to meet travel agents

VALLETTA, Malta (di-ve news) -- April 16, 2007 -- 1800CEST -- The number of pilgrims attending for Dun Gorg's canonisation on June 03, 2007 has reached a total of 3,400 persons said a press statement from the Maltese Curia on Monday evening.

The Curia reminded that the last day to register to attend for the event in Rome is April 30.

Meanwhile, details about the event will be revealed during a meeting with travel agents on Friday, April 20 at 1000CET at the Archbishop's Curia in Floriana.

The Canonisation of Dun Gorg will be held at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City and will be led by Pope Benedict XVI.

Blessed Preca is the founder of the Society of Christian Doctrine, commonly known as il-muzew, which is marking its 100th anniversary this year.

 

700+ MUSEUM members to attend Dun Ġorġ canonisation
By MaltaMedia News
Mar 19, 2007 - 9:25:21 AM

 

 

It is expected that over 700 members from the MUSEUM will be attending Dun Ġorġ’s canonization in Rome. The celebration of the society’s 100th anniversary has taken on special significance since Blessed Dun Ġorġ Preca, the society’s founder will receive sainthood on the 3rd June 2007.

Frank Chetcuti, member with the Regional Executive Council of MUSEUM explained that around 600 males and 150 female members will be attending the Vatican functions. He added that preparations are under way so that the group will depart as one on the 3rd June 2007.

The activities that will be held in Rome will form part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary since the foundation of the MUSEUM. The society was set up by Dun Ġorġ Preca himself in 1907, when he gathered a group of youths to discuss Catholicism in a building he rented in Ħamrun.

AirMalta General Manager Marketing and Product Brian Bartolo announced that for the occasion it is expected that around 30 extra flights will be coordinated between the 1st and the 4th June 2007.

Yesterday, the Government said that Maltese travelling to Rome for the Canonisation Ceremony of Dun Ġorġ Preca will be exempt from paying airport taxes.

The exempt flights include those departing from Malta on the 1st June and return back to the island from Rome on the 4th June. In a statement the Ministry of Finances said it came to this decision because it believes that the late priest’s canonization is a unique occasion for all Maltese and Gozitan citizens.

In turn, the Education Division informed Heads of schools that requests for unpaid leave from teaching staff and school administrators between the period 31st May and 6th June 2007 will not be entertained. The time frame mentioned in the memo coincides with the canonisation of Dun Gorg in Rome.

The internal memo from the director of operations was sent to all Heads of schools, and it will affect more than 3,000 teachers and hundreds of other staff in the education division.

Telegraph.co.uk

Baby's 'miracle' recovery in British hospital to give Malta its first saint


By Jonathan Petre, Religion Correspondent, and Simon Caldwell
Last Updated: 1:53am BST 23/05/2007
 

 

 

The testimony of a British surgeon about the "miraculous" recovery of a baby has helped pave the way for the canonisation of Malta's first saint.

 
 

Anil Dhawan, a professor of paediatric hepatology at King's College Hospital, London, told The Daily Telegraph yesterday that there was no scientific explanation for the recovery of a Maltese boy with "devastating" liver failure.

Dr Dhawan was speaking for the first time about his evidence to a Roman Catholic church tribunal, which investigated whether the child's improvement could be ascribed to Blessed George Preca, a 20th century Maltese priest who died in 1962.

A glove that had touched the body of the priest was placed on the boy by his parents, both devout Catholics, as he lay in a critical condition in King's College hospital nearly six years ago.

The "miracle cure" has been declared genuine by the Vatican and Pope Benedict XVI will canonise Blessed George in Rome in 11 days' time.

Dr Dhawan, who is leading research into whether liver cell injections can replace transplants, said: "There was a 90 per cent plus chance that he wasn't going to survive without a liver transplant. But he survived.

"Furthermore, he improved on his own. Acute liver failure in children is quite a devastating illness. The majority of them die. Scientifically I do not have an explanation for this child's recovery."

Dr Dhawan said that he felt "privileged" to be involved in the canonisation, adding that he would be flying out to Rome for it. The boy, who has not been identified, developed severe liver complications just days after his birth in July 2001.

He was examined in Malta but his condition was so grave that he was transferred to King's College Hospital, the home of the world's largest and most expert paediatric liver centre.

On July 14 doctors concluded the baby would die if he did not receive a new liver. The boy's family prayed to Blessed George, who was renowned for his "simplicity, humbleness and meekness". On July 20 his liver started to function normally and within another four days the baby no longer required a transplant.

According to church sources, the boy is now a healthy five-year-old. In July 2002, a tribunal was set up to study the case. It heard the evidence of 38 witnesses. In February this year, the Pope announced Blessed George would be canonised.

Three steps to glory

The process of canonisation begins with an investigation into the person's character, after which they can receive the title "Venerable".

One miracle is required for beatification, which brings with it the title "Blessed", and two for canonisation as a saint.

Miracles are cures that cannot be explained, which are "organic, immediate and irreversible".

This is the link below to the English newspaper

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/05/23/wsaint23.xml

 

This is another link this time to a Maltese News paper
 
 

 

Dun Gorg’s canonization celebrations announced
By MaltaMedia News
May 25, 2007 - 5:37:15 PM

 

 

The Archbishop’s Curia announced a series of celebrations on the event of the canonization of blessed  Dun Gorg Preca.  The celebrations will reach their climax in a mass that will be held at the granaries in Floriana, on Thursday evening on 7th June 2007.  The mass will be celebrated by Archbishop Paul Cremona.

The relic consisting in the blood of Dun Gorg Preca in a glass tube will be taken to Rome for canonization led by Archbishop Paul Cremona.  On its return to Malta, the relic of the Saint will be displayed for the veneration of the public, both in Malta and Gozo.

To commemorate this event, the Department of Information (D.O.I) has issued a unique film on DVD depicting the last farewell given to Dun Gorg Preca in July 1962.

The film is a historical documentary which had been produced by DOI for broadcasting on the national television station.   It depicts the deep loss felt by the Maltese upon the death of this much loved priest who will be canonized in the coming days.

The documentary also offers a good opportunity to observe the various aspects of the Maltese way of life in the early sixties, such as our customs, dress, buildings, streets and shops.   It also depicts well known personalities most of whom have passed away.

The DVD was today presented to the Archbishop Paul Cremona.

Dun Ġorġ's reliquary to be taken to Rome
By MaltaMedia News
May 29, 2007 - 3:28:13 PM

 

The reliquary containing the blood of Dun Ġorġ Preca, who will be made a saint on Sunday 3rd June, will be taken to Rome for the canonization ceremony.

Subsequently, it will be brought back to the Maltese islands for public veneration.  

In a statement on Tuesday, the Curia explained that the relic, a tube containing blood of the late priest, is one among three belonging to Dr Lawrence Spiteri who was Dun Ġorġ’s doctor. One of the tubes was handed over to the St Gaetano Parish of Ħamrun, while the other was given to the M.U.S.E.U.M society. The third is being retained by the doctor.  

The golden reliquary, created in 2001 for Dun Ġorġ Preca’s beatification, was designed by Renzo Gauci and made by Joe Galea and Cutajar works.   

The Curia has also reiterated that all other Dun Ġorġ Preca relics are being distributed for free by Churches and the Cathoilic doctrine society M.U.S.E.U.M only, after receiving a number of reports of persons selling holy pictures of the blessed.   

The sellers are claiming that the holy pictures were held over Dun Ġorġ Preca’s tomb.   

The Curia added in a statement on Monday that Postulator Mgr Charles J.Scicluna, in agreement with the M.U.S.E.U.M and Curia, warned that money towards the costs involved in the canonization process will not be collected from the general public.   

It was also emphasized that authentic Dun Ġorġ Preca relics may only be collected from Churches and the M.U.S.E.U.M society

Miracle Schoolboy Watches his Blessed George Creaed as a Saint

By SIMON CALDWELL
 

The Blessed George Preca is being created a saint by Pope Benedict XVI

 

 

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Doctors had all but given up on little Eric Catania. His parents were preparing themselves for the worst. He had severe liver problems which everyone felt could only be solved by a transplant.

In desperation, his Roman Catholic parents tried one last prayer to Blessed George Preca, a priest renowned for his holiness on their home island of Malta, to ask God to spare the life of their baby son.

Days passed, no suitable donor came forward and Eric’s hopes for survival in one of the world’s leading centres for liver patients were getting slimmer by the hour.

Then, suddenly, Eric’s liver started to function normally. Within another four days, doctors decided he no longer required a transplant.

That was in June 2001. Today, Eric is a healthy schoolboy. And tomorrow he will see the Blessed George created a saint in Rome by Pope Benedict XVI in front of his parents, dozens of family members and doctors from King’s College Hospital in London, where he had been flown from Malta for surgery.

Among them will be Dr Anil Dhawan, a professor of paediatric hepatology at the hospital, who told a church tribunal set up to investigate the healing there was "no scientific explanation" for the boy’s recovery.

He said: "The child was diagnosed with fulminant liver failure. There was a 90 per cent-plus chance that he wasn’t going to survive without a transplant.

"But he survived. Furthermore, he improved on his own.

"Acute liver failure in children is quite a devastating illness. The majority of them die. Scientifically I do not have an explanation for this child’s recovery."

Yahoo News

By DANIELA PETROFF, Associated Press Writer Sun Jun 3, 10:43 PM ET

VATICAN CITY named four new saints Sunday from France, Malta, the Netherlands and Poland at a ceremony in St. Peter's Square attended by several heads of state and thousands of faithful.

Pope Benedict XVI

The presidents of Ireland, Malta, Poland and the Philippines attended the canonization Mass for the three priests and a nun, whom Benedict praised as models for Catholics to emulate.

"Let us be attracted by their example, let us be guided by their teachings," he told the crowd, which filled St. Peter's Square for the two-hour Mass despite rain.

Among those honored was Sister Marie Eugenie de Jesus Milleret, a French nun who in 1839 founded the Religious of the Assumption to educate young girls. Today, the order has 1,200 nuns in 170 communities around the world.

Philippine President attended the Mass because a young Philippine child who was diagnosed with severe brain damage affecting her sight was cured after praying to Sister Marie Eugenie — the miracle the needed to canonize the nun.

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo

Vatican

The child, who is now 12 and attends an Assumption school in the Philippines, was present at Sunday's Mass and was part of the offertory procession bringing gifts up to the pope.

"May the example of St. Marie Eugenie invite men and women of today to transmit to the young the values that will help them become strong adults ... May young people not be afraid to welcome these moral and spiritual values, to live them with patience and fidelity," Benedict said in honoring the new saint.

Benedict also canonized:

_The Rev. George Preca of Malta, who founded the Society of Christian Doctrine in 1932 as a group of lay people who teach the faith to others. Maltese President Edward Fenech Adami attended the Mass in honor of the new saint.

_The Rev. Szymon z Lipnicy of Poland, a Franciscan monk who comforted Poles afflicted by the plague that broke out in Krakow from 1482-83 and died of it himself. Benedict canonized him with Polish President Lech Kaczynski in attendance as the saint's order, the Franciscan Friars Minor, celebrated the 800th anniversary of their founding.

_The Rev. Charles of St. Andrew, who was born Karel Van Sint Andries Houben in the Netherlands in 1821. Although he never mastered the English language, Father Charles spent much of his life in Ireland and England, where he achieved fame as a miracle worker with thousands flocking to his monastery outside Dublin to seek his blessing. He was canonized after the inexplicable cure of a man from his hometown who was suffering from a painful gangrenous and perforated appendicitis. Irish President Mary McAleese headed the Irish delegation attending the Mass.