From Your Parish Priest – 3rd October 2026
From Monday to Thursday I was on pilgrimage in Malta, following the footsteps of St Paul. We hear in the Acts of the Apostles of St Paul’s time on the island. While being transported to Rome to face trial on account of his faith in Christ, St Paul, along with his fellow prisoners and captors, was shipwrecked on the island. They spent about three months there before sailing on to Rome. After the shipwreck, the islanders welcomed them with what the Acts of the Apostles describes as “unusual hospitality”. A series of miraculous events followed, including St Paul suffering no harm from the bite of a viper and his healing of the father of Publius, the island’s chief official, who was sick with fever and dysentery. These miracles endeared St Paul to the islanders and, in turn, opened their hearts to receive the good news of Christ through his preaching.
It was my first time visiting Malta and I was, of course, very much taken by the culture and the beauty the island had to offer. I was only there for a short time and, as soon as I arrived, I was very aware that it would soon be time to leave. I enjoyed the beautiful weather, the food and, most importantly, the opportunity and privilege of visiting many of the holy sites associated with St Paul and the Acts of the Apostles.
Knowing that my time on pilgrimage would soon come to an end, I found myself reflecting on what St Paul must have felt during his stay in Malta. His time there could be described as a great success in spreading the Gospel. He had been welcomed with kindness and God had seen fit to work many miracles through him. Tradition tells us that many of the islanders accepted Christ and the Gospel and that Publius himself converted to Christianity and became the first Bishop of Malta. Yet, amid this joyful and blessed time, St Paul remained a prisoner awaiting trial in Rome. His journey would eventually lead him to bear the ultimate witness to Christ by laying down his life and gloriously shedding his blood for the Gospel.
Despite finding such joy, comfort and safety in Malta, St Paul’s journey was not over. When the time came, he continued on to Rome as a prisoner. Perhaps the great successes he experienced in Malta helped strengthen him to face the trials that lay ahead. This is an important lesson for us all. We must take the successes, blessings and graces that God gives us in our lives to fortify us for the challenges we will inevitably face. If we do not see times of blessing as an opportunity to prepare and strengthen ourselves for those challenges, we also run the risk of failing to appreciate those blessings fully when we receive them.
If I have learned one thing from my pilgrimage and from St Paul, it is not to take the blessings and gifts God has given us in life for granted, but to recognise that with those blessings comes a responsibility to allow the graces we have received to strengthen and fortify us, so that when difficulties come, we can continue faithfully along the path God has set before us.
God bless, Fr Hilton