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THE GOOD FRIDAY PROCESSION IN XAGHRA
by Lawrence Camilleri

Xaghra ProcessionIn 1692 the devotion to the Holy Crucifix was already manifest in the then small parish. In fact, one of the altars was dedicated to the HOLY CROSS and a statue of Christ crucified, sculptured in wood, hung above this altar . On it was also exposed the relic of a splinter of the Holy Cross donated to the Parish by the Rev. Can. Gian. Piet Agius De Soldanis in the acts of Notary Salv. Cordina of the 3rd December 1739. Two feasts of the Holy Cross used to be celebrated annually, one on the 3rd of May and the other on the 24th of September.

In 1914 two side chapels were built one of them dedicated to the Holy Crucifix. A large statue of Jesus Crucified was brought over from Lecce in Italy, the work of the renowned sculptor Professor Luigi Guacci, Cavaliere al merito Lavoro, Statue di Cartapeste, and placed in the niche above the altar. This crucifix had arrived in Xaghra during the lent of 191 3 and on seeing it, the parishioners were overcome by its artistic beauty. One of them, Joseph Bonello, was so taken over that he and his wife decided to order at their expense a statue of the Passion. The Archpriest Mons. Can. M. Cauchi obtained permission from the Bishop, Mgr. G.M. Camilleri, to go ahead and hold the Good Friday procession in Xaghra.Bonello was delighted and he immediately started exhorting the parishioners to contribute towards the expense of a set of eight statues. In no time the following benefactors came forward and the statues were ordered.

The benefactors were Arch. Cauchi -  Jesus Crowned with Thorns', Can Law. Sultana - The Scourging', Joseph Bonello - Jesus in Gethsemani', Angelo Attard -'The Angel in Gethsemani', Joseph Grech - Jesus under the Cross', Carmel Attard and Joseph Hili - TheVeronica', Joseph Sultana  (who had paid for the Crucifix and who had emigrated) sent a sum of money to add the statues of Mary and John' to stand on each side of the Crucifix, The Attard family -'Jesus Laid to Rest' (the gilded urn being the work of the Maltese sculptor Antonio Agius) and John Rapa - 'Our Lady of Sorrows'. The firm of Professor Guacci was again entrusted with the task and the following year a set of eight artistic statues, made simultaneously by the same artist arrived in Xaghra.

Xaghra ProcessionThe statue of Mary Magdalene was needed to complete the set and a message was sent to Joseph Sultana and his wife in Bone in Algeria enquiring whether they wished to complete the statue of the Crucifixion themselves.The sad news was received, however, that the zealous couple were murdered at their home. Can. Fr. Francis Said stepped in and paid for the costs of the Magdalene which arrived a short time later. These statues are unique on the island since, as already stated, they were made all at the same time and by the same artist.

Up to several years ago, the liturgical feast of Easter used to be celebrated on Saturday morning. For this reason, the statues used to be stored immediately after the procession was over. Since they would have been out in the evening humidity and dripping dew this was causing a lot of damage over the years. In 1961, therefore, restoration works were carried out on the statues by Professor Salvatore Bruno of Ban, Italy.  As the works were carried out in the Church sacristy, the artist had to work within certain limitations and, through no fault of his, another restoration was necessary as we shall see later on.

Professor  Bruno  was later commissioned to work on a new statue of Jesus Betrayed By Judas' which made its appearance in 1964. Mr. Nazzareno Attard, an emigrant in Australia through contacts with Fortunato Theuma, the then sexton of the Church, forked out the expenses. On the personal initiative of the Archpriest, Mons. Eucharistic Sultana, a new st~tue depicting Christ  meeting Mary and John joined the procession in 1987.  Angelo and Victoria Cassar from Xaghra, residents of Detroit,  U.S.A.,forked out the expenses. The well known Gozitan artist, Mr. Michael Camilleri Cauchi, was commissioned with the works.

Archpriest Sultana had, since childhood, been an ardent follower of the Good Friday procession and on taking over the administration of the Parish, the deteriorating state of the statues was his prime concern. This was a very delicate task which had to be done in the most meticulous way. John Attard, sexton, and Can Anthony Refalo went to Italy in 1989 to try to trace the Firm of Luigi Guacci in Lecce. Through the services of Mons. Temistocle de Leo, Chaplain of the Basilica of S. Croce, the firm of Prof. Antonio Malecore in Via Alami was contacted. This firm specialised in restoration of statues sculptured in wood or made from papier mache'. Mons. Sultana, in consultation with the Chapter of the Basilica, decided to ask Profs. Malecore to come to Xaghra to carry out a survey on the statues, report on their condition and make his recommendations. This led to an agreement being signed whereby statues were to be sent to the Firm's studios in Italy and restored there. By the end of 1992 all the statues had been restored to their original state.

Xaghra ProcessionUp to 1934 the Leone and La Stella Bands of Victoria, alternating every year, used to take part in the procession playing funeral marches. As from 1935, the year of its inception, the Victory Band of Xaghra under the baton of the late Mro. Michael Farrugia , took over this role and has taken part ever since. Until 1957, the procession was simple yet attractive. Apart from the eight original statues, the votive chaincarrying, the Band and the Participation of the Chapter and Clergy, only boys in plain clothes took part. They carried simple candlelit lanterns at the end of four foot sticks and were hardly organised. They themselves chose which statue to follow. As young boys they were motivated more by their (or maybe their mothers') sentiments towards a statue than consideration for the procession as a whole.  Yet, in the dark unlit route, they looked marvellous looking like the mob following Judas to Getshemani to capture Jesus.

In 1958 with the permission of Archpriest Mons. M.A. Cauchi, some bandsmen led by Michael Angelo Attard, Michael Attard, Louis Rapa, Carmel Sultana and others  took upon themselves the task of organizing the procession. With the help of Canon M'Angelo Apap who designed a costume for the boys the procession started taking the shape of the present pageant which, we trust, you will enjoy today. With the beginning of Lent preparations start as, with over 400 persons taking part, this requires a lot of time and effort to organize. A committee of 40 dedicated persons led by Arc. Mons. E. Sultana and the ever energetic sexton John Attard, have done their best to ensure that this event will be remembered by visitors as well as locals.

It is interesting to note that the post of statue bearers is inherited by members within the family. Families are very jealous of retaining it and members pay an annual fee voluntarily for what they consider an honour. Each team of bearers look after their respective statue and make sure that the statue is properly adorned with flowers for the procession.

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