Archbishop Mercieca passes away - tributes to a 'humble, prudent and firm' priest

Archbishop emeritus Guzeppi Mercieca has passed away, aged 87.

He passed away at 7.20am, Archbishop Charles Scicluna announced in a tweet.

The soft-spoken archbishop headed the Church in Malta for 30 years until 2006. He passed away at a Zejtun private residence, where he was visited late yesterday by Mgr Scicluna, Gozo Bishop Mario Grech and Archbishop emeritus Mgr Paul Cremona.

SER Mons Giuseppe Mercieca, Arcisqof Emeritu ta' Malta, mar jiltaqa'mal-Mulej illum 21 ta' Marzu 2016 fis-7:20am. Requiescat in pace.

— Bishop CJ Scicluna (@BishopScicluna) March 21, 2016

"We have lost a father of the whole people, a humble man with a big heart,” Mgr Scicluna said.

“He showed that reason does not need force, but love,” he added. 

Archbishop Emeritus Mercieca led #Malta church at delicate juncture and was bridge-builder in society. I deeply value his contribution -JM

— Joseph Muscat (@JosephMuscat_JM) March 21, 2016

Very sad to hear the news of the loss of Mons Guzeppi Mercieca, a standard bearer of the Church in Malta in difficult times. Rest in peace.

— Simon Busuttil (@SimonBusuttil) March 21, 2016

A Gozitan who was virtually unknown before he was appointed auxiliary bishop in 1974 with the right to succeed the fiery Archbishop Gonzi, Mgr Mercieca is remembered as a humble Gozitan priest who managed to restore stability in the church after the bruising political dispute with the Labour Party in the Gonzi years.

He threaded carefully when a new dispute erupted with the Labour government of the 1980s over Church schools and church property.

He kept his characteristic calm when he was surrounded by angry mobs twice, in Vittoriosa and Paola, when a bomb was placed outside his residence in Mdina, and when the Curia was ransacked, ensuring to a large extent that the long-lasting divisions of the 1960s did not return. 

Fr Joe Borg, Mgr Mercieca’s delegate for social communication said one of the late archbishop’s main characteristics was that he always kept the welfare of the faithful in mind. He was prepared to suffer, and even risk being misinterpreted, as long as he did what he believed was best for the Church and its members.

“He lived in difficult circumstances, given the situation between the Church and the State. His prudence was accompanied by firmness, but his prudence ensured that the situation did not blow up,” Fr Borg said.

Mgr Mercieca  was born in Victoria, Gozo on November 12, 1928. He was educated at the Gozo Seminary, and in Rome. He was ordained priest on March 8,1952.

He was Rector of the Gozo Seminary from 1959 to 1969, till his appointment as Judge of the Sacred Roman Rota in 1969; he was also consultor to the Congregation for the Sacraments and to the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith.

Mgr Mercieca (right) with Mgr Michael Gonzi.

On July 27, 1974 he was appointed auxiliary bishop of Malta and ordained titular bishop of Gemelle in Numidia on September 29 of the same year.

He succeeded Mgr Michael Gonzi as Archbishop of Malta on December 12, 1976; he was appointed Consultor of the Sacred Roman Rota in 1992 and later judge of the Segnatura Apostolica.

On November 11, 2003, he offered his resignation from Archbishop of Malta to Pope John Paul II, in accordance with the requirements of Canon Law regarding Diocesan Bishops who reach the age of 75 years. Mgr Mercieca retired on December 2, 2006, after the nomination of the new Archbishop, Paul Cremona O.P.

Owing to failing health, he has not been seen in public for several months, even failing to attend the ceremony when Mgr Charles Scicluna became archbishop.