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Title: | Contextualising the 1961 Interdict in Malta |
Authors: | Grech, Sergio |
Keywords: | Malta -- History -- Interdett, 1961-1969 Malta -- History -- British occupation, 1800-1964 Interdict (Canon law) Gonzi, Michael, Archbishop of Malta, 1885-1984 Mintoff, Dom, 1916-2012 Partit Laburista -- History Malta -- Politics and government -- History -- 20th century Propaganda -- Malta -- History -- 20th century Political science -- Malta -- History -- 20th century Ellul Mercer, Ġużè, 1897-1961 Malta Labour Party -- History |
Issue Date: | 2020 |
Publisher: | Malta : Malta Historical Society |
Citation: | Grech, S. (2020). Contextualising the 1961 Interdict in Malta. Melita Historica, XVIII (1), 66-91 |
Abstract: | On 8th April 1961, Mgr Michael Gonzi, Archbishop of Malta, imposed an interdict on the executive members of the Malta Labour Party. Contrary to what is generally held, that was the first time in Maltese history that the Catholic Church imposed such a particularly spiritual sanction. Although the Malta Church had imposed the mortal sin sanction in 1930, during the Strickland days, on all those who aspired to vote for Lord Gerald Strickland and his associates, no interdict had been imposed on them at that particular juncture. In modern usage, the term 'interdict', and especially the word 'miibla' (rubbish heap) which Labour leader Dominic Mintoff coined for the Labour supporters who were buried in unconsacrated ground, has been abused of and often referred to without proper consideration to its particular context. Moreover, as a result of the historical interpretation adopted by the Labour Party, there is a tendency by the man in the street to simply regard the interdict as an act of power by an angry archbishop who was eager to eradicate the Malta Labour Party once and for all. This work will analyse the real significance of the interdict and the resulting repercussions as envisaged by the teaching corpus of the Catholic Church in relation to the early sixties. |
URI: | https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/105008 |
Appears in Collections: | Melitensia Works - ERCPPRChr |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
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Contextualising_the_1961_Interdict_in_Ma.pdf | 5.98 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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