The history of the Missionary Society of Saint Paul : from its founder to its mission in Peru

Abstract

This dissertation highlights chronologically the main events of the Missionary Society of Saint Paul from the birth and childhood off its founder to the first major mission the society opened abroad in Peru. Giuseppe De Piro, the founder of the MSSP, was born into an aristocratic family and when he got older he became a diocesan priest. His work at the Parish of Qrendi, Giuseppe came face to face with the hard realities the Maltese were facing at the beginning of the twentieth century. The political and economic situation of the Maltese Isles in the period were effecting the daily lives of the Maltese people. It is in this context that De Piro envisioned a new missionary religious order. Giuseppe De Piro environed his new religious order on the teachings of Saint Paul. De Piro claimed that God found him among sinners and showed him love. Giuseppe wanted his life and his new religious order to reflect that love back to other around them. This vision created a religious order with a unique charisma, the MSSP although it is a missionary society it viewed it had two different missions. The first type of mission was a mission at home and among the Maltese, which the MSSP has done in different ways and means throughout its history. The second but equally important type of mission termed ‘Ad Gentes’ (Latin to the nations). The MSSP in its early years of its existence struggled with this angle of missionary work, but over the years, it also became a vital source of energy to the MSSP. The first chapter evolves around the founder of the society himself Giuseppe De Piro, the foundation of the society and the society under his leadership. The initial years of the society were under the leadership of De Piro and his name and family prestige aided the MSSP. The religious order was mainly focused on Saint Joseph Institute, an orphanage in Hamrun. In 1927, the MSSP also gained the Oratory in Birkirkara, becoming a centre of catechism for Birkirkara and other localities in the vicinity. However De Piro encouraged a newly opened mission in Abyssinia. The second chapter deals with the second major part in the history of the MSSP, a period of crisis, war and migration. In 1933 the death of De Piro left the missionary society in a crisis with some of its members leaving and becoming diocesan priests. The society had so few members that it was unable to keep permanent members in each of the convents. By 1939, war clouds gathered over Europe and eventually reached Malta, which also effected the MSSP. The end of the war brought hardship over the Maltese people and forced many to migrate to different parts of the world. As part of their mission with the Maltese, the MSSP sent priests along with the migrants to both Australia and Canada to cater for their spiritual needs. Chapter three evolves around the MSSP and the opening of its new mission in Peru. The chapter starts with a brief account of the country’s political, cultural and economic history. After a historical context of Peru’, the chapter elaborates on the MSSP, its three missionaries and the new mission. I was fortunate enough that most of information gathered for this chapter was through an interview with Fr Censu Magro. Fr Censu was one of the three first missionaries sent to Peru and his insights about the opening of the mission and how the MSSP choose Peru, are inexplicable. Hence, this dissertation tries to connect the dots of how a small Maltese religious order today can be found in Australia, Canada and Peru. Broader still, this research attempts to contextualise the origins and development of the MSSP within the wider history of Malta as it is important to understand what shaped the aims and structure of this society in time.