My first meeting with Father Schembri (1924-2023) took place on 22nd May 1975 in Birzebbuga. We were introduced to each other by Fr. Joe Carabott, the then parish priest of Marsascala.
Our first conversation took place on 27th May 1975 at our temporal residence, 64 St. Joseph Street Marsascala.
Fr Schembri informed me about the organization of the Holy See.
He has been with the Catholic Relief Service (Malta Mission) of the National Catholic Welfare Conference for a long time.
When the Apostolic Delegate to Great Britain, Malta, Gibraltar and Bermuda, Mgr. Gerald O’Hara, an American Archbishop, wanted to open an office, he asked the Catholic Relief Service to appoint a Maltese priest to help him, Fr. Schembri assisted him, his successor Mg. Cardinale and the first three nuncio’s. He has been secretary of the nunciature and attaché, always as a part-timer. Now the fourth nuncio, Mgr. Del Guidice, who arrived last April, has replaced him by a full-timer, an Italian priest.
The Nunciature in Malta is not older than 1964 (Independence), so it is not completely documented about Maltese Church matters before Independence. Therefore the nunciature has played a modest role in local affairs.
Second meeting: 2 June 1915, at home, Marsaskala
About the 1969 “peace treaty”. Mgr. Gerada spread the idea that he was willing to bring the Church and the MLP together. He had a couple of talks with Lino Spiteri (now Deputy Governor Central Bank of Malta) about it and Lino suggested that he should see Mintoff.
Fr. Schembri. who often saw Mgr. Gerada and swam with him, suggested that Mgr. Gerada should not see Mintoff before he had done his “home work” properly (know everything about the MLP-Church dispute). Gerada seemed to agree , but not much later he was talked into seeing Mintoff (to the embarrassment of Lino Spiteri). They met at a reception and left together and soon negotiations started. The Archbishop, who already was not on very good terms with Mgr. Gerada, sent Fr Bilocca and Pellegrini to negotiate with him. Mintoff cleverly played the two Church delegations off against each other. He agreed with the draft of a text by Fr. Felicjan] and Pellegrini, which would mean an unconditional surrender of the Church. The Archbishop was warned meeting and Felicjan and Pellegrini were withdrawn. Now Mgr. Gerada was the only negotiator of the Church. He prepared a draft and showed it to Dr. Anton Buttigieg who did not disapprove. But Mintoff did and they decided on another text (according to Mintoff in the spirit of Vaticanum II, but without actual references made by it). The text was sent to the Holy See. On Wednesday of Holy Week Mgr. Gerada received certain objections against the text from the Holy See and instructions to negotiate a bit longer and slower. But Mgr. Gerada decided that ‘all the preparations of the wedding had been made’ and he decided not to show this letter to his colleagues and at Good Friday this ‘treaty’ was signal. Many priests welcomed the peace, but disagree with the text, which they considered a surrender of the Church.
Mgr Gerada was considered as a friend of Mgr Benelli (nr. 2 of the Holy See). But these who know Mgr. Benelli do not consider him as a person with friends. Gerada advertised his friendship always; first it might have given him an image of untouchability, but later his opponents of then mentioned this ‘friendship’ in the British press and it might have worked as a boomerang. .
At the festa of Zejtun or Zurrieq Mgr Gerada was asked to deliver the panegyric on St. Catherine. He told the villagers that according to modern science not even her sanctity, but also her actual life was questioned. This was a big mistake.
Mgr Gerada might have not have been that much against McKinsey as many people believed. Mgr Gonzi shrewdly agreed with McKinsey and more or less forced his opponent Gerada to disagree with it.
Mgr Gerada’s close association with Pace Brothers (yacht, holidays abroad) made it impossible to maintain him as coadjutor as it might be embarrassing for the Church to find it’s Archbishop probably involved in a swindle case.
Mgr Gerada did not agree with the directives for Confessors on ‘the relations of married people’ proposed to the Diocesan Theological Commission (Rev. Prof. Emmynian S.J. and Rev. Prof. Muscat) and approved of the Maltese Bishops. The directives, in the same line with among others the Belgian Bishops, he considered to liberal. In his opinion it was only a draft, which should duly amended (by the Holy See?) This was a blow in the face of the two professors of theology who made the draft.
So Mgr Gerada made to many mistakes, and it became to embarrassing for the Maltese Church to have its two main Bishops at loggerheads. Mgr. Gonzi had proved to be the most clever of the two and stayed. Gerada had to renounce his rights for succession and was made Nuncio in Guatemala.
Last October Mgr Gerada came back to Malta for a holiday and went to see Mgr. Gonzi. The latter did not like his visit as he was in the middle of the troubles of the Constitutional amendments (1974).
Mgr Gerada was auxiliary Bishop first. He was made Coadjutor with right of succession in order to increase his position with regards to the Cathedral Chapter. Now they no longer afford to ignore them. Against many advices he might the big mistake of taking over the financial administration of the Diocese before he was really a Bishop.
(to te continued as Fr. schembri told me more)
(Originally posted on Facebook, 29th August 2026)