Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/105008
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

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