Our Story
This is a short history of the Parish written by Professor John P. Portelli
Brief History of St. Paul the Apostle Parish (1930-2005)
Prof. John P. PortelliAlthough St. Paul the Apostle Parish was founded in 1930, the effort and urge to have apermanent Maltese priest among the Maltese immigrants in Ontario dates to 1914. Theconnection between the development of the Maltese community in Canada (particularly Ontario)and the support from the Catholic Church were present from the early days. Maltese priests veryearly realized the need of the Maltese to have the presence of a Maltese priest among them.The Maltese immigrants themselves longed to have a Maltese priest with them here. Forexample, in 1914 a Maltese living in Toronto wrote a rather moving letter on behalf of the 200Maltese in the city to the Archbishop of Toro
nto. This Maltese who signed “C.M.” pleaded with
the Archbishop to help them get a permanent Maltese priest.The first Maltese priest to assist the Maltese in Toronto was Fr. Anton Tabone S.J. who lived inGuelph, Ontario between 1914-1916. During those two years Fr. Tabone came to Toronto andconducted missions. In 1916 when he left Canada, his work was carried on by Fr. FortunatoMizzi O.F.M. Cap. and Fr. Aurelius Catania who worked with the Maltese in Brantford, Ontariofrom 1917 to 1920.The work of Fr. Mizzi, who came to Ottawa in 1908, is crucial to the establishment of theMaltese Church in Toronto. Fr. Mizzi worked hard to make a case for the Maltese to have apermanent Maltese priest in Ontario. Given that many of the Maltese did not speak English, hewas concerned that they would not be able to fulfill their religious needs and duties. The Maltesehad devised a way to confess through the aide of an interpreter and yet still maintainconfidentiality. Not only had these new Maltese immigrants to cope with the reality of a largeunknown city, severe winter conditions, and new employment, but they also had to adjust to adifferent way of fulfilling their religious needs. Fr. Mizzi was concerned about the well-beingand the spiritual needs of these Maltese. Between 1916 and 1922 he visited the Maltese inOntario at least once a year to preach missions and hear confessions. His communications withthe Archbishop of Toronto and the Bishop of Malta kept the proposal for a Maltese mission inToronto open. His visits to Toronto encouraged the Maltese to keep their zeal for their faith.Through the assistance of Fr. Mizzi, in 1922 Fr. Fulgenzio Grech, O.F.M. Cap. came to Ottawa.During the two years he spent in Canada, Fr. Grech conducted missions for the Maltese inToronto and Detroit. In the spring of 1922, on one of these occasions, Fr. Grech encouraged andassisted a group of Maltese men to found a society that eventually became known as the MalteseCanadian Society of Toronto. This Society was partly set up with the aim of attempting to createthe support needed for the Maltese to have a permanent priest in Toronto. The work of thissociety was influential in making the case with Archbishop McNeil of Toronto to assist Fr.
Cauchi in becoming the first pastor of the Maltese National Parish. Letters by officials of theSociety, such as Mr. John Gordmaine and Mr. Charles Baldacchino, clearly indicate the zeal andconcern of these Maltese immigrants.Fr. Cauchi visited Toronto for the first time in 1925 to conduct a mission for the Maltese.Through the support of the Archbishop of Toronto, the perseverance of the Maltese, and his owngood will, understanding and sacrifice, Fr. Cauchi came to live in Toronto on a permanent basisin July 1929. Needless to say, the Maltese of Toronto were thrilled with the arrival of Fr. Cauchiamongst them. It was now possible for them to have a church of their own -- a Maltese Church,with a Maltese pastor who spoke their own language, and could serve as both a religious andcommunity leader. And Fr. Cauchi fulfilled all these roles with great love, humility, anddedication.On his arrival, Fr. Cauchi had a difficult task ahead of him. The Maltese were spreadthroughout the city and it was not easy to have them all in one location. As early as 1914, wefind two concentrated groups of Maltese in Toronto: one in the downtown core; the other in theJunction. Between 1912 and 1930, the Maltese had attended several other Catholic Churches,
most notably St. Patrick’s Church and Our Lady of M
ount Carmel Church (in the core of
downtown), St. Mary’s Church, St. John the Evangelist, and St. Cecilia. The Redemptorist
Fathers, who always welcomed the visiting Maltese priests, then administered both St. Patrick'sand Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church.
And at St. Cecilia’s Church the pastor Msgr.. J.P.
Treacy was equally supportive of the Maltese.In contrast to other ethnic groups, the Maltese population in Toronto was not large and hencethis meant limited financial support. It was also the beginning of the depression. Notwithstandingall these adversarial conditions, Fr. Cauchi, with the support of the energetic men of the MalteseCanadian Society of Toronto and their families, managed to buy land in the Junction and built
“the basement church”. The
crucial meeting to decide where to build the Church took place onthe 12th of January 1930 at St. John the Baptist Church. A notice, stamped 8 January 1930, was
sent to Maltese in Toronto. The original notice read as follows: “Il
-kumitat nhar il-Hadd tnax
ta’
Jannar, fis-
sebgha ta’ filghaxija ser issir laqgha mal
-Maltin fil-
Knisja ta’ San Gwann Battista.
G
ħ
aldaqstant il-
preżenza tieg
ħ
ek hija me
ħ
tie
ġ
a kawża ta’ affari importanti.” The notice wassigned “Il
-
Kumitat”. The Maltese Canadian Society of Toronto in
support of Fr. Cauchi, hadorganized a meeting during which, after heated discussions, it was decided to build the Church inthe Junction. Once a decision was made, the Maltese worked hard to have the Church completed.It was officially opened on the 7th September 1930. According to the records the first to bebaptized in the old church were Paulina Bonello, Alfredo Borg, Paolina Lucarda Micallef, andPaulina Giuseppa Micallef on 7 September, 1930. The first recorded Maltese marriage in the oldchurch was that between Joseph Sapiano and Dolores Schembri on 27 November 1930.The first few years were not easy. Notwithstanding the sacrifice of the 100 Maltese familiesregistered in the parish, as well as the simple, and by all accounts, poor way of life Fr. Cauchilived, it took the parish about 7 years to pay the mortgage. And yet, in November 1938 the newlybuilt parish hall adjacent to the church was officially opened. This hall was the site of manyevents organized by the church and meetings for Maltese Associations. The feast of St. Paul had
been celebrated in the parish at least since 1932. The Holy Name Society of the Parish wasestablished on the 10th of February 1938.By 1943, when Fr. Cauchi died in October at the age of 63, the parish was well established.Many of the Maltese who had lived in other parts of the city moved closer to the Church, whichin many respects, became the centre for the Maltese community in Toronto and the surroundingareas. During his last year, Fr. Cauchi was assisted by the young priest Rev. Fr. Thomas Fultonwho later became Bishop of St. Catharines. In a conversation I had with Bishop Emeritus Fulton,
he commented as follows on Fr. Cauchi: “There is no doubt of Fr. Cauchi’s holiness of life and
his utter dedication to his ministry as a priest and pastor. He was father to the people in the fullsense of the word. Without doubt the Maltese community revered Fr. Cauchi. He was theundoubted leader of the Maltese community in Toronto and the surrounding area. People came tohim with their problems, whether about immigration matters, or their jobs, or the schooling of
their children or whatever, and he did all he could to help them.” No wonder that the Solemn
Requiem Mass for Fr. Cauchi was celebrated by Cardinal McGuigan himself and over 50 priests.
For a year after Fr. Cauchi’s death the parish was administered by Rev. Fr. Vincent Egan, and between 1944 and 1951 the pastor was Rev. Fr. Daniel O’Neill. Shortly after Fr. Cauchi’s death,
the young Maltese-Canadian Fr. Grace Agius, a Basilian priest, occasionally assisted in theparish.The next important stage in the development of the parish revolves around the preciouscontribution of the energetic Rev. Fr. Lawrence Bonavia who arrived in Canada in 1948. Afterserving as an assistant pastor at St. Agnes Church, in 1951 the Franciscan Minors of Maltaagreed to take care of the Maltese Parish and Fr. Bonavia was appointed pastor. This was a verytimely move as the number of Maltese immigrants to Canada henceforth increased quite rapidlyand steadily. And so did the needs of the parishioners. By 1953 Fr. Emidio Cremona and Fr.Albert Vella had joined Fr. Bonavia in the parish. It is impossible to mention all theachievements the parish made under the direction of Fr. Bonavia who was pastor until 1970.During this time, again with the assistance and support of the parishioners including themembers of the Maltese Canadian Society of Toronto, the new church was built and officiallyblessed on 8 September, 1956. Many were the Maltese who assisted in the construction anddecoration of the new church. The names of the families and organizations that contributed in anexceptional manner are mentioned on the plaque on the right hand side of the foyer. The loan tobuild the new church was fully paid by February 1959 -- an exceptionally record time. Shortlyafter, plans began for the building of the new hall and the new rectory, which were completed in1960. Besides these important accomplishments, Fr. Bonavia and his associates assisted theMaltese in many ways besides their religious needs. Once again, the work of these energeticpriests demonstrated in practice how religion, community and social work can assist each other.The legacy of these priests was kept up by the succeeding pastors: Fr. Lewis, Fr. Ellul Vincenti,Fr. Joachim Grech, Fr. Phillip Briffa, Fr. Edward Zammit, Fr. Jimmy Zammit (the only pastor of this Church who was born in Toronto and raised in this parish), Fr. Raymond Falzon, Fr. PaulAttard, Fr. Raymond Camilleri and last, but not least, Fr. Paul Galea who, together with hisassociate Fr. Anthony Vella, was the last administrator of the parish under the direction of theFranciscans. At the end of the pastorship of Fr. Zammit, Archbishop Aloysius Ambrozicdedicated the Church on 8th September, 1990, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of itsfoundation.
In February 1999, the Missionary Society of St. Paul agreed to take over the direction of theparish. Several of us Maltese-Canadians were concerned that the Maltese National Parish wouldbe lost. But thanks to the dedication and understanding of the Missionary Society of St. Paul theparish continues to be the only Maltese national parish in North America. The first pastor underthe new direction was Fr. Mark Demanuele who was assisted by Fr. Dominic Cachia, associatepastor. In 2001, when Fr. Demanuele was called to serve in the M.S.S.P. mission in Pakistan, Fr.Karm Borg was installed as the new pastor.It must be noted that although the Church was established by Maltese-Canadians, the parish hasalways welcomed people of other nationalities and they in turn, have contributed to our growth.Beginning with those of Irish, English and Scottish descent, followed by Italians and Portuguese,and continuing today with new parishioners of Polish, Filipino and East-Asian descent, just toname a few, our parish has been enriched and enlivened by their efforts.On the occasion of the 75th anniversary, the parish accepted yet two other challenges. With thesupport of the parishioners and the community, the Church now has a set of 10 stained glassesdepicting the life of St. Paul, as well as chair lifts to St. Paul's Hall and the DePiro Hall. Bothprojects were successfully completed in 2005.The celebration of this anniversary gives us the opportunity to look back and learn from ourroots with the hope of a prosperous future. We know that on several occasions the Maltese inToronto and the priests who courageously directed them for so many years had to struggle toachieve their worthy aims and dreams. With an honest belief in God, a sense of community, andhard work they managed to overcome the obstacles they faced. On this earth, there is no perfector easy community of faith. A community is always built on a struggle. In our case we have thesolid foundation of our predecessors. We need to learn from their story. As we know from theirstory, a community needs to rejuvenate itself and adjust to the needs and circumstances withoutgiving up on the Catholic beliefs and the connections with our Maltese roots. There are differentways how these connections and revivals can be achieved. But it is imperative that weunderstand and encourage our younger generations. If we wish to maintain our Maltese parish,while welcoming others, we have to ask what we can contribute, and encourage our children todo the same especially by our example. Seventy-five years ago, there were only about 600Maltese in Toronto. Although few in numbers, their strong will, hope and faith lead to theexistence of this community that we today partake in. Imagine what we can achieve today withmuch larger numbers and the strong foundation of our predecessors. Although the Church wasestablished and maintained through the efforts of Maltese-Canadians and their children, it needsto be noted that from the early days and following the Catholic spirit, the Parish alwayswelcomed and continues to welcome people of other nationalities.May God bless us all and our spiritual leaders and the many that assist them in their work. Wethank God for their presence amongst us and we
pray
that under their direction this uniqueparish continues to flourish as a family on our journey of faith.Millions of books, audiobooks, magazines, documents, sheet music, and more for free.
Download this PDF
Prof. John P. PortelliAlthough St. Paul the Apostle Parish was founded in 1930, the effort and urge to have apermanent Maltese priest among the Maltese immigrants in Ontario dates to 1914. Theconnection between the development of the Maltese community in Canada (particularly Ontario)and the support from the Catholic Church were present from the early days. Maltese priests veryearly realized the need of the Maltese to have the presence of a Maltese priest among them.The Maltese immigrants themselves longed to have a Maltese priest with them here. Forexample, in 1914 a Maltese living in Toronto wrote a rather moving letter on behalf of the 200Maltese in the city to the Archbishop of Toro
nto. This Maltese who signed “C.M.” pleaded with
the Archbishop to help them get a permanent Maltese priest.The first Maltese priest to assist the Maltese in Toronto was Fr. Anton Tabone S.J. who lived inGuelph, Ontario between 1914-1916. During those two years Fr. Tabone came to Toronto andconducted missions. In 1916 when he left Canada, his work was carried on by Fr. FortunatoMizzi O.F.M. Cap. and Fr. Aurelius Catania who worked with the Maltese in Brantford, Ontariofrom 1917 to 1920.The work of Fr. Mizzi, who came to Ottawa in 1908, is crucial to the establishment of theMaltese Church in Toronto. Fr. Mizzi worked hard to make a case for the Maltese to have apermanent Maltese priest in Ontario. Given that many of the Maltese did not speak English, hewas concerned that they would not be able to fulfill their religious needs and duties. The Maltesehad devised a way to confess through the aide of an interpreter and yet still maintainconfidentiality. Not only had these new Maltese immigrants to cope with the reality of a largeunknown city, severe winter conditions, and new employment, but they also had to adjust to adifferent way of fulfilling their religious needs. Fr. Mizzi was concerned about the well-beingand the spiritual needs of these Maltese. Between 1916 and 1922 he visited the Maltese inOntario at least once a year to preach missions and hear confessions. His communications withthe Archbishop of Toronto and the Bishop of Malta kept the proposal for a Maltese mission inToronto open. His visits to Toronto encouraged the Maltese to keep their zeal for their faith.Through the assistance of Fr. Mizzi, in 1922 Fr. Fulgenzio Grech, O.F.M. Cap. came to Ottawa.During the two years he spent in Canada, Fr. Grech conducted missions for the Maltese inToronto and Detroit. In the spring of 1922, on one of these occasions, Fr. Grech encouraged andassisted a group of Maltese men to found a society that eventually became known as the MalteseCanadian Society of Toronto. This Society was partly set up with the aim of attempting to createthe support needed for the Maltese to have a permanent priest in Toronto. The work of thissociety was influential in making the case with Archbishop McNeil of Toronto to assist Fr.
Cauchi in becoming the first pastor of the Maltese National Parish. Letters by officials of theSociety, such as Mr. John Gordmaine and Mr. Charles Baldacchino, clearly indicate the zeal andconcern of these Maltese immigrants.Fr. Cauchi visited Toronto for the first time in 1925 to conduct a mission for the Maltese.Through the support of the Archbishop of Toronto, the perseverance of the Maltese, and his owngood will, understanding and sacrifice, Fr. Cauchi came to live in Toronto on a permanent basisin July 1929. Needless to say, the Maltese of Toronto were thrilled with the arrival of Fr. Cauchiamongst them. It was now possible for them to have a church of their own -- a Maltese Church,with a Maltese pastor who spoke their own language, and could serve as both a religious andcommunity leader. And Fr. Cauchi fulfilled all these roles with great love, humility, anddedication.On his arrival, Fr. Cauchi had a difficult task ahead of him. The Maltese were spreadthroughout the city and it was not easy to have them all in one location. As early as 1914, wefind two concentrated groups of Maltese in Toronto: one in the downtown core; the other in theJunction. Between 1912 and 1930, the Maltese had attended several other Catholic Churches,
most notably St. Patrick’s Church and Our Lady of M
ount Carmel Church (in the core of
downtown), St. Mary’s Church, St. John the Evangelist, and St. Cecilia. The Redemptorist
Fathers, who always welcomed the visiting Maltese priests, then administered both St. Patrick'sand Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church.
And at St. Cecilia’s Church the pastor Msgr.. J.P.
Treacy was equally supportive of the Maltese.In contrast to other ethnic groups, the Maltese population in Toronto was not large and hencethis meant limited financial support. It was also the beginning of the depression. Notwithstandingall these adversarial conditions, Fr. Cauchi, with the support of the energetic men of the MalteseCanadian Society of Toronto and their families, managed to buy land in the Junction and built
“the basement church”. The
crucial meeting to decide where to build the Church took place onthe 12th of January 1930 at St. John the Baptist Church. A notice, stamped 8 January 1930, was
sent to Maltese in Toronto. The original notice read as follows: “Il
-kumitat nhar il-Hadd tnax
ta’
Jannar, fis-
sebgha ta’ filghaxija ser issir laqgha mal
-Maltin fil-
Knisja ta’ San Gwann Battista.
G
ħ
aldaqstant il-
preżenza tieg
ħ
ek hija me
ħ
tie
ġ
a kawża ta’ affari importanti.” The notice wassigned “Il
-
Kumitat”. The Maltese Canadian Society of Toronto in
support of Fr. Cauchi, hadorganized a meeting during which, after heated discussions, it was decided to build the Church inthe Junction. Once a decision was made, the Maltese worked hard to have the Church completed.It was officially opened on the 7th September 1930. According to the records the first to bebaptized in the old church were Paulina Bonello, Alfredo Borg, Paolina Lucarda Micallef, andPaulina Giuseppa Micallef on 7 September, 1930. The first recorded Maltese marriage in the oldchurch was that between Joseph Sapiano and Dolores Schembri on 27 November 1930.The first few years were not easy. Notwithstanding the sacrifice of the 100 Maltese familiesregistered in the parish, as well as the simple, and by all accounts, poor way of life Fr. Cauchilived, it took the parish about 7 years to pay the mortgage. And yet, in November 1938 the newlybuilt parish hall adjacent to the church was officially opened. This hall was the site of manyevents organized by the church and meetings for Maltese Associations. The feast of St. Paul had
been celebrated in the parish at least since 1932. The Holy Name Society of the Parish wasestablished on the 10th of February 1938.By 1943, when Fr. Cauchi died in October at the age of 63, the parish was well established.Many of the Maltese who had lived in other parts of the city moved closer to the Church, whichin many respects, became the centre for the Maltese community in Toronto and the surroundingareas. During his last year, Fr. Cauchi was assisted by the young priest Rev. Fr. Thomas Fultonwho later became Bishop of St. Catharines. In a conversation I had with Bishop Emeritus Fulton,
he commented as follows on Fr. Cauchi: “There is no doubt of Fr. Cauchi’s holiness of life and
his utter dedication to his ministry as a priest and pastor. He was father to the people in the fullsense of the word. Without doubt the Maltese community revered Fr. Cauchi. He was theundoubted leader of the Maltese community in Toronto and the surrounding area. People came tohim with their problems, whether about immigration matters, or their jobs, or the schooling of
their children or whatever, and he did all he could to help them.” No wonder that the Solemn
Requiem Mass for Fr. Cauchi was celebrated by Cardinal McGuigan himself and over 50 priests.
For a year after Fr. Cauchi’s death the parish was administered by Rev. Fr. Vincent Egan, and between 1944 and 1951 the pastor was Rev. Fr. Daniel O’Neill. Shortly after Fr. Cauchi’s death,
the young Maltese-Canadian Fr. Grace Agius, a Basilian priest, occasionally assisted in theparish.The next important stage in the development of the parish revolves around the preciouscontribution of the energetic Rev. Fr. Lawrence Bonavia who arrived in Canada in 1948. Afterserving as an assistant pastor at St. Agnes Church, in 1951 the Franciscan Minors of Maltaagreed to take care of the Maltese Parish and Fr. Bonavia was appointed pastor. This was a verytimely move as the number of Maltese immigrants to Canada henceforth increased quite rapidlyand steadily. And so did the needs of the parishioners. By 1953 Fr. Emidio Cremona and Fr.Albert Vella had joined Fr. Bonavia in the parish. It is impossible to mention all theachievements the parish made under the direction of Fr. Bonavia who was pastor until 1970.During this time, again with the assistance and support of the parishioners including themembers of the Maltese Canadian Society of Toronto, the new church was built and officiallyblessed on 8 September, 1956. Many were the Maltese who assisted in the construction anddecoration of the new church. The names of the families and organizations that contributed in anexceptional manner are mentioned on the plaque on the right hand side of the foyer. The loan tobuild the new church was fully paid by February 1959 -- an exceptionally record time. Shortlyafter, plans began for the building of the new hall and the new rectory, which were completed in1960. Besides these important accomplishments, Fr. Bonavia and his associates assisted theMaltese in many ways besides their religious needs. Once again, the work of these energeticpriests demonstrated in practice how religion, community and social work can assist each other.The legacy of these priests was kept up by the succeeding pastors: Fr. Lewis, Fr. Ellul Vincenti,Fr. Joachim Grech, Fr. Phillip Briffa, Fr. Edward Zammit, Fr. Jimmy Zammit (the only pastor of this Church who was born in Toronto and raised in this parish), Fr. Raymond Falzon, Fr. PaulAttard, Fr. Raymond Camilleri and last, but not least, Fr. Paul Galea who, together with hisassociate Fr. Anthony Vella, was the last administrator of the parish under the direction of theFranciscans. At the end of the pastorship of Fr. Zammit, Archbishop Aloysius Ambrozicdedicated the Church on 8th September, 1990, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of itsfoundation.
In February 1999, the Missionary Society of St. Paul agreed to take over the direction of theparish. Several of us Maltese-Canadians were concerned that the Maltese National Parish wouldbe lost. But thanks to the dedication and understanding of the Missionary Society of St. Paul theparish continues to be the only Maltese national parish in North America. The first pastor underthe new direction was Fr. Mark Demanuele who was assisted by Fr. Dominic Cachia, associatepastor. In 2001, when Fr. Demanuele was called to serve in the M.S.S.P. mission in Pakistan, Fr.Karm Borg was installed as the new pastor.It must be noted that although the Church was established by Maltese-Canadians, the parish hasalways welcomed people of other nationalities and they in turn, have contributed to our growth.Beginning with those of Irish, English and Scottish descent, followed by Italians and Portuguese,and continuing today with new parishioners of Polish, Filipino and East-Asian descent, just toname a few, our parish has been enriched and enlivened by their efforts.On the occasion of the 75th anniversary, the parish accepted yet two other challenges. With thesupport of the parishioners and the community, the Church now has a set of 10 stained glassesdepicting the life of St. Paul, as well as chair lifts to St. Paul's Hall and the DePiro Hall. Bothprojects were successfully completed in 2005.The celebration of this anniversary gives us the opportunity to look back and learn from ourroots with the hope of a prosperous future. We know that on several occasions the Maltese inToronto and the priests who courageously directed them for so many years had to struggle toachieve their worthy aims and dreams. With an honest belief in God, a sense of community, andhard work they managed to overcome the obstacles they faced. On this earth, there is no perfector easy community of faith. A community is always built on a struggle. In our case we have thesolid foundation of our predecessors. We need to learn from their story. As we know from theirstory, a community needs to rejuvenate itself and adjust to the needs and circumstances withoutgiving up on the Catholic beliefs and the connections with our Maltese roots. There are differentways how these connections and revivals can be achieved. But it is imperative that weunderstand and encourage our younger generations. If we wish to maintain our Maltese parish,while welcoming others, we have to ask what we can contribute, and encourage our children todo the same especially by our example. Seventy-five years ago, there were only about 600Maltese in Toronto. Although few in numbers, their strong will, hope and faith lead to theexistence of this community that we today partake in. Imagine what we can achieve today withmuch larger numbers and the strong foundation of our predecessors. Although the Church wasestablished and maintained through the efforts of Maltese-Canadians and their children, it needsto be noted that from the early days and following the Catholic spirit, the Parish alwayswelcomed and continues to welcome people of other nationalities.May God bless us all and our spiritual leaders and the many that assist them in their work. Wethank God for their presence amongst us and we
pray
that under their direction this uniqueparish continues to flourish as a family on our journey of faith.Millions of books, audiobooks, magazines, documents, sheet music, and more for free.
Download this PDF