25/10/2023
The tiny hamlet of Santa Katerina is known as ‘Tad-Daħla’, meaning “entry”, probably because as the nickname itself suggests this area was once a main entry point to the town of Rabat. The village is made up of just 15 families, mostly farmers, including Maria Concetta (pictured). The few houses here are built around the small church of Saint Catherine, a church with a long history spanning over 500 years.
Follow this link to view another photo of the church, Maria Concetta and Frans: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=827580325390445&set=a.827589062056238
👇Inżel l-isfel biex taqra dan l-artiklu bil-Malti / Scroll down to read this article in Maltese 👇
THE CHURCH OF SANTA KATERINA TAD-DAĦLA
A chapel dedicated to St. Catherine was first built here in the year 1500. This chapel was one of the 30 countryside chapels which fell under the auspice of the old capital of , Mdina, and which Monsignor Pietro Dusina visited as part of his apostolic visit in 1575.
In 1628, a second chapel was built by nobleman Indrì Vassallo and his wife on their land. Indrì Vassallo started a patronage on the church in 1639.
The second chapel was unfortunately heavily damaged in the 1743 earthquake and was totally rebuilt for a third time with its current design.
Over the years, the church was endowed with a new bell and a titular statue of St. Catherine, much awaited by the people of the locality at the time.
THE FEAST
Although on a smaller scale, for over a century, the feast of St. Catherine has been held at the church of the ‘Tad-Daħla’ hamlet, which lies halfway between Rabat and Dingli, in late September, when most of the season’s titular feasts have been celebrated. The church gets decorated for its feast and a mass is celebrated on the eve of the feast day, as well as every Saturday evening at the church together with a pastoral service by the parish during the feast weekend.
Externally, the feast spans over three days, with a BBQ, decorations, fireworks and a musical program executed by a band from Rabat, as well as a lottery in aid of the feast funds.
HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF ST. CATHERINE ‘TAD-DAĦLA’
When Monsignor Pietro Dusina visited the original chapel as part of his apostolic visit in 1575 he did not find it in a very good condition. The area was prone to Corsair attacks and had weak defenses. The chapel did not have a door and a floor but it at least had a rector, Santoro Vella, who’d celebrate mass yearly on the feast day with vespers. Franġisk Summatissa, a Greek man who worked as a secretary on the galleys of the Order, bought the land on which this chapel was from Dun Santoro de Nasis, and saw to collecting the necessary funds gor the feast. The parish priest of Dingli would carry out the functions.
But following his visit, Dusina ordered the closure of the chapel and gave permission for the stones from the old chapel to be used for building the new one. The titular painting was taken to St. Paul’s church in Rabat.
THE SECOND CHAPEL
The chapel was rebuilt fifty years later by Indrì Vassallo and his wife Sapienza Micallef on a garden on their land that was called Tad-Daħla, with the family taking patronage of the chapel. Vassallo tied the chapel’s rector with celebrating five masses a year, on the feast days of St. Catherine, St. Bias, St. Andrew, St. Paul and St. Lucy respectively. Everything was tied by a contract dated November 1630 in front of notary Giovannello Carabot. This donation was again confirmed in an act dated December 1st 1650 by notary Giovanni Francesco Zammit. As was commonplace when a benefactor would build something out of his own money, he would benefit his own people. So Indrì Vassallo appointed his nephew as rector, the cleric Matthew Vassallo. But given he was still 17 years old and had to complete his priesthood, Dun Tumas Tabone took over the running of the chapel in until eventually Matthew Vassallo took over the reigns.
The church was very well taken care of during Indrì’s time, was painted and had four access doors, stone benches and one stone altar, a bell and sacristy and all that was needed for liturgical services to be held in it, mostly for the farmers of the area.
The titular painting represented St. Catherine together with Saints Paul, Andrew, Bias and Lucy.
An interesting note from one of the pastoral visitations reveals that in 1630 this church had a small cemetery attached to it.
Indrì Vassallo died on the 29th of May 1655, while his wife died two years later.
Over time, the chapel fell in a state of neglect. When Dun Albin Portoghes, who had been sent by Malta’s Bishop Poalo Alpheran de Bussan, who did not visit himself given that this was a small chapel, visited it in April of 1744, he found it in a deplorable state, a direct consequence of the damage the chapel had suffered from the earthquake that shook the islands a year earlier, on February 20th 1743.
THE PRESENT DAY CHURCH
Following the 1743 earthquake, the church was eventually rebuilt larger but without the need for it to be completely demolished. The patronage Indrì Vassallo and his family had on the church, which was started in 1639, continued to be passed from one family to another over time, including the Testaferrata family in 1866, but today the church belongs to and forms part of the Rabat parish.
INTERIOR
This church has one altar. The titular painting shows Saint Catherine rising to Heaven. This painting was damaged by vandals some time ago but the church’s procurator of that time, Dun Mikiel Attard, saw to restoring it.
The church underwent extensive restoration which was carried out by the Restoration Directorate a few years ago.
THE BISHOP D'ALAGONA
By Kappa Vision follower Matthew Micallef.
This same chapel was the one personally financed by none other the Bishop D'Alagona, which was the same Bishop that provided the land to the Dominican Order in Rabat.
The crest of the family D'Alagona which is found on the wall at the entrance of the Dominican Priory used to be housed inside the chapel of St. Catherine.
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BIL-MALTI
L-irħajjel ta’ Santa Katerina hu msejjaħ “Tad-Daħla", probabilment għaliex fl-imgħoddi f’dawn l-inħawi kien hawn it-triq priċipali li kienet tgħati għar-Rabat. Illum il-ġurnata jogħodu biss ħmistax-il familija hawnhekk, ħafna minnhom bdiwa. Waħda minnhom hi Marija Konċetta (fir-ritratt). Il-ftit djar u rzietet li insibu f’Santa Katerina huma mibnijja madwar il-knisja ta’ Santa Katerina li għandha storja twila u qadima ħafna ta’ il-fuq minn ħames mitt sena.
IL-KNISJA
Il-knisja ta’ Santa Katerina “Tad-Daħla" inbniet għall-ewwel darba fl-1500. Wara xi żmien ġiet imsewwija minn Indrì Vassallo li beda l-benefiċarju fl-1639.
Din il-knisja żgħira għandha artal wieħed. Il-kwadru ewlieni li juri lil din il-qaddisa tielgħa s-sema kiem ilu ġarrab xi ħsarat minn xi vandali, imma l-Prokuratur tagħha Dun Mikiel Attard ħa ħsieb u rrestawraħ. Insibu ukoll statwa ħelwa tal-qaddisa li ħadimha l-iskultur Ġilormu Dingli mir-Rabat.
Photo Copyright © Kappa Vision / Jean-Paul Borg.
References:
- Tony Terrible, "l-Knisja ta’ Santa Katarina tad-Daħla fir-Rabat," L-Armar: Festa Santa Katarina V.M., Żejtun, 1999, Pages 33, 35, 37, Għaqda ta’ l-Armar 25 ta’ Novembru Żejtun;
- Alexander Bonnici OFM Conv, "Santa Katerina Tad-Daħla - Knisja ċkejkna bi storja mifruxa tul- 400 sena," Knejjes Filjali tar-Rabat - Pt 3, Il-festi tagħna, 1998, Rabat, Kumitat Festi Esterni Corpus Domini u San Pawl;
- Alfie Guillaumier, “Bliet u rħula Maltin”, Volume 2, 2002, Klabb Kotba Maltin, Malta;
- Matthew Micallef.
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