Dingli

Assumption Parish Church

Dingli arose in the vicinity of the Parish of Hal-Tartani which was suppressed because of abandonment. In 1575 Dusina recorded the existence of the Assumption church at Dingli. In 1636, this church consisting of five arches was deemed very old and while a new church was still being built, Bishop Molina on the 31st December 1678 installed it as an independent parish. The present church was built in 1903 on the site of the 1678 church. It was extensively expanded with two side naves, new belfries, facade and dome between 1958 and 1975. The dedication date was the 26th March 1939.

Assumption

Part of an early medieval rural complex called Tas-Simblija, the Chapel was mentioned in various historical documents together with the surrounding fields and orchards. Partly underground it does not show its function from the outside but inside one can find the typical structure of the time with three pointed arches.

Chapel - St John Bosco

Adoration Chapel.

Chapel Savio College

The College was founded in 1968 by the Salesians of Don Bosco as a centre of Christian education and Salesian formation of young people. The College is a secondary school with 250 pupils. It has a youth centre attached and of course contains a Chapel.

St Bartholomew:

Mentioned as being one of two churches in the old parish of Hal Tartani, the other one being St Domenica. Tartani village ceased to exist and was absorbed by the larger village of Dingli.

St.Domenica

The first church of this name used to stand close by in 1436. It served as the parish church of Hal Tartani which was later absorbed by Dingli. It still exists though in a sorry state with most of the roof collapsed. The Church we have nowadays was built in 1669 by the Baron MarkAnthony Inguanez on his property.

St James - Wied ir-rum.

It had been closed for worship in 1615, but was later restored, with mass celebrated weekly. This chapel is nowadays lost.

St Margaret - Tal-Qattara.

This church is mentioned in an apostolic visit of 1635. It was in a sad state and was not restored as Bishop Gargallo had ordered. In 1656 the church was closed and deconsecrated, with its ruins hardly noticeable by 1680.

St.Mary Magdalen

This chapel on the edge of Dingli cliffs was built in 1646. It was deconsecrated by Bishop PaceForno, but re-consecrated afterwards. It was restored early in the 21st century. Mass is now celebrated here once a year. A St.Mary church is mentioned existing on the cliffs in Mons.B.Rull's report of 1762 when he revoked its ecclesiastical immunity. (Most probably it is the one dedicated to St.Mary Magdalen mistakenly reported).

St Nicholas - Ta Callus.

Dr Ġużeppi Callus was born around 1505, and died in 1561- He lived in Mdina. It is documented that he owned an orchard at Wied ir-Rum, in the outskirts of Rabat, and that there was a chapel in his garden. Grandmaster La Vallette dispossessed him of his orchard before he was executed. Dusina visited the chapels around and within the Wied ir-Rum... and then visited the chapel of St Nicholas of Callus, located at the bottom of the valley, possibly in the same place where some farms and a water-mill exist today; the adjacent land is known by the farmers as ‘Il-Qattara’.