Gharghur

St.Bartholomew Parish Church

Bishop Gargallo raised the village of Gharghur to the dignity of a parish on the 16th July 1610. The present church, one of Tomaso Dingli's first, was consecrated by bishop Alpheran de Bussan on the 22nd April 1736. It has some old paintings and triptychs in the sacristy and others by well-known painters such as G.Cali' in the church itself.

Chapel:

Built by the British in 1897 as part of the Greater Victoria Lines of Fortifications, the Gharghur battery was turned into a leprosarium (leper colony) in 1974 and called the ‘Hal Ferha Estate’ which in turn was closed down in 2004. The chapel on the premises dates from this latter use. Nowadays everything is in total shambles.

Assumption ta' Bernarda

Known as Bernarda's chapel because it was endowed by Bernarda Cauchi on the 10th August 1571. In 1653, Luca Mifsud asked permission to rebuild this church which request was granted him. He duly carried out this work before 1659. Religious functions were still being held there through WWII after which time it fell into disuse. It is still private property but the Francalanza family has loaned it to the parish as a store for church furnishings.

Assumption Maghtab

A chapel had already been built in this general area by 1575. It was one of the most frequented Marian sanctuaries. In 1653, a new church was built some distance away through donations to replace it. In 1674 it was described as dedicated to the Immaculate Conception because of the painting on the main altar of the church. Nowadays, the present 18th century chapel is still in regular use with Mass celebrated every weekend and on first Fridays.

Assumption taz-Zellieqa

Mons.Dusina, during his pastoral visit of 1575, recorded that the church was built at the bidding of a young woman as thanksgiving for grace she received during an apparition of the Virgin, which took place in 1560. In 1608 it had four altars and its barrel-vaulted roof rested on seven arches. The church was thoroughly rebuilt in 1650-56 and nowadays is open regularly every Saturday.

Our Lady of Snows

Before the end of the 16th century, in Malta, there were already two churches dedicated to the 'Ad Nives' - Of Snows. The first is the only one mentioned in Dusina's records and was situated at Xwieki, outside Gharghur. Wooden doors had to be provided to avoid it being deconsecrated. In the meantime the burthens attached to this church were transferred to the more important church in the nearby village. This church was no longer mentioned afterwards.

St.Alphonse

Around the 19th century a small church with adjoining rooms was built. In time it was deconsecrated and the building together with the rooms used as a residence. In 2008 during some construction work inside the residence some traces of the church resurfaced.

St Catherine TaxXwieki

There was a Visitation church at Wied id-Dis already recorded in 1598. Nearby stood a garden belonging to Fr Giuliano Borg, parish priest of Naxxar. He himself provided a bequest for this church. Rebuilt in 1611 by the heirs of Father Giuliano, this chapel was Siculo-Norman in shape. In 1662 it was rededicated to St Catherine, even though its altarpiece also represented the Visitation and the feast continued to be celebrated here. Bishop Molina in 1680 recorded its beauty in his report of the pastoral visit. It was deconsecrated in 1866, being abandoned after being ruined in a violent storm. Nowadays there is no more than a pile of stones to show it existed. An old photo of it, taken in 1935 by Sir Temi Zammit still exists.

St.Gregory

In the Gharghur area stood a chapel dedicated to this Saint (San Girgor in Maltese). This was probably the origin of the name of the town itself. Of this chapel we have only some of the foundations left.

St.John Baptist

First said to have been built in 1223 by banished inhabitants of Celano Italy. It served as a parish church for Gharghur until the time when the present church was built. Bishop Balaguer closed it in 1659 but it was rebuilt in 1675 and re-opened for service. The village cemetery is adjacent to it and was built for the 1592 and 1676 plague victims.

St.John Evangelist

Built early in the eighteenth century in fulfillment of a vow made by John Portelli who escaped capture from Barbary corsairs, this small chapel is octagonal and bears the date 1757. The Franciscans took it over in 1947. In 1959 they started building the Porziuncola House nearby, which soon became an important centre for retreats.

St.Mary of the Angels

The Franciscan friars, since 1947, resided in a small house at Bahar ic-Caghaq near the church of St.John the Evangelist. Porziuncola Retreat House was founded in 1957 and named after the chapel of the Virgin Mary of the Angels, where Francis of Assisi discovered his evangelical calling in 1208. On the 16th July 1973 the Friars started building a small convent and a pastoral centre. A new church was started in 1992, finished and blessed on the 2nd August 1995. The Franciscans also have a Chapel in the retreat house.

St.Nicholas

The church was first built in the 15th century, but Mgr.Dusina closed it together with a large number of rural and village churches in 1575. It was rebuilt in 1656 and used again. In more recent times it served as a store for church furnishings until a few years ago when in 2005 it was restored and started being used for Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

St.Peter Fisherman?

At Bahar ic-Caghak, this abandoned chapel belonging to private persons is serving as a store for dilapidated furniture. Even though the altar was still there, the paintings have been missing for ages now and for decades the building itself in total disrepair inside and out with the parvis in miserable shape. In 2018 at least it was restored to a decent shape. Up to the early 1950’s it still had its bellcot and a pair of finials on its facade.