59-770: The Charles Abela Memorial Stadium , also known as the Mosta Ground is a ground situated in Mosta , Malta . It has a total capacity of 700 with 360 seats. The stadium hosts matches from various competitions, most notably the Maltese Third Division and the Women Maltese First Division . The Charles Abela Memorial Stadium was upgraded and inaugurated by then Prime Minister of Malta , Dr Lawrence Gonzi in November 2010. The stadium
118-575: A Maltese sports venue is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Mosta Mosta ( Maltese : Il-Mosta ) is a small but densely populated city in the Northern Region of Malta . The most prominent building in Mosta is the Rotunda , a large basilica built by its parishioners' volunteer labour. It features the world's 3rd largest unsupported dome, and displays a replica of
177-416: A Turkish invasion, a young girl and her sisters taking care of their family's sheep were at risk to be taken by the invaders. Whilst the sisters escaped, the young girl could not run fast enough because she limped slightly. It is said that she hid in a cave found under the chapel's left side. Meanwhile, she prayed to Mary , promising that if she were saved, she would build a chapel dedicated to Our Lady. When
236-535: A French resident of Mosta. The Mostin at that time, totalling not more than 1500, built the church. Grognet’s design was based on that of the Pantheon of Rome . Due to debates and doubts regarding the design, the first stone was laid on 30 May 1833. The rotunda has a diameter of 55.20 metres on the outside and 39.60 metres on the inside. The main façade faces south and has six columns in the Ionic style. On each side,
295-540: A German bombshell that famously crashed through the dome but did not detonate upon impact. Mosta celebrates the parish feast of the Assumption every 15 August. Mosta's feast day celebration is popular amongst both locals and tourists. The city is annually decorated by local parishioners and townspeople, seeking to demonstrate their affection for the city and its patron saint, weeks ahead of the public procession. Mosta has been inhabited since pre-history . Dolmens in
354-986: A feast called by the Scottish Episcopal Church simply "Mary the Virgin", and in the US-based Episcopal Church it is observed as the feast of "Saint Mary the Virgin: Mother of Our Lord Jesus Christ", while other Anglican provinces have a feast of the Dormition – the Anglican Church of Canada 's Book of Common Prayer (1962), for instance, marks the day as the "Falling Asleep of the Blessed Virgin Mary". The Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission , which seeks to identify common ground between
413-558: A par with Christmas and Easter , and Pope Benedict XIV (1740–1758) declared it "a probable opinion, which to deny were impious and blasphemous". Scholars of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum "argued that during or shortly after the apostolic age a group of Jewish Christians in Jerusalem preserved an oral tradition about the end of the Virgin's life". Thus, by pointing to oral tradition, they argued for
472-657: A presumed message that the Virgin Mary would have ordered him to communicate to the pope on the dogma of the Assumption of the Holy Virgin Mary. It is said that Pius XII asked God, during the Holy Year of 1950, for a sign that could reassure him that the dogma of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary was actually wanted by God and when Gilles communicated the message to Pius XII, the pope considered this message
531-523: A series of seven tombs dug in the rock in a semi-circular form found in the side of a natural cave beneath Fort Mosta. In a 2008 publication, then Mosta Mayor Dr Paul Chetcuti Caruana stated: "As many know, and no one knows, in the neighbourhood of Ta’ Bistra there is at least one Roman temple which has been buried by the speculators." Quality Schools International operates QSI Malta, an international school , in Mosta. Mosta has three sister cities : Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary
590-416: A steeple rises from the façade. Following the front elevation, the church has an analogous style at the back, but without steeples. The dome was built on the principle of the catenary profile, meaning that each stone was laid over the one underneath it. The church took 27 years to complete and became a major attraction. On 9 April 1942, the church was nearly destroyed during World War II . An Axis bomb hit
649-483: A strict fast on weekdays, with wine and oil allowed on weekends and, additionally, fish on the Transfiguration (August 6). The Assumption is important to many Christians, especially Catholics and Orthodox, as well as many Lutherans and Anglicans, as the Virgin Mary's heavenly birthday (the day that Mary was received into Heaven). Belief about her acceptance into the glory of Heaven is seen by some Christians as
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#1732798530604708-612: A theology closer to Catholicism sometimes believing in a bodily assumption whilst most Protestants do not. The Feast of the Assumption of Mary was retained by the Lutheran Church after the Reformation . Evangelical Lutheran Worship designates August 15 as a lesser festival named "Mary, Mother of Our Lord" while the current Lutheran Service Book formally calls it "St. Mary, Mother of our Lord". Within Anglicanism
767-674: Is made of bronze-coloured cast iron. It was made in the Val d’Osne Foundry in Paris . Embossed on the pedestal there are the coat-of-arms of Mosta and those of independent Malta . The Ta' Bistra Catacombs are the largest set of catacombs found to date outside Rabat , and are located in Triq il-Missjunarji Maltin in Mosta. These catacombs were first recorded in the 1800s but were only investigated in 1933 by Captain Charles Zammit, before part of
826-461: Is named in honour of the late Charles Abela, who was the president of Mosta FC. The stadium comprises one stand, which runs along the whole side of the pitch. In 2011, neighbours complained that some of the works performed on the stadium were illegal In 2016, a player suffered a concussion during a match played at the stadium and the ambulance could not get into the stadium as the keys to the inner gate could not be retrieved. This article about
885-604: Is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church . Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus as follows: We pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory. It leaves open
944-628: Is today amongst the largest in the Maltese Islands. As Mosta is at the centre of Malta; buses pass through Mosta on the way to Buġibba , Burmarrad , St. Paul's Bay , Qawra , Xemxija , Mġarr , Ċirkewwa and Mellieħa . The town has several legends such as The Bride of Mosta (L-Għarusa tal-Mosta). Mosta has its own scouts and girl guides, two band clubs (Nicolo' Isouard and Santa Marija), and two fireworks factories (Santa Marija and 15 ta' Awwissu). A lot of traffic passes through Constitution Street, one of Mosta's main streets, connecting
1003-579: The Emperor Marcian and Pulcheria , who wished to possess the body of the Mother of God, that Mary died in the presence of all the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened upon the request of St. Thomas , was found empty; wherefrom the Apostles concluded that the body was taken up to heaven. Some scholars argue that the Dormition and Assumption traditions can be traced early in church history in
1062-412: The 16th century, these hamlets decreased in importance and Mosta took its place as the principal village. The Apostolic Visit of Mgr Pietro Dusina in 1575 indicated that even the church dedicated to the Assumption that stood in Mosta was so important in the area that it was erroneously called ‘parochial church’. In 1575, there were 580 persons living in Mosta. Mosta is, in contemporary times, witnessing
1121-628: The Age to Come. The Resurrection of the Body ... has in her case been anticipated and is already an accomplished fact. That does not mean, however, that she is dissociated from the rest of humanity and placed in a wholly different category: for we all hope to share one day in that same glory of the Resurrection of the Body that she enjoys even now. Views differ within Protestantism, with those with
1180-465: The Areopagite . The Euthymiac History , from the sixth century, is cited by John of Damascus, which narrates how Mary was assumed into heaven. John of Damascus set out what had become the standard Eastern tradition, that "Mary died in the presence of the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened, upon the request of St Thomas, was found empty; wherefrom the Apostles concluded that her body
1239-557: The Assumption is celebrated on 15 August and the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholics celebrate the Dormition of the Mother of God (or Dormition of the Theotokos, the falling asleep of the Mother of God) on the same date, preceded by a 14-day fasting period. Eastern Christians believe that Mary died a natural death, that her soul was received by Christ upon death, that her body was resurrected after her death and that she
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#17327985306041298-560: The Assumption is the " Six Books Dormition Apocryphon ", so- called on account of its division into six separate books. It dates almost certainly to the middle of the fourth century, if not perhaps even earlier. Most significantly, the Six Books Dormition Apocryphon provides compelling evidence for an early cult of the Virgin nearly a century before the events of the Council of Ephesus. The Greek Discourse on
1357-633: The Assumption of Mary became widespread across the Christian world, having been celebrated as early as the 5th century and having been established in the East by Emperor Maurice around AD 600. In a homily , John Damascene (675–749 AD), citing the third book of the Euthymiac History , records the following: St. Juvenal , Bishop of Jerusalem, at the Council of Chalcedon (451), made known to
1416-519: The Assumption of Mary is accepted by some, rejected by others, or regarded as adiaphora ("a thing indifferent"). The doctrine effectively disappeared from Anglican worship in 1549, partially returning in Anglo-Catholic tradition during the 20th century under different names. A Marian feast on 15 August is celebrated by the Church of England as a non-specific feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
1475-724: The Dormition or The Book of John Concerning the Falling Asleep of Mary (attributed to John the Theologian ), is another anonymous narrative, and may even precede the Book of Mary's Repose . This Greek document, is dated by Tischendorf as no later than the 4th century. but is dated by Shoemaker as later. The New Testament is silent regarding the end of her life. In the late 4th century Epiphanius of Salamis wrote he could find no authorized tradition about how her life ended. Nevertheless, although Epiphanius could not decide on
1534-588: The Dormition is less dogmatically than liturgically and mystically defined. Such differences spring from a larger pattern in the two traditions, wherein Catholic teachings are often dogmatically and authoritatively defined – in part because of the more centralized structure of the Catholic Church – whilst in Eastern Orthodoxy many doctrines are less authoritative. The Latin Catholic Feast of
1593-527: The Feast as the Dormition. It seems, however, that there is much more evidence for the mortalistic position in the Catholic traditions (liturgy, apocrypha, material culture). Pope John Paul II expressed the mortalistic position in his public speech. Many theologians note by way of comparison that in the Catholic Church the Assumption is dogmatically defined, whilst in the Eastern Orthodox tradition
1652-531: The Turkish invaders chasing her arrived, they didn't look for her in the cave because they thought the girl could not be hiding there as there was an intact web at the entrance, which would have been damaged had she entered the cave. The Marquis Mallia Tabone Farmhouse is a folklore attraction run by the Talent Mosti philanthropy in collaboration with the adjacent school's council. The farmhouse overlooks
1711-539: The Virgin Mary, Begetter of God, the most pure bed and temple of the Holy Spirit, that is, her most holy body, was carried to heaven by angels. Orthodox Christians fast for fourteen days before the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, including abstinence from sexual relations. Fasting in the Orthodox Churches generally consists of abstinence from certain food groups; during the Dormition fast, one observes
1770-483: The ancient common traditions". The Protestant reformer Heinrich Bullinger believed in the assumption of Mary. His 1539 polemical treatise against idolatry expressed his belief that Mary's sacrosanctum corpus ("sacrosanct body") had been assumed into heaven by angels: Hac causa credimus ut Deiparae virginis Mariae purissimum thalamum et spiritus sancti templum, hoc est, sacrosanctum corpus ejus deportatum esse ab angelis in coelum. For this reason we believe that
1829-559: The apocryphal books, with Stephen J. Shoemaker stating: For instance, Baldi, Masconi, and Cothenet analyzed the corpus of Dormition narratives using a rather different approach, governed primarily by language tradition rather than literary relations, and yet all agree that the Obsequies (i.e., the Liber Requiei Mariae ) and the Six Books Dormition Apocryphon reflect the earliest traditions, locating their origins in
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1888-638: The assumption is said to have taken place in Ephesus , in the House of the Virgin Mary . This is a much more recent and localised tradition. The earliest traditions say that Mary's life ended in Jerusalem (see Tomb of the Virgin Mary ). According to the Passing of the Blessed Virgin Mary , attributed to Joseph of Arimathea , which is a later version of the Virgin Mary's Dormition, probably from sometime after
1947-401: The basis of biblical or church tradition whether Mary had died or remained immortal, his indecisive reflections suggest that some difference of opinion on the matter had already arisen in his time, and he identified three beliefs concerning her end: that she had a normal and peaceful death; that she died as a martyr; or that she did not die. Even more, in another text Epiphanius stated that Mary
2006-410: The construction of many new houses. New built-up zones with residential houses are found on the outskirts of older Mosta. These new zones are known as: Santa Margerita, Tal-Blata l-Għolja, Iż-Żokrija, Is-Sgħajtar and Ta’ Mlit. This means that the population of Mosta is increasing. Mosta has also become a bustling commercial centre. All these developments have made Mosta a big town by local standards and it
2065-664: The dogma" of the assumption. The apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus mentions several Holy Fathers, theologians and Doctors of the Church who held the Assumption of Mary, among them are Adrian I , Sergius I , Leo IV , John of Damascus , Amadeus of Lausanne , Modestus of Jerusalem , Anthony of Padua , Albertus Magnus , Thomas of Aquinas (Angelic Doctor), Bonaventure (Seraphic Doctor), Bernardino of Siena , Robert Bellarmine , Francis de Sales , Peter Canisius , Francisco Suárez , among others. The apostolic constitution adds: "All these proofs and considerations of
2124-475: The dome of the church whilst people were inside, but it failed to explode. The detonator was removed and a replica bomb is now displayed as a memorial. A prominent feature of Rotunda Square is a statue of a lion on a pedestal, which was removed in 2023 and placed in the public garden behind the church. Once, this was part of a fountain which originally was in Sliema . The fountain has since been removed. The statue
2183-477: The early seventh century, one of the apostles, often identified as Thomas the Apostle , was not present at the death of Mary but his late arrival precipitates a reopening of Mary's tomb, which is found to be empty except for her grave clothes. Finally, Mary drops her girdle down to the apostle from heaven as testament to the event. This incident is depicted in many later paintings of the Assumption. Teaching of
2242-545: The fall of mankind, by the seductive voice of the snake in the Bible, represents the fallen angel, Satan or "the devil". Similarly, the great dragon in Revelation 12 is a representation of Satan, identified with the serpent from the garden who has enmity with the woman. Therefore, in Catholic thought, there is an association between this woman and Mary's Assumption. Among the many other passages noted by Pope Pius XII were
2301-513: The final dogmatic development, rather than the point of origin, of these traditions. There is a large number of accounts of assumption of the Virgin Mary, published in various languages (including Greek, Latin, Coptic, Syriac, Ethiopic, Arabic). The standard Greek text is the one attributed to St John the Theologian (Evangelist). The standard Latin is that attributed to Melito of Sardis. Shoemaker mentions that "the ancient narratives are neither clear nor unanimous in either supporting or contradicting
2360-579: The following: The Bible mentions two prominent figures, Enoch and Elijah , who were taken up to heaven, serving as important precedents for the assumption of Mary. Enoch, referenced in the Book of Genesis , is noted for his intimate walk with God and is described as having been "taken" by God ( Genesis 5:24 ), an event that is also reported in the Epistle to the Hebrews ( Hebrews 11:5 ). Similarly, Elijah,
2419-622: The great prophet, was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind, accompanied by a chariot of fire, as recorded in 2 Kings ( 2 Kings 2:11 ). In the 12th century, the German nun Elisabeth of Schönau was reportedly granted visions of Mary and her son which had a profound influence on the Western Church's tradition. In her work Visio de resurrectione beate virginis Mariae relates how Mary was assumed in body and soul into Heaven. On 1 May 1950 Gilles Bouhours (a marian seer) reported to Pius XII
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2478-597: The hamlet of Ħal Dimech, now part of Mosta, and not far from the Ta' Bistra Catacombs . Within the grounds of Fort Mosta, there is a small catacomb . Originally, this was a Punic shaft tomb but it was enlarged into a Roman period catacomb complete with an agape table. This site is within the confines of Fort Mosta which is used by the Armed Forces of Malta . Another small catacomb is found in Wied il-Għasel, consisting of
2537-399: The historicity of the assumption and Dormition narratives. According to Antoine Wenger "the strikingly diverse traditions of Mary's Dormition and Assumption arise from ‘a great variety of original types’, rather than being the result of a progressive modification of a single, original tradition". Simon Claude Mimouni and his predecessors have argued that belief in the Virgin's Assumption is
2596-793: The holy Fathers and the theologians are based upon the Sacred Writings as their ultimate foundation." Father Jugie, expressed the view that Revelation 12 :1–2 was the chief scriptural witness to the assumption: And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; and she was with child ... This passage, Epiphanius proposes, may indicate that Mary did not die as other human beings, but somehow remained immortal, although he makes clear his own uncertainty and refrains from advocating this view. Ultimately Epiphanius concludes: "[I] am not saying that she remained immortal. But neither am I affirming that she died." Since
2655-541: The hope that the belief in the bodily assumption of the virgin Mary into heaven "will make our belief in our own resurrection stronger and render it more effective", while the Catechism of the Catholic Church adds: "The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians." In some versions of the assumption narrative,
2714-569: The hoped-for sign. Six months after the private audience granted to Gilles by the pope, Pius XII himself proclaimed the dogma of the Assumption of body and soul of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven. Some Catholics believe that Mary died before being assumed, but they believe that she was miraculously resurrected before being assumed (mortalistic interpretation). Others believe she was assumed bodily into Heaven without first dying (immortalistic interpretation). Either understanding may be legitimately held by Catholics, with Eastern Catholics observing
2773-489: The limits of Mosta and cart ruts are primary evidence of this. Each dolmen has two rectangular standing stones and one other similar stone positioned horizontally above the other two. In the Middle Ages, Mosta was a small hamlet amongst a number of other hamlets, each sparsely populated. These tiny villages were Raħal Calleja, Raħal Ħobla, Raħal Pessa or Pise, Raħal Sir, Raħal Kircipulli, Raħal Brabar and Raħal Dimech. In
2832-578: The question of whether Mary died or whether she was raised to eternal life without bodily death. The equivalent belief in the Eastern Christianity is the Dormition of the Mother of God or the "Falling Asleep of the Mother of God". The word 'assumption' derives from the Latin word assūmptiō , meaning 'taking up'. Pope Pius XII expressed in his encyclical Munificentissimus Deus
2891-660: The second or third century. According to Shoemaker, the first known narrative to address the end of Mary's life and her assumption is the apocryphal third- and possibly second-century Liber Requiei Mariae ("The Book of Mary's Repose"). Yet numerous features indicate that the Liber Requiei Mariae , or the Obsequies of the Virgin , as the text is called in Syriac, is even older than this ancient manuscript alone would suggest. Another early source that speaks of
2950-609: The site was covered over by a new road leading down to Burmarrad . Further studies in 2004, 2013, and 2014, have brought the site back to life with new discoveries. This site has been part of three EU-funded projects and is now managed by Heritage Malta . An attraction in Mosta is the Speranza Chapel in the Speranza Valley. The chapel was built between 1760 and 1761. A legend tied to the Chapel recounts that, during
3009-569: The south to the north. Mosta boasts the third largest unsupported dome in the world . The church, also commonly known as the Rotunda of Mosta or the Mosta Dome, is dedicated to the Assumption . The Feast of the Assumption is held on 15 August and it is a public holiday in Malta. From its inception as a parish in 1608, Mosta has had three different churches built on the same site, with the current one being designed by Giorgio Grognet de Vassé ,
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#17327985306043068-403: The symbol of the promise made by Jesus to all enduring Christians that they too will be received into paradise. The Assumption of Mary is symbolised in the Fleur-de-lys Madonna. The present Italian name of the holiday, Ferragosto , may derive from the Latin name, Feriae Augusti ("Holidays of the Emperor Augustus "), since the month of August took its name from the emperor. The feast
3127-511: The time of the early Church Fathers, this image of "the woman clothed with the sun" has had a threefold symbolism: the ancient people of Israel, the Church and Mary. Many of the bishops cited Genesis 3:15 , in which God is addressing the serpent in the Garden of Eden , as the primary confirmation of Mary's assumption: I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel. Many scholars connect Jesus' usage of
3186-404: The two communions, released in 2004 a non-authoritative declaration meant for study and evaluation, the "Seattle Statement"; this "agreed statement" concludes that "the teaching about Mary in the two definitions of the Assumption and the Immaculate Conception , understood within the biblical pattern of the economy of hope and grace, can be said to be consonant with the teaching of the Scriptures and
3245-496: The valley of Wied il-Għasel . It houses exhibitions varying from paintings, photography, artisan work, hobbies and a permanent folklore museum. Two dolmens, dating back to the Bronze Age , can be seen in a field between Vjal Ragusa and Dawret il-Wied. The Cumbo Tower is a fortified residence in Mosta. In the grounds there is a small Christian family tomb from the Roman era. This is a site that has most likely been destroyed, and has been recorded by Emmanuel Magri as being in
3304-438: The word "woman" to call Mary instead of calling her "mother" as a confirmation of Mary being the "woman" described in Genesis 3:15. Mary was often seen as the " New Eve ", who crushed the serpent's head at the Annunciation by obeying the angel Gabriel when he said she would bear the Messiah (Luke 1:38). The Catechism of the Catholic Church affirms that the account of the fall in Genesis 3 uses figurative language, and that
3363-424: Was like Elijah because she never died but was assumed, like him. Other works that mention the assumption of Mary are the apocryphal treatise De Obitu S. Dominae , bearing the name of St. John, which belongs however to the fourth or fifth century. It is also found in the apocryphal book De Transitus Beatae Mariae Virginis , falsely ascribed to Melito of Sardis , and in a spurious letter attributed to Denis
3422-429: Was taken up into heaven bodily in anticipation of the general resurrection . Orthodox tradition is clear and unwavering in regard to the central point [of the Dormition]: the Holy Virgin underwent, as did her Son, a physical death, but her body – like His – was afterwards raised from the dead and she was taken up into heaven, in her body as well as in her soul. She has passed beyond death and judgement and lives wholly in
3481-477: Was taken up to heaven." The feast of the Dormition , imported from the East and held annually on 15 August, arrived in the West in the early 7th century, its name changing to Assumption in some 9th century liturgical calendars. It is mentioned in a papal decree of Sergius I (687-701), who fixed a procession for the feast. Pope Leo IV (reigned 847–855) gave the feast a vigil and an octave to solemnise it above all others, Pope Nicholas I (858–867) placed it on
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