The founding
of the church
On 20 April 1909,
the noble Carlo Ermolao Zimmermann Barbaro donated the church of Jesus of
Nazareth, together with other immovable property, to the religious community of the Dominican fathers. Fr Antoninus Gatt, as Provincial of the Maltese Dominicans, was present on the formal agreement to receive the endowment while binding himself, on behalf of his convent to fulfil the spiritual and religious obligations conditioned to the donation (ref 4).
This legal agreement bears events of deep and interesting historical value.
On the 27th December 1893, the Marquis Zimmermann and his wife, the noble Victoria, founded a church - with rights of a lay
patronate - dedicated to Jesus of Nazareth . The founding of the
church was formally approved by the decree of 15 December 1899 of Archbishop
Peter Pace . The Marquis and his wife bore all costs of the works
and built the church on their landed property in Marina and Tigne’ Street (as
the road was then known) in Sliema; they furnished it with all necessary
objects, and had it open for use of the faithful. The church cost 16,000
pounds sterling or 40,000 francs . The noble couple reserved the right,
jointly or separately after the demise of either of them, to give or offer the
same church to some religious order or congregation.
The church was consecrated
on 2 July 1895 , and was affiliated with the Lateran Basilica in
Rome the following year. A formal
certificate of 5 July 1896, decreed on 17 August of the same year, states
this fact and adds that the Sanctuary of Jesus of Nazareth thus enjoys
the same spiritual benefits and indulgences of the Roman Temple; that whoever
visits the church in Sliema and receives the Sacrament of Confession will enjoy
the same graces .
A letter of the
Cardinal Secretary of State of the Vatican also states that the church
was declared a Sanctuary by the Pope. Moreover, another certificate of 12
December 1900 confirms the church’s affiliation to the Vatican Basilica .
The noble Victoria Borg annexed other property to the church by a legal deed of
13 April 1902. This is listed as numbers 14 to 18 in Marina Tigne’
Street, and numbers 1 to 4 in St Anthony of Padova Street . This
she decreed in case the church was passed on to some congregation or religious
order. The clerics could use the premises numbered 14 in Marina Tigne’
Street for their personal use as this was the largest house of the whole
lot. The rented income from the other property was to serve as a means of
living for the religious brethren who were to care for and administer the church.
Victoria
Zimmermann Barbaro died on 26 July 1904. The spiritual legates which she
bequeathed were legally recognised by deed of 22 September 1905 drawn by Notary
Francis Caruana Dingli.