With the death of Monsignor Victor Grech last Wednesday, 5th February, Malta lost a giant in social work and pastoral care. At 95, Mgr. Grech leaves behind a legacy of compassion, dedication, and tireless service to the most vulnerable members of society.
The Maltese Herald met Fr. Jimmy Bonnici, Rector of the Archbishop’s Seminary, who shared insights into Mgr. Grech’s early years in the priesthood. He recalled that Mgr. Grech was ordained on 17th March 1956, and his first mission was at the Archbishop’s Seminary, where he served as vice-rector from 1956 to 1962 and later as rector until 1977. During his time at the seminary, 200 priests were ordainedโsomething that speaks to his lasting influence on the formation of Maltese clergy.
During these years, Mgr. Grech showed a quality that would define his later ministry โ a deep awareness of the changing world and a creative response to emerging needs. Fr. Bonnici said that after the Second Vatican Council, Mgr. Grech felt the urgent call for priests in under-served dioceses and played a crucial role in establishing a Maltese missionary presence in Brazil. Then again, inspired by Isaiah 59:1, “Behold the hand of the Lord is not shortened that it cannot save, neither is his ear heavy that it cannot hear,” he encouraged seminarians to become missionaries, a vision that today continues to bear fruit.
His dedication to priestly formation was not limited to administration alone. At the Faculty of Theology, he taught Homiletics and emphasised the importance of preaching as an expression of human interaction. According to Fr. Bonnici, much more than teaching the homily as an art, Mgr. Grech lived by the belief that the Gospel should shape one’s way of communicating from the heart, an approach that remained at the core of his work during the later years.
Besides priestly formation, Mgr. Grech was a driving force in social outreach, especially among drug addicts. He turned Caritas Malta, of which he was director for many years, into a professional place that offered rehabilitation programs and support structures for substance abusers. In 1985, he founded Malta’s first Therapeutic Community for drug abusers – a project that changed the lives of many.
His commitment went beyond addiction services. Mgr. Grech was a pioneer in advocating for the elderly, intergenerational solidarity, and ensuring that social justice remained at the heart of the Church’s mission. This work brought him several accolades, including the National Worker of the Year Award in December 2023, and a nomination for the European Citizens’ Prize.
Even in his later years, he was an inspiration to many. Whether in pastoral duties, public speaking, or in silent acts of charity, Mgr. Grech lived the verse that faith must be lived through action.
His death marks the end of an era, but the legacy – one of unwavering service and profoundย humanity – will endure in institutions born through him and the lives he touched.
Fr. Jimmy Bonnici
News Editor
Journalist and Newscaster
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