Ecclesiastical Histories

Ecclesiastical Histories

Sozomen, Salaminius Hermias (ca. 400-450) 

Socrates of Constantinople (ca. 380-450) 

Philip Schaff (1819-1893)

"I shall first speak of the relics of the prophet. An independent chapter, built on a local story. Caphar-Zechariah is a village of the territory of Eleutheropolis, a city of Palestine. The land of this district was cultivated by Calemerus, a serf; he was well disposed to the owner, but hard, discontented, and unjust towards his neighboring peasants. Although he possessed these defects of character, the prophet stood by him in a dream, and manifested himself; pointing out a particular garden, he said to him, “Go, dig in that garden at the distance of two cubits from the hedge of the garden by the road leading to the city of Bitheribis. You will there find two coffins, the inner one of wood, the other of lead. Beside the coffins you will see a glass vessel full of water, and two serpents of moderate size, but tame, and perfectly innoxious, so that they seem to be used to being handled.” Calemerus followed the directions of the prophet at the designated place and zealously applied himself to the task. When the sacred depository was disclosed by the afore-mentioned signs, the divine prophet appeared to him, clad in a white stole, which makes me think that he was a priest. At his feet outside of the coffin was lying a child which had been honored with a royal burial; for on its head was a golden crown, its feet were encased in golden sandals, and it was arrayed in a costly robe. The wise men and priests of the time were greatly perplexed about this child, who and whence he might be and for what reason he had been so clothed. It is said that Zechariah, the superior of a monastic community at Gerari, found an ancient document written in Hebrew, which had not been received among the canonical books. In this document it was stated that when Zechariah the prophet had been put to death by Joash, king of Judah, the family of the monarch was soon visited by a dire calamity; for on the seventh day after the death of the prophet, one of the sons of Joash, whom he tenderly loved, suddenly expired. Judging that this affliction was a special manifestation of Divine wrath, the king ordered his son to be interred at the feet of the prophet, as a kind of atonement for the crime against him. Such are the particulars which I have ascertained on the subject.

Although the prophet had lain under the earth for so many generations, he appeared sound; his hair was closely shorn, his nose was straight; his beard moderately grown, his head quite short, his eyes rather sunken, and concealed by the eyebrows."





Santa Maria Addolorata Cemetery

The Santa Maria Addolorata Cemetery is hidden away outside of Paola which is a short bus ride from Valetta. When I visited the cemetery it was 35 degrees centigrade and very dry. The dust clouds formed a haze that found its way into the mouth and up the nose. The Maltese bus drivers didn’t seem to know where the cemetery was located and had even less knowledge as to which bus stop I should use. This is a surprise becasue the cemetery is huge and the final resting place for many Maltese.

I managed to find the place easily enough and managed to cross the busy lanes of traffic that separates the blisteringly hot cemetery on the hillside from the population down below. The British neo-Gothic style marks the cemetery out from the usual baroque structures on the island. The formality of the entrance arch and the Church formed a backdrop that was impressive although it left me unprepared for the enormous cemetery that lay behind the walls. The burials are found in below ground mausolea capped by marble slabs and stele as well as above ground monuments. The marble used in the structures and monuments would fill an entire quarry. The cemetery is marvellous,  worth seeing and part of the 'world class' list of cemeteries that could be compiled. The usual names are found here "Azzopardi", "Caruana" and "Borg" are present and laid out in strict well maintained lines with their neighbours and friends.

Access to the cemetery is in ‘drives’ along the contours of the hill and when I was there a funeral was taking place with relatives making their way in large black cars. The Maltese understand the importance of funerals and the big black car behind the hearse is a well used metaphor on the island. The signs at the entrance were a shock because they were clearly forbidding photographs and I have to say that I was disappointed. There was so much to photograph although I follow the rules and if the sign says no photographs then there are no photographs. The temptation was great as there appeared to be no one around although I believe in behaving ethically when visiting burial sites. My apologies for the absence of pictures.

The burials are well laid out and protected, at least at the first glance, although on a closer inspection it becomes clear that some above ground structures have been damaged and items on the walls appear to have been broken and carried away. So much for the 'Marquis of this and that' who would find their monuments looking a little sad with a dry and flimsy wooden door revealing the walls now lacking ornamentation.Presumably ripped from the walls by thieves. The Maltese newspapers carry stories about thefts from tombs and I think I saw the brutal evidence of such thefts.  



Looking for the Commonwealth war graves at
Santa Maria Addolorata Cemetery
© Godric Godricson

 I looked inside the metal grills of various funerary chapels and found no inhumations with all burials being decently below ground. Unfortunately, The dry heat eventually took its toll and after an hour or so wandering amongst the monuments, I had to leave for the bus back to Valetta and a cold drink.

On the way out of the cemetery, I asked for the section maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission although the caretaker didn’t speak English and he seemed a little blunt even when speaking Malti to other visitors. I should say that the photograph alongside this comment was taken at Kalkara.

Ettore Barbara - Kalkara



Photograph on the grave of Ettore Barbara
Died 30th June 1915
Kalkara Naval Cemetery - [Link]

© Godric Godricson



Inscription on the grave of Ettore Barbara
Kalkara Naval Cemetery - [Link]

© Godric Godricson



I am a stranger





Genesis 23:1-4 (NRSV)

"1 Sarah lived one hundred twenty-seven years; this was the length of Sarah's life. 2 And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan; and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. 3 Abraham rose up from beside his dead, and said to the Hittites, 4 "I am a stranger and an alien residing among you; give me property among you for a burying place, so that I may bury my dead out of my sight."

Thomas Beckett

History of the Christian Church

 The Middle Ages. A.D. 1049-1294 

Philip Schaff (1819-1893)





"The body of Thomas was buried in the crypt. The remains of his blood and brains were sacredly kept. His monkish admirers discovered, to their amazement and delight, that the martyr, who had once been arrayed in purple and fine linen, wore on his skin under his many garments the coarsest haircloth abounding with vermin. This seemed to betray the perfection of ascetic sanctity according to mediaeval notions".