Malta is officially a Roman Catholic country, though there is freedom of religion. We have attended an Anglican church. We're told that there is a Lutheran congregation somewhere on the island. We've seen Baptist and pentecostal churches and a mosque. But the vast majority of Maltans are Catholics, and they generally take their faith seriously, and devotion to the Virgin Mary is particularly strong.
Saints days are big in Malta! Saturday is the Feast of St. Joseph, so on Friday night there were big processions all over the island, including one near our flat. Traffic was re-routed, which caused its own problems. A full-sized public transit bus got stuck in the narrow streets near us for awhile.
This was supposed to be St. Joseph's Day, but everything we saw and heard was about his wife. Joseph was not on display in the procession we saw, only Mary and Jesus. Hundreds of people followed the statue, a band played, and hymns and readings blasted from loudspeakers for blocks around.
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