Feast of St. Gregory in Zejtun

Traditional procession and the first swim of the year

The Feast of Saint Gregory is celebrated in Malta on the 11th of April, 2012 which is the first Wednesday after Easter. This feast is very popular with the Maltese, as tied to this day is the tradition that people take their first swim of the year. 

In the morning there was a procession, led by the Archbishop of Malta, that left from the church dedicated to St. Clement in Zejtun and goes around the village to end up in front of the church of St. Catherine (which is more known as the church of St. Gregory because of this procession). This procession was first held for the first time in 1543.

After the procession and mass, people flocked to Marsaxlokk, to eat the different food available in stalls, listen to local folk music and also playing bingo. Although the weather was not ideal for swimming, several people defied the cold and dived into the sea. 

This tradition began in the late 17th century as a thanksgiving for God's intervention when the bubonic plague hit the island where around 11,000 Maltese lost their lives. At a point, the Feast of St. Gregory was considered as so important that it was customary that a new husband would on his wedding day promise to take his bride to Zejtun for this feast!