[WATCH] Oliver Friggieri given final farewell

Archbishop Scicluna gave Oliver Friggieri a final farewell during a funeral mass celebrated at St. John's Co-Cathedral. 

With a book of collected works by Friggieri in his hands, Archbishop Scicluna recited several haikus penned by the poet during his homily. "Oliver knew that poems, maturity, and wisdom pass through suffering," he said. "He knew that wisdom means not necessarily having an answer to the question, but being capable of asking it."

"A poet is someone who, with love, offers us the truth. He speaks with intellectual honesty, friendly humility, but with the clarity of someone who sees and understands."

Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday

"A poet dies, he wrote, and after him he leaves a pack of sentiments. Today as a nation, as Maltese, we make part of the pack of sentiments left behind by the death of Oliver," Scicluna said. 

The funeral of Oliver Friggieri took place at 2pm at St. John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta, declared a day of mourning to salute the poet and writer. The government opted for a State-organised funeral in honour of Friggieri and his “extraordinary contribution” to the country.

The funeral procession left Mater Dei Hospital at 12:45pm to the University of Malta where Friggieri spent decades lecturing in the Department of Maltese, where he also served as head of department and professor of literature.

From there, the funeral procession proceeded to his private residence in Fleur-de-Lys, and in front of the St Publius church in Floriana, Friggieri’s birthplace, where he was be greeted by the Floriana Local Council and the parish clergy.

The procession finally moved along to St John’s Co-Cathedral. At the end of the mass, the funeral will continue in a strictly private form.

Chancellor David Attard, Rector Alfred Vella, and colleagues at the University of Malta giving their last farewell to Oliver Friggieri

Due to the pandemic, only those who received an official invitation was allowed to enter St John’s Co-Cathedral.

Friggieri passed away on 21 November. He was an intellectual, a poet, novelist, literary critic, and minor philosopher.

READ MORE: Oliver Friggieri, intellectual who articulated nation’s consciousness, passes away