St Paul's Church, Safi

St Paul's Church, formally known as The Parish Church of the Conversion of Saint Paul, is a Roman Catholic parish church located in the village of Safi in Malta.

St Paul's Church
The Parish Church of the Conversion of St Paul
Il-Knisja Parrokkjali ta' San Pawl
35°50′01.9″N 14°29′01.0″E
Location	Safi, Malta
Denomination	Roman Catholic
History
Status	Active
Dedication	Conversion of Paul the Apostle
Consecrated	10 October 1784
Architecture
Functional status	Parish church
Architectural type	Church
Style	Baroque Doric
Groundbreaking	1727
Completed	1744
Specifications
Number of domes	1
Number of spires	1
Materials	Limestone
Administration
Archdiocese	Malta
Parish	Safi

The Parish

Before Safi became an independent parish in 1598, it formed part of the medieval parish of Bir Miftuħ, which is nowadays part of the parish of Gudja. The parish of St Mary of Bir Miftuħ is one of the original medieval parishes that are mentioned by Bishop Senatore de Mello in 1436. In 1592, the villages of Safi, Mqabba, and Kirkop were merged into a single parish, with St Leonard in Kirkop becoming the parish church. On April 13, 1598 Safi became an independent parish.^[1][2]

The church

The original church of St Paul was much smaller than the present building. It was chosen from among five of the churches in the village to serve as the parish church. The present Baroque church, which is in the doric style, was built on the site of the original one between 1727 and 1744. It was consecrated on October 10, 1784.^[3]

Interior

The church has a number of paintings. Among these are the titular painting, by Stefano Erardi, which is located behind the high altar and depicts the conversion of St Paul.

References

1. "Il-Knisja Parrokkjali", Safi Parish. Retrieved on 18 July 2017.
2. "Safi Parish Church", Malta.com. Retrieved on 18 July 2017.
3. "Ħal Safi", Archdiocese of Malta. Retrieved on 18 July 2017.