The Missionary Society of St Paul gives thanks to God as Fr Gerard Bonello MSSP celebrates the 50th anniversary of his priestly ordination, marking five decades of faithful service to the Church, to education and to the Society’s missionary mission.
Born in Rabat on 7 July 1948, Fr Gerard is the youngest of six siblings. After completing his primary education in his hometown and his secondary studies at the Hamrun Lyceum, he entered the novitiate at St Agatha’s House in 1965, beginning a journey that would shape generations of students, missionaries and communities.
Alongside his formation within the Society, Fr Gerard pursued higher studies at the University of Malta, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and Arts, before continuing his theological formation at INSERM. Even before completing his theological studies, he had already begun teaching at St Paul’s Missionary College, a ministry that would become one of the defining features of his priesthood.
Fr Gerard was ordained priest in 1976 at St John’s Co-Cathedral by Archbishop Joseph Mercieca.
His first appointment was as Vice Rector of St Paul’s Missionary College, and in 1980 he was entrusted with the role of Rector, succeeding Fr Bernard Mangion MSSP. He would go on to lead the College for thirty years, guiding it through one of the most significant periods of its development and growth.
During these years, he also spent two years in Rome specialising in Educational Sciences at the Salesian Pontifical University, further strengthening his commitment to Catholic education. Upon returning to Malta, he resumed his leadership of the College at a time when Church schools were facing considerable challenges. Through his active involvement in the Church Schools Committee, he played an important role during a particularly demanding period of dialogue and negotiations concerning the future of Church education in Malta.
Following his retirement as Rector, Fr Gerard’s missionary spirit led him beyond Malta. After spending a year serving in the Philippines, he was assigned in October 2010 to the MSSP mission in Pakistan, where he continues to serve with generosity and dedication.
His fifty years of priesthood reflect a ministry lived in many different ways: as educator, formator, leader and missionary. Throughout these years, Fr Gerard has remained deeply committed to the mission entrusted to him, accompanying young people, serving the Church through education, and proclaiming the Gospel wherever the Society has called him.
As we celebrate this golden jubilee, the Missionary Society of St Paul thanks Fr Gerard for his unwavering fidelity, generous service and enduring witness to the missionary vocation. We assure him of our prayers and gratitude, asking the Lord to continue blessing him with strength, peace and joy in the years ahead.