Review article
The Croats to the Pope - The Pope to the Croats
Ksenija Rukavina
Abstract
The article presents a brief survey of the messages uttered in the course of the Holy Father's, Pope John Paul II's, two pastoral visits to Croatia in 1994 and 1998 by the high-ranking officials of both Church and state on the one hand, and of the Pope on the other. The aim of the author is to point out ways in which these correspond, and ways in which these may depart from the perception and reception of the said messages, with consideration to the social/historical and cultural circumstances of that time. Thus the article traces the Pope's visit chronologically, and focuses on the principal speakers: the Holy Father, Dr. Franjo Tuđman, the first Croatian President, Franjo Cardinal Kuharić, Msgr. Josip Bozanić, Archbishop of Zagreb, and Msgr. Ante Jurić, Archbishop of Split-Makarska. Their words and messages are a reflection of the permanent dialogue between the Holy See and Croatia, a dialogue in which Croatian history is interwoven with the present time. Therefore the focus of our study shall be upon the words which were uttered.
The motto of the Pope's first visit on September 10 to 11, 1994 was, "ThePope is with you!" At a time when the wounds of war were still festering, and battles were still being fought for the liberation of occupied regions of Croatia; at a time when Croatia was encumbered by problems of the evacuated, exiled and refugee populations, this motto was truly meaningful. So too were the Pope's messages of peace, and the cries, pleas, and pledges of the Croatian faithful to their Pope.
Four years later in 1998, during the post-war reconstruction period, the Pope came for a second time on October 2 - 4, and his motto then was, "You shall be my witnesses!" This motto is at the core of all of the Popes messages and teachings. The purpose of his second visit was to strengthen bonds within the Catholic Church and the Croatian nation, thereby giving a substantial contribution to national unity and communion. Through his sojourn in Zagreb and Split he created a bond between the two martyrs, Cardinal Alojzije Stepinac and St. Dujam, thus linking and consecrating the history of Christian martyrdom in this region of the world. As Msgr. Josip Bozanić, Archbishop of Zagreb, expressed, ours was a history of "both martyrdom and devotion to Mary, in a word, a testimony to the faith."
On the occasion of his third visit at the beginning of the third millennium, the Holy Father will place an emphasis on the necessity for a faith based on testimony and martyrdom. Is this coming visit to be a continuation of the dialogue begun during the first two visits, or is it to mean a new start? This is a question which must be asked by each one of us. Therefore, this article wishes to present those beautiful, moving words addressed by the Croats to the Pope and by the Pope to the Croats in order that we might prepare ourselves well for this magnificent and graced event - the third pastoral visit of the Holy Father to Croatia.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
1199
URI
Publication date:
3.6.2003.
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