Zagreb, (IKA) – On October 31 in the Zagreb cathedral, Auxiliary Bishop Vlado Košić conducted a Mass in commemoration of the 320th anniversary of the death of Bishop Martin Borković of Zagreb. During the sermon, Bishop Košić spoke of Bishop Martin Borković of blessed memory, who died in 1687. The local Zagreb Church remembers him with gratitude as a great bishop who led it for 20 years. Bishop Borković’s contributions to our Church and our Croatian nation are immeasurable. Moreover, we are proud of him and grateful to God for his service to the Church and nation, pointed out Bishop Košić. He then briefly presented the life of Bishop Martin Borković, who was born in the year 1597 in the village of Domagović, now part of the parish in Petrovina near Jastrebarsko. Martin Borković was educated in Zagreb at the Jesuit secondary school in the Upper Town, joined the Order of St. Paul the Hermit in the year 1627 and became a monk when he was thirty years of age. He completed his studies in theology in Rome, where he was ordained to the priesthood in the year 1635. Upon his return to Croatia, Martin Borković spent most of his time in the Pauline monastery in Lepoglava, where he held the office of the General of the Order of St. Paul the Hermit for all of Europe. Bishop Košić emphasized that Borković collaborated with many distinguished persons in our culture. During his service in Lepoglava, he inaugurated the study of philosophy in the year 1644, which marked the beginning of higher education in Croatia and, together with the founding of the Jesuit studies in Zagreb, represented the beginning of the University of Zagreb. Borković particularly distinguished himself by implementing reforms in the Pauline Order, at a time when religious life had fallen into crisis, leading to a decline in callings and lax discipline. It was due to his efforts that the Croatian Paulines moved from Lepoglava to Remete. Martin Borković became the bishop of Zagreb when he was seventy years of age and fervently contributed to the renewal of local ecclesial life. Bishop Košić particularly pointed out that Bishop Borković held four diocesan synods. Although these were clerical synods, they had great impact upon the overall ecclesial life in the Zagreb Diocese and emphasized the bishop’s concern for pastoral sacraments and exemplary priestly life and work. Bishop Borković traveled around the parish, performed canonic visitations, and particularly supported education and the care of the poor. He laid the foundations for orphanotrophy by founding the St. Martin Orphanage on Vlaška Street. Bishop Košić also spoke of the historical circumstances in which Bishop Martin Borković lived. Vir bonus – as he was called by one of his contemporaries, i.e. a good person, lived during exceptionally difficult times. During his episcopal mandate, the so-called Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy of 1671 occurred, which can be called a national tragedy. Turkish invasions continued to menace and the famous Battle of Vienna took place in 1683, when the Christian army under the command of King John III Sobieski was victorious. This was also a time of incursions by military Protestantism in our territories, which Bishop Borković opposed vigorously. At his proposal, in 1687 the Croatian Parliament proclaimed St. Joseph as the patron of the homeland in defense against this threat. We can somewhat understand the difficulty of his position but also the long ranging impact of his decisions. It should be said today that Croatian and thus Borković’s resistance to Protestantism was actually resistance to foreign influences, particularly Hungarian attempts to grasp Croatian territory. We can say more precisely that this resistance was based upon the desire to preserve the language and oppose denationalization. Furthermore, we know that after the execution of Ban Petar Zrinski, Bishop Borković assumed the office of the ban’s governor, locum tenens bani, thereby rescuing Croatian constitutionality and statehood, and preventing the usurpation of the Croatian attributes of statehood and independence. At the hour of his death, the people of Zagreb called him “Pater patria – the Father of the Homeland,” noted Bishop Košić. He concluded his sermon by noting that Bishop Martin Borković of Zagreb was particularly devoted to Our Lady. Thanks to Bishop Borković, the miraculous statue of Our Lady was recovered in Marija Bistrica and a Marian shrine was established there in 1684.