Banja Luka (IKA) — The official logotype of the Bosnian & Herzegovian Conference of Bishops for the second Pastoral Visit by Pope John Paul II to Bosnia & Herzegovina and the beatification of the Servant of God Ivan Merz on June 22, 2003, will have four basic elements, as follows: the recognizable outline of the Banja Luka cathedral, divided into four fields, a dominant cross of the Old Croatian braided design (pleter), the monogram of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the base of the cross, and the Pope’s banner.
The Banja Luka Cathedral, in the shape of a tent, that symbolizes the Church, is divided into four fields representing the four (arch)dioceses of the Church in Bosnia & Herzegovina that are being visited by the Pope, because this is first of all a pastoral visit to the local Church and the city of Banja Luka. In addition to the host Banja Luka Diocese, these are the Sarajevo Archdiocese, the Mostar Diocese and the Trebinje Diocese. The red color of these four fields symbolizes the martyred past and the suffering of the faithful of these local Churches.
All of these dioceses are connected by a cross fashioned from Old Croatian braid (pleter). The cross is the basic symbol of Christianity. The largest number of Catholics in the territory of Bosnia & Herzegovina are members of the Croatian nation, which for nearly 14 centuries has belonged to the Catholic Church. This stylized cross also connects Banja Luka, the birthplace of the future beatus, the Servant of God Dr. Ivan Merz, and Zagreb, where he worked, achieved his holiness, died in holiness and is buried.
The most distinguished member of Christ’s Church is his mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Her monogram, the blue letter M, is woven into the base of the cross but also into the symbol of the cathedral, i.e. the living Church of this region. Mary is the Mother of Jesus Christ, our Savior, but also the Mother of the Church, and this is most of all the Church that makes a pilgrimage toward its goal in eternity. Mary is the living connection with her son Jesus and the concrete Church. There is also a certain symbolism in the fact that the same letter M is the first letter of the surname of the new beatus, Merz, and this symbol thus takes on another meaning. The Servant of God Ivan, like the Pope who is making a pastoral visit to Bosnia & Herzegovina, have been known for their fervent devotion to Mary. The Pope’s motto is Totus tuus, all yours (the Pope placed his entire pontificate under the protection of Mary).
The fourth element is the colors of the Pope’s banner: white and yellow. Jesus said to the Apostle Peter that he was the rock, on whom he would build his Church. The Pope as the successor to the Apostle Peter continues this office, protecting the unity of Christ’s Church and certainty in faith; together with the perpetuation by the college of bishops of the pastoral charge given by Christ to the college of the apostles. For bishops, he is the guardian and authentic interpreter of the Word of God and the distributor of the means of consecration, i.e. the holy sacraments. All of these characteristics in a certain sense are united in the person of the new beatus, Ivan Merz.