Harrisburg (IKA) – On August 31, the archbishop of Zagreb, Cardinal Josip Bozanić, visited Croatian Catholics in Harrisburg, the capital city of Pennsylvania, the site of the oldest Croatian Catholic mission in the United States, as part of his recent visit to the United States. The Cardinal celebrated Mass in the Croatian language in the overflowing cathedral, together with the local bishop, Kevin Rhoades, and fifteen Croatian and American priests.

At the beginning of the Mass, Bishop Rhoades greeted those present in the Croatian language. Expressing great joy to be among such a large number of Croatians, Cardinal Bozanić thanked God that the Croatians in this region had preserved their faith and expressed the desire for those assembled to become even more steadfast. During the sermon, he spoke about the Blessed Alojzije Stepinac and suggested that those assembled heed the words of Pope John Paul II, who in 1998 at the Shrine of Our Lady of Bistrica urged the Croatian faithful to make the Blessed Alojzije Stepinac their model. Cardinal Bozanić emphasized that the Blessed Stepinac was an example of how to remain faithful to God and the Church, who teaches us to love our nation and value our heritage. Cardinal Bozanić also expressed his compassion for the suffering victims of Hurricane Katrina, especially those in the city of New Orleans.
At the end of the celebration of the Mass, representatives of the Croatians from Steelton, Pennsylvania presented Cardinal Bozanić with a piece of wood from the local Croatian Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven.

Before the celebration of the Mass, Cardinal Bozanić had visited the church of the former Croatian parish of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Steelton, several kilometers from Harrisburg. This church was built in 1916 by Croatian emigrants, primarily from the Karlovac-Jaska region. The St. Lawrence Club was established here in 1895. It was from this period that the first efforts to establish a Croatian parish originated. At the request of the bishop of Harrisburg, the Rev. Dobroslav Božić came to Steelton. The Rev. Božić purchased an abandoned Lutheran church, adapted it for Catholic worship and celebrated Mass in the Croatian language for the first time there in the year 1898. A decade ago, this church became the parish church for five surrounding parishes that merged together. The church abounds with many interesting features that bear witness to the Croatian religious and national presence in this region.