Zagreb, (IKA) – On October 30, when the Secretary of State of the Holy See, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was visiting Croatia, he met with representatives of the religious communities at the Apostolic Nunciature in Zagreb. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Macedonian Orthodox Church, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the Baptist Union in the Republic of Croatia, the Reformed Christian Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church, the Old Catholic Church of Croatia, the Islamic Community in Croatia, and the Coordinating Committee of the Jewish Communities in Croatia. The meeting was also attended by the Apostolic Nuncio in the Republic of Croatia, Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto; the Secretary of the Nunciature, Msgr. Janusz Stanislaw Blachowiak; and the former President of the Council of the Croatian Conference of Bishops for Ecumenism and Dialogue, Bishop Vlado Košić of Sisak.
Conveying greetings from Pope Francis, Cardinal Parolin thanked those present for responding to his invitation and encouraged them to continue to promote respectful and sincere dialogue. He recalled that the Croats were the first Slavic nation to convert to the Gospel, and spoke about the role of Christianity, which has influenced a good part of the Western world and is today characterized by a multicultural and multireligious context. He referred to Croatia as a historical model of religious pluralism, in which awareness of its spiritual roots has not waned in the slightest. He also spoke about the importance of religious freedom, as the foundation of guaranteed rights. Speaking about the importance of dialogue among religions, Cardinal Parolin recalled how the Catholic Church at the Second Vatican Council defined itself as a Church of dialogue. In conclusion, he said: “If we truly want to provide benefit to society, we must encourage each other to search for new ethics, that is, to develop common rules that make it possible for humankind to coexist in justice and peace.”