Svetvinčenat, (IKA) – The commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the martyr’s death of the Servant of God Miroslav Bulešić was held on August 24 in Svetvinčent at the site of his grave, which for decades has been a place of prayer and pilgrimage. In the morning hours, the faithful from all parts of Istria but also other parts of Croatia had already begun to assemble at the grave of the Servant of God Miroslav Bulešić. Prior to the introductory program, all the priests and bishops, led by Archbishop Cardinal Bozanić of Zagreb and Bishop Milovan of Poreč and Pula prayed at the martyr’s grave. The Mass was attended by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, Dr. Ivo Sanader, with his wife and associates; the County Prefect of Istria, Ivan Jakovčić, and the Mayor of the Municipality of Svetvinčenat. The Mass was conducted by Cardinal Bozanić, together with 16 archbishops and bishops from Croatia and Slovenia. At the beginning of the celebration of the Mass, all were welcomed by the bishop of Poreč and Pula, Msgr. Ivan Milovan, who pointed out that the Diocese of Poreč and Pula – but also the entire Church in Croatia – commemorates the greatest testimony to faith that the Servant of God Miroslav Bulešić gave through the sacrifice of his own life. “We commemorate the spiritual greatness of Don Miro, his devotion and faithfulness, courage and constancy in his priestly service during the difficult war years and postwar years, and especially his martyr’s death,” said Bishop Milovan.
Following the reading of the Gospel, the homily was delivered by Cardinal Bozanić. “The martyred, saints – regardless of the time in which they lived – are threats to lies. It is only through them that the Church remains alive, free and effective. Jesus repeats to each of his disciples the following today: If you are good and honest, if you are prepared to give your life, or if you have risked it for others; there is no guarantee that you will not be handed over to the courts, beatings, insults and death . . . How many stones have been thrown at the faithful from then until today? How many honest persons have ended their lives in imprisonment, persecution and violent death?” asked Cardinal Bozanić, recalling that the 20th century had numerous martyrs, especially due to fascism, Nazism and communism. “Our times, in comparison to earlier times, with all the knowledge and achievements, have been very cruel. It is not the times that are evil; it is an evil person who chooses evil,” warned the archbishop of Zagreb, adding: “Today, before us Christians, at least in this part of the world, there are no longer organized groups that want blood. The persecutors have become ‘refined.’ They want to establish so-called political and civil correctness with the Church. They try to keep the Church from being excessively involved in daily life, as quiet as possible and aloof. In various ways, there are attempts to discredit and silence the Church. In the so-called civil society, various organizations and associations should be respected but the same rights are not afforded to Christians and the Church. ‘Political correctness’ is often nothing more than a lie and attempt to buy the truth. And we, each of us Christians, not only the representatives of the Church, are called to the truth without recoiling, because we know that it is not a matter of our strength but that which comes from God and the Holy Spirit.”
Referring to the Gospel reading in which Philip found Nathaniel (Bartholomew) and spoke of finding the Messiah, the cardinal emphasized that each of us has our own space in which only God finds us and knows us. “We are here because we want to encounter God. Philip repeats to us: Come and see. If we love the truth, we shall discover here in Svetvinčent that there is someone who reflects the image of Christ. In this place, which may seem too close to us, there is a person who is a genuine believer, Christian, Catholic and priest, a genuine Croatian and Istrian in whom there is no deceit,”
Speaking about Miroslav Bulešić, the cardinal said that during the events of war, among the chaos and vagaries of the ideologies of fascism, Nazism and communism, in which our oppressed Istria found itself, there was a priest whose life was rooted in faith and stands before us today as a brilliant precious jewel. “The crystalline purity of this Croatian priest ensued because he was imbued with the gospel. Because he was rooted in the Good News, he was crystal clear,” testified the president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops on the basis of the martyr’s writings in his spiritual diary, and urged the assembled priests to recognize the path of their own callings in suffering for Christ. The cardinal spoke about the time in which the Servant of God Miroslav Bulešić lived and the regimes that systematically destroyed the people and faithful of Istria, especially the period following the Second World War, the time of communism, when “fields of death were sown, ditches and trenches overflowing with corpses.” The cardinal asked himself: “How is it possible that people who knew the truth were so profoundly frightened and no one anywhere could speak out, but instead a lie was systematically constructed about national authority, the will of the nation, judgments in the name of the nation? What kind of authority was there who set up a patrol after the crime in Lanišće, not even allowing the wounded to receive assistance? What kind of an investigation was it in which the victims who endured such brutality were indicted and later condemned? What kind of national authority is it that does not allow the people to attend the funeral of a viciously murdered priest? What kind of freedom was there that even penalized the mention of the name of this holy Servant of God?” The president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops pointed out that the authorities of the time wanted to silence Miroslav Bulešić in every way possible, so that he would not testify to their crimes. However, he was aligned with the Blessed Cardinal Alojzije Stepinac. When Stepinac heard of the death of this young Istrian priest, he wrote: “After my return from prison, I learned with great pain of the murder of the Rev. Bulešić, that good and ideal young priest. This murder will not bring blessings to the murderers or to those who ordered this abominable deed.”
At the end, Cardinal Bozanić urged the young to study the history of the twentieth century, the killing of the righteous, especially the history of Nazism, fascism and communism in our region. “What kind of liberation is that – from whatever side it came – in which people were led to their deaths without being guilty and without trials? What kind of authorities wanted to make a ‘disgraced national enemy’ of a person who gave his whole life to his nation? If it was not permitted earlier, today someone in Istria must ask, must speak and warn the young about that which was lightly called ‘antifascism’ but in fact in Istria, as in other places in Croatia, was nothing other than the concealment of crimes. The crimes of the Partisans, for which no one was held responsible, cannot be justified by the crimes perpetrated by the fascists and Nazis because all three anti-human ideologies perpetrated crimes here in turn, although the worst reprisals were committed by those who were prevailing at the moment, spreading hatred and intolerance. Can anyone still believe today that antifascism would be devalued if people clearly spoke out about the crimes and criminals from the communist side? It is still easy to equate the legitimate and justified defense of freedom with the revolutionary struggle of communists to gain authority,” cautioned Cardinal Bozanić, emphasizing that the commemoration of Don Miro’s death is not a revision but a vision of history, which we are obligated to pass down to young generations. “They need to know today that silence was imposed regarding one death, thousands of deaths, and hundreds of thousands of deaths perpetrated by the communist authorities. People who wanted to live and work in peace paid with their lives for speaking about the murders and those that ordered them, about the criminal system of the communist reign of fear. We shall never free ourselves from returning to the past until we illuminate the truth about the victims of the totalitarian regimes.” Recalling that during times of crisis the people have found the Church to be a place of safety, the president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops said that today it should be clear to all that the history of this part of Croatia, the history of the Istrian people, cannot be understood without the selflessness, sacrifices and sufferings of Catholics and the immense contribution of the Church, particularly priests, to coexistence and the preservation of the human values which misfortune and evil sought to destroy. Today there should be no Croatian history textbook that does not proudly emphasize the good that Church officials promoted, which we commemorate today, and which is embodied in the martyrdom of the Servant of God Miroslav Bulešić,” emphasized the president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops, concluding: “Therefore, today we thank God for the exemplary Istrian priests who were not misled by ideologies but listened to the voice of God during historical events, the voice of the heavenly kingdom, bearing in mind the community of the faithful and the needy entrusted them, regardless of ethnic origins or languages spoken.”