Rome, November 8, 2003 (IKA) — More than 10,000 Croatian pilgrims made a pilgrimage to Rome in order to thank Pope John Paul II for everything that he has done for the Croatian nation, congratulate him on the twenty-fifty anniversary of his papal office, the strengthening of faith, and church and national unity.
The pilgrims assembled on Friday afternoon, November 7, in the Basilica of St Mary Major. The Holy Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Cardinal Josip Bozanić of Zagreb together with most of the Croatian bishops, who led the pilgrims of their own dioceses, and numerous priests. The sermon at the Mass was delivered by the vice president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops,
Archbishop Ivan Prenđa of Zadar, who presented a historical review of the bonds between the Holy See and the Croatian nation since the 7th century.
Otherwise, the Basilica of St. Mary Major is closely associated with the Church in Croatia because the Blessed Cardinal Alojzije Stepinac celebrated his first Mass in this basilica.
On Saturday, November 8, Cardinal Bozanić led the Holy Mass in the Basilica of St. Peter. Explaining that this encounter in the Basilica of St. Peter is the culmination of the national pilgrimage to Rome, Cardinal Bozanić said in his sermon: “Making this pilgrimage today to Rome, we bring here our history, our nation and Church heritage, our difficulties, prayers and joys, giving thanks for the gift of Christ’s vicar on earth.” Cardinal Bozanić then mentioned the Pope’s words of 1979 during the national pilgrimage of Croats in the Year of Branimir to Rome, in reference to three things that he emphasized, which are faith in Jesus Christ and the Gospel, the love and devotion of Croats toward the Cathedra of St. Peter in Rome; and the love, devotion and piety of the Croats toward Mary: “Let us now transform this three-fold centuries of faith that is also actual today in our lives into a personal and common decision and promise. On the first national pilgrimage in the eternal city in the new millennium and the first national pilgrimage in Rome since God has given us freedom in the independent and internationally recognized country of Croatia, we renew dear faithful the Great Pledge of Fidelity to Jesus Christ, the Church and the Mother of God.” Speaking about the renewal of the Church community, the cardinal called young people and families to continue to live according to those values that the Pope recommended to us during his visits.
“Renewing the Great Pledge at this moment, let us accept Jesus, the Lord of our life, culture, history and civilization. We pray for strengthened faith, Church and national unity. These values were our strength in the difficulties of the past centuries,” emphasized Cardinal Bozanić and called the pilgrims to pray at the grave of St. Peter in order for us to be able to instill the future of our nation with these evangelical values.
After the Mass, there followed an audience with the Holy Father in the Paul VI Audience Hall, in which the Pope was awaited by the song of Croatian pilgrims, words of greeting on behalf of the assembled crowds as well as the entire Croatian nation by Cardinal Bozanić.
Personally greeting the assembled pilgrims, the Holy Father expressed his joy at this meeting: “I am pleased that I can sincerely greet each one of you, who have come to Rome in order to re-express your great devotion to the See of Peter, and at the same time to return my pastoral visit, which I made with joy in June of this year. To everyone, I say from my heart: welcome!”
He repeated the expression of gratitude for the heartfelt reception “that was prepared for me everywhere when I stepped on the soil of your beloved homeland. In my memories and in my heart, I keep images of a people borne by living faith and full of enthusiasm, a hospitable and generous nation.” Speaking about his third visit to Croatia, the Holy Father said that as a pilgrim of the Gospel in his travels around the world, he is called to serve the Church of the See of Peter, provided an opportunity to reinforce the Croatian nation in the faith that gave it beautiful witness the midst of numerous obstacles and suffering: “I wanted to support your hope, often exposed to great trials, to encourage your love and urge you to persevere in your devotion to the Church in the new atmosphere of freedom and democracy that was established thirteen years ago.” Thus, the Pope pointed out that Croatia has the strength and all the abilities that are needed for it to confront the challenges of the present moment suitably. “It is my desire that Croatia will always know how to use this strength and ability in order to build a society in solidarity and ready to provide effective support to the weakest classes; a society based upon the religious and human values which inspired previous generations; a society that respects the holiness of life and God’s great intention for the family; a society that marshals sound forces, promoting the spirit of community and shared responsibility,” said the Holy Father to the Croatian nation.