Zagreb, (IKA) – The Croatian Franciscan communicologist, university teacher and scientist, Dr. Mirko Juraj Mataušić, was buried on November 19 at the Mirogoj cemetery in Zagreb. The funeral rites, in the presence of the Minister Provincial of the Croatian Franciscan Province of SS. Cyril and Methodius, Fra Ilija Vrdoljak, and numerous priests, religious, relatives of the deceased, friends and colleagues, were conducted by Assistant Bishop Valentin Pozaić of Zagreb. At the beginning of the funeral, a telegram of condolence from the Archbishop of Zagreb, Cardinal Josip Bozanić, was read aloud: “Fra Mirko, through his priestly service and testimony, and his pastoral, educational, theological-scientific and research work, made a significant contribution to the Catholic Church in Croatia and abroad. Participating in a variety of projects, through his work he earned the gratitude of many, first of all his Croatian Franciscan Province of SS. Cyril and Methodius, in which he held the offices of Minister Provincial and others. If while working for the glory of God and the benefit of his neighbors he had human weaknesses and omissions, may the Lord show him His mercy,” wrote Cardinal Bozanić in his telegram of condolences to Provincial Vrdoljak.
The first to bid farewell to Fra Mirko Mataušić was Fra Ante Perković, who spoke about the Franciscan life of the deceased. “When he was the Provincial Minister, I was part of the administration and often saw how much he cared about the province’s progress and for every brother to be a brother. How sorry he was when someone felt injured or dissatisfied due to being transferred, for which only he was held responsible,” said Fra Perković, and spoke of Fra Mataušić’s leadership of the province during the war. “As the Minister Provincial, he wanted to be with the brothers in distress, crawling through cornfields to reach Vukovar. We remember his words of encouragement and support. He was constantly worried about his brother Marko in Ilok and did what he could. With Fra Marko Kurolt, he personally went to fetch Fra Slavko in Mitrovica, recalled Fra Perkvović.
On behalf of the scientific community, the Rector of the University of Zagreb, Prof. Dr. Damir Boras, bid farewell to the deceased and spoke about his scientific and research work, emphasizing that he had been the first doctor of information sciences in Croatia. Prof. Boras also mentioned their many years of collaboration and read Fra Mirko’s reflections about the significance of biblical values, written at a time when there had been discussion in the media about whether they were suitable for universities.
Assistant Prof. Dr. Jelena Jurišić spoke about her professor of many years, who was also the Chairman of the Department of Journalism/Communicoloy, on behalf of the teachers, staff and students of the Center for Croatian Studies, University of Zagreb, especially during the period of adjustment to the Bologna Process, and called him the father of communicology in Croatia, the originator of the study of communicology, a fine teacher and scholar, and the driving force behind the communicology library.
The Head of the Press Office of the Croatian Conference of Bishops and Director of Croatian Catholic Radio, Zvonimir Ancić, spoke about Fra Mirko Mataušić’s contribution to the Croatian media scene and the relationship between the Church and media, especially through the prism of establishing Croatian Catholic Radio at the behest of the CCB, where he was the first editor and director. “As a media expert, first of all he emphasized the importance of the media, the education of future journalists and editors, and also campaigned for the association of Catholic business persons and the political education of the young. Particularly close to his heart was educating the young in order to assure a better future for Croatia. Unfortunately, the initiatives that he proposed in the 1990s are still awaiting implementation,” said Ancić, who also mentioned Fra Mataušić’s membership on the Committee of the Croatian Conference of Bishops for the Mass Media, as well as the programs he conducted on Croatian Catholic Radio with Prof. Vesna Gračner.
On behalf of the publisher Kršćanska sadašnjost, Fra Mirko Mataušić was bid farewell by the deputy director, the Rev. Anton Šuljić, who spoke of the deceased’s work there as the editor of the Liturgical-Pastoral Leaflet, as well as the many books he had published there, two of which are currently in press.
The Minister Provincial of the Province of SS. Cyril and Methodius, Fra Ilija Vrdoljak, thanked everyone on behalf of the province, especially the medical personnel who cared for Fra Mirko during his illness.
Following the funeral, a Requiem Mass was held in the Church of Christ the King at Mirogoj, led by Bishop Pozaić with many priests participating. In the homily, Bishop Pozaić spoke about faith in the Risen Christ and the Resurrection, as preached and testified to by the late Fra Mirko Mataušić during his religious and priestly life.
Mirko Juraj Mataušić was born in 1944 in Samobor. He entered the Order of Friars Minor in the Croatian Franciscan Province of SS. Cyril and Methodius on July 30, 1961, and made his solemn vows on December 8, 1969. On June 27, 1971, he was ordained a priest in Zagreb.
In 1984, he earned a doctorate in Salzburg with a dissertation on the history of the Croatian Catholic Press. As a priest, he spiritually ministered to Croatian workers living in Germany and Austria as well as the local Catholics. Upon returning to Croatia, he was the editor of periodicals published by Kršćanska sadašnjost and served as the Minister Provincial of the Croatian Franciscan Province of SS. Cyril and Methodius. Dr. Mataušić was the initiator, co-founder and for many years the President of the Croatian Association of Catholic Journalists, and the founder of the ecumenical Christian Information Service (Kršćanska informativna služba). By order of the Croatian Conference of Bishops, he established Croatian Catholic Radio (Hrvatski katolički radio), serving as its first director and editor-in-chief. For his journalistic and editorial work, Dr. Mataušić received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Croatian Association of Catholic Journalists.
He was the author of many professional and scholarly articles about the media and communication, and led or collaborated on scientific research projects. He also taught at the Center for Croatian Studies of the University of Zagreb and the Catholic Faculty of Theology. From 2003 to 2008, he was the Chairman of the Department of Journalism and Department of Communicology at the Center for Croatian Studies in Zagreb. At the Catholic Faculty of Theology, he taught an elective course on the mass media and pastoral activity from 2000 to 2013. He was a member of the Committee of the Croatian Conference of Bishops for the Media as well as various journalistic associations and bodies, the author of several books and the editor of the program We Seek the Truth on Croatian Catholic Radio. Fra Mirko also conducted many seminars and workshops on media and psychological/pastoral subjects. Following a stroke, he died in Zagreb on November 14, 2014.