Zagreb, (IKA) – Members of the Permanent Council of the Croatian Conference of Bishops met with members of the Croatian Conference of Religious Superiors on Tuesday, February 17, in the Great Hall of the CCB in Zagreb, as reportd by the Press Office of the CCB. After greetings by the President of the CCB, Msgr. Želimir Puljić, Archbishop of Zadar, those assembled were adressed by the Vice President of the Croatian Conference of Religious Superiors, the Reverend Mother Miroslava Bradica, and the President of the Council of the CCB for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Msgr. Mate Uzinić, Archbishop of Dubrovnik.

Since this is the Year of Consecrated Life, as proclaimed by Pope Francis on the fiftieth anniversary of the conciliar decree Perfectae caritatis, Archbishop Puljić briefly presented the Pope’s goals for this year: “‘To remember the past with gratitude, embrace the future with hope, and live in the present with enthusiasm.'” “It may seem strange to us,” said Msgr. Puljić, “that in the twentieth century society we must still fight against slavery, since it was long ago prohibited by law. The Republic of Dubrovnik was one of the first in Europe to do so, banning trafficking in people 600 years ago.” However, Msgr. Puljić pointed out that data from the International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) indicate that in the world today there are approximately 35 million victims of slavery, over 60% of whom are women and minors. According to these sources, every year approximately 2.5 million people become new victims of slavery.

Since Pope Francis, at the proposal of the International Union of Superiors General, has designated February 8, the Feast of St. Josephine Bakhita, as the International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking, “a day of prayer and reflection against human trafficking,” Sr. Stanka Oršolić, a member of the Society of the Sisters of Our Lady, presented a lecture on her experiences in working with victims of human trafficking. This is an ongoing project, with the goal of enabling the religious communities in Croatia to become involved and provide help with this problem. The modern form of slavery has not spared a single country in the world. In Croatia, it is estimated that approximately 15,000 persons are enslaved. Pope Francis has personally contributed to combatting slavery through various initiatives and several meetings with experts and religious leaders from around the world to find ways to eradicate the modern forms of slavery. At the end of Sr. Stanka Oršolić’s lecture, she presented the International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking, whose patron saint is Josephine Bakhita. The participants at the meeting asked questions about this topic and then spoke about various experiences and proposals for commemorating the Year of Consecrated Life in individual places and under specific circumstances.

 
Session of the Council of the Croatian Conference of Bishops for the Laity and the Subcommittee for Persons with Disabilities
Zagreb, (IKA) – The Fourteenth Session of the Council of the Croatian Conference of Bishops for the Laity and the first meeting of the Subcommittee for Persons with Disabilities of the same Council were held on February 16 in the building of the CCB in Zagreb, chaired by the Archbishop of Rijeka, Msgr. Ivan Devčić.
During the introductory part of the session, the members of the Council exchanged opinions on current sociopolitical issues, family law, conscientious objection, new topics of public interest and possible responses.
Then there was discussion of the topic of assembling the scientific and technical arguments necessary for public discussions as a contribution to the formation of state policies concerning fundamental Christian and social values. Today in the new social context, it is necessary to know how to explain and defend facts that until recently were self-evident in reference to the understanding of the fundamental values of civilization, life, human beings manifested in two sexes, marriage, family, the value of human work, the general good, truth and the like, primarily with scientific and expert arguments (which the public increasingly perceives as the only valid ones). Therefore, it is necessary to assemble, translate and systematize scientific and professional papers, and make them available for public use. Such knowledge should be popularized among the general public.
Next, the members of the Council were informed about the creation of a pan-Croatian prayer network that would encompass as many prayer and other communities as possible, as well as parishioners, for the permanent prayer intention of the conversion of the Croatian nation. In the aftermath of the positive experience with the seven-day vigil held at the beginning of Advent in the Chapel of Corpus Domini in Zagreb, another vigil will be held from February 25 to 28, with emphasis on the protection of life and peace in the world and in the homeland.
The participants were also presented with the example the Chapel of Perpetual Adoration, which opened in November 2014 in Podvežica, Rijeka.
In the second part of the session, the Subcommittee for Persons with Disabilities, whose members were appointed at the Autumn Plenary Session in October 2014, was presented. The Subcommittee consists of three members: Željka Šemper, Commissioner of Pastoral Ministry to Persons with Disabilities in the Diocese of Sisak; the Rev. Alojz Kovaček, Commissioner of Pastoral Ministry to Persons with Disabilities in the Archdiocese of Đakovo-Osijek, and Mirjana Dobranović, Vice President of the Association for the Promotion of Equal Opportunities (UPIM). The President is Archbishop Ivan Devčić of Rijeka and the Secretary is Marija Žebec of the Office of the CCB for the Laity.
The members introduced themselves to the Council and shared their personal experiences in working with the disabled, noting the numerous demands that life makes on them and pointing out how the Church can contribute to caring for this large group of people, of whom over a half a million are entered into the Registry of Disabled Persons.
Possible pastoral activities were mentioned, first of all the need for informing priests and the faithful in parishes about the disabled. It was proposed that informative materials, such as leaflets and brochures, could be prepared in order to acquaint the faithful and raise awareness about this topic, according to the statement issued after the session.