Mass was celebrated by Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments

Over a quarter of a million venerated the witness of mercy as part of the celebration of the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

He is a saint of God, who transcends the boundaries of time and space, national and state borders, as well as every other, because by belonging to Christ, he belongs to all people, said the Metropolitan.

The statement draws attention to the fact that many Croats from Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially the young, are abandoning their homes and emigrating to countries in the European Union and the rest of the world, and points out that in order to resolve this dramatic situation it would be necessary to establish fair and reasonable standards for community life, and to have ongoing communication with others and those who are different as prerequisites for a better economic situation and the prosperity of all the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

It was reiterated that the working body under the auspices of the Holy See composed of representatives of the Catholic Church and the Serbian Orthodox Church will not enter into the cause of the Blessed Alojzije Stepinac, which has already been concluded by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. The Holy Father and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, as well as the other participating bishops in the Vatican are not calling the saintliness of the Blessed Alojzije Stepinac into question. This is merely a matter of a postponement, which the bishops do not believe will last long

We especially rejoice that a humble monk, Capuchin and son of the Croatian nation is a prominent symbol for the whole Church, which is experiencing the grace of the Jubilee. Visiting a church in which the mortal remains of St. Leopold Bogdan Mandić are exhibited, together with the customary prayers, is associated with the obtaining of a jubilee indulgence.

Again this year, at the request of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, the Croatian bishops responded that they were prepared to contribute the amount of 10 million HRK to defray part of the cost of transporting schoolchildren.