Zagreb, (IKA) – On September 19, the president of the Republic of Croatia, Stjepan Mesić, received the secretary of state of the Holy See, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who is on a pastoral visit to Croatia, announced the Office of the President. At the beginning of a long and friendly conversation, the cardinal said that this is his first visit to Croatia in the capacity of the secretary of state of the Vatican. He conveyed greetings and good wishes from Pope Benedict XVI and assessed the relationship between the Holy See and Croatia as excellent. He recalled the support provided by the Vatican to Croatia in its path toward independence and the support that it is providing to Croatia today in its accession to the European Union.
President Mesić provided a brief review of the situation in the region, regarding relations to the past and projections of the eventual future. In the continuation of the conversation, the president of the Republic of Croatia presented his view of the relationship between Church and State in greater detail, particularly emphasizing the adverse effects of Euro-skepticism among the ranks of the Church and the need to confront the facts in the context of “closing the book of World War II.” The secretary of state of the Holy See repeated that the Holy See desires the good of the citizens of the Republic of Croatia and the country, adding that the Church and bishops do not have to be engaged in politics but they can express their opinions on individual questions, while the adoption of legislation is under the authority of politicians, i.e. parliament.