Zagreb, November 18, 1998 (IKA) – In office of the Secretariat of the Croatian Conference of Catholic Bishops in Zagreb, a working meeting was held today, November 18, between the Commissions for Dialogue of the Croatian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Holy Episcopal Sabor of the Serbian Orthodox Church. As emphasized in the statement issued following the meeting by the Croatian Conference of Catholic Bishops, “the discussions, conducted in an atmosphere of fraternal candor and responsibility, concerned open questions and the concrete pastoral, spiritual and existential problems of the clergy and faithful of two Christian Churches, Catholic and Orthodox, and two neighboring nations, Croatian and Serbian.” Particular emphasis was placed upon the need and right of all displaced persons and refugees, including the clergy, to return their birthplaces and homes, taking into account the right to life, safety, personal freedom and property, with respect for human dignity. The statement further pointed out that both Commissions supported the spiritual renewal of their communities and the material restoration of Church property. “The importance of the education of the faithful, especially young people, in the Christian faith and their own tradition, without fear and conformity, was stressed, as well as objective and truthful reporting on the events in the life of the Churches and the people,” reads the statement. The delegation from the Serbian Orthodox Church was received by Dr. Jure Radić, vice president of the Croatian Government and president of the Government Commission for Relations with Religious Communities. The Church Commissions agreed to meet again in the near future, in accordance with the needs of the times and the spiritual needs of their faithful to maintain permanent contact and mutual dialogue. The Commission of the Serbian Orthodox Church included Metropolitan Jovan Pavlović of Zagreb-Ljubljana and all of Italy, Metropolitan Anfilohije Radović of Montenegro-Primorje, Bishop Irenej Bulović of Bačka and Bishop Ignatije Midić of Braničevo. The Commission of the Catholic Church included Metropolitan Archbishop Anton Tamarut of Rijeka-Senj, Bishop Marin Srakić of Đakovo and Srijem; the general secretary of the Croatian Conference of Catholic Bishops and president of the Commission for Ecumenicism, Bishop Antun Škvorčević of Požega; Auxiliary Bishop Ðuro Gašparoviæ of Ðakovo and Srijem; and the secretary of the Council for Ecumenicism of the Croatian Conference of Catholic Bishops, Dr. Jure Zečević.
At the beginning of the meeting, all present were greeted by Archbishop Anton Tamarut of Rijeka-Senj, who emphasized the following: “We are aware that the best response to our Christian mission, which we have received from Jesus Christ, is helping all who are in need, following Christ#!s call and his prayer #!for all to be one#! in faith, hope and love. We are strongly encouraged in this by Pope John Paul II, a tireless supporter of dialogue between our Churches, especially now – on the threshold of the third Christian millennium. He displayed this during his recent pastoral visit to Croatia, when at the end of the celebration of the Mass in Split, he personally greeted Your Eminence, the Serbian Orthodox Metropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana,” The meeting today was the second meeting of the Commissions for Dialogue of the Croatian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Holy Episcopal Sabor of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The first meeting took place in St. Gallen, Switzerland, in 1992.