Zagreb, June 12, 2003 (IKA) – Following the formal farewell ceremonies in honor of the Holy Father Pope John Paul at the airport in Zadar on the afternoon of Monday, June 9, that day a special plenary session of the Croatian Conference of Bishops was held in Zadar, at which the president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops, Archbishop Josip Bozanić, presided. Following the session, the secretary of the CCB, Msgr. Vjekoslav Huzjak, delivered the following statement, which we reprint in its entirety:
“The bishops have begun to analyze the sermons and talks by the Holy Father that he delivered during his third apostolic visit to Croatia, from June 5 to 9 of this year. On this basis, they have established several of the topics for the program of the future activity of our Church. They also decided that the Pope’s third visit to Croatia, i.e. the Pope’s messages to the Church in Croatia, will be the main topic of the autumn plenary session that will be held in Hvar from October 26 to 30 of this year.
All the bishops expressed their satisfaction due to the attentive and successful organization of the Pope’s visit, which members of the Pope’s entourage complimented. Therefore, the bishops thank all those who contributed to the success of the Pope’s visit: all the levels of the civil authorities of the Republic of Croatia who gave their utmost so that all the segments of the visit were well prepared. The bishops particularly commented upon the good cooperation between the Church and civil authorities on the municipal, county and state levels. They afforded recognition to the work of the police and security services, to the great engagement of Croatia Airlines, the mass media, particularly Croatian Radio-Television (HRT) which covered all the events from minute to minute, to those engaged in transportation who made it possible for the pilgrims to come to the places of celebration, the medical personnel on duty as well as all the institutions and individuals who in any way were involved and contributed to this unforgettable meeting with the Holy Father. In a special way, the bishops thank and recognize their faithful people, who participated in such numbers in the magnificent celebrations in Dubrovnik, Osijek, Rijeka and Zadar, all the Croatian cities who fervently and joyfully welcomed the Holy Father and greeted him along the routes that he traveled, and those who with equal fervor followed the celebrations via the media.
In conclusion, the bishops decided that a Croatian national pilgrimage to Rome will be organized in early November of this year, the year in which the Holy Father celebrates the twenty-fifth anniversary of his pontificate, as an expression of gratitude to the Holy Father for his third apostolic visit to Croatia,” says the statement from the special session of the Croatian Conference of Bishops held in Zadar.