Pope Benedict XVI in Croatia - Arrival at Pleso Airport
Below is the full text of Pope Benedict XVI’s discourse at the welcoming ceremony
at Zagreb’s international Pleso Airport, Croatia, at the start of his apostolic journey
to the country.
It gives me great joy to come among you as a pilgrim
in the name of Jesus Christ. I offer my most cordial greetings to the beloved land
of Croatia, and as Saint Peter’s Successor I warmly embrace all its inhabitants.
In particular, I greet the Catholic community: the Bishops, priests, men and women
religious, and the lay faithful, especially the families of this land where the preaching
of the Gospel has borne fruit, bringing hope of life and salvation for all. I extend
a respectful greeting to you, Mr President, and to the other civil and military Authorities
gathered here. I thank you, Mr President, for the kind words you have addressed to
me and I offer you my best wishes for the high office entrusted to you, and for the
peace and prosperity of the whole Nation. At this time, my thoughts go back to
the three pastoral visits to Croatia made by my beloved predecessor, Blessed John
Paul II, and I thank the Lord for the long history of faithfulness that links your
country to the Holy See. For over thirteen centuries, those strong and special bonds
have been put to the test and strengthened in circumstances that were sometimes difficult
and painful. This history is an eloquent testimony to your people’s love for the
Gospel and the Church. From its earliest days, your Nation has formed part of Europe,
and has contributed, in its unique way, to the spiritual and moral values that for
centuries have shaped the daily lives and the personal and national identity of Europe’s
sons and daughters. In the face of the challenges posed by today’s culture – marked
as it is by social differentiation and instability, and by an individualism that gives
rise to a vision of life without obligations and a constant search for “private space”
– there is a need for convinced witness and active dynamism aimed at promoting the
fundamental moral values that underpin social living and the identity of the old Continent.
Twenty years after the declaration of independence and on the eve of Croatia’s full
integration into the European Union, this country’s remote and recent history can
stimulate reflection on the part of all the other peoples of the Continent, helping
them, individually and collectively, to preserve and to inject new life into that
priceless common heritage of human and Christian values. So may this beloved Nation,
in the strength of its rich tradition, help to steer the European Union towards a
fuller appreciation of those spiritual and cultural treasures.Dear Brothers and Sisters,
with the motto “Together in Christ”, I have come to join you in celebrating the First
National Day of Croatian Catholic Families. May this important event serve as an
opportunity for proposing afresh the values of family life and the common good, for
strengthening unity, renewing hope and leading people to communion with God, the foundation
of fraternal sharing and social solidarity. In anticipation, I sincerely thank all
those who have helped with the preparation and organization of my visit. In view
of the challenges confronting the Church and civil society today, I invoke upon this
land and all its inhabitants the intercession and assistance of Blessed Alojzije Stepinac,
the beloved and venerable Shepherd of your people. May he accompany the young generations
as they strive to live by that charity which prompted the Lord Jesus Christ to give
his life for all people. May Saint Joseph, watchful guardian of the Redeemer and
heavenly Patron of your Nation, together with the Virgin Mary, “Fidelissima Advocata
Croatiae”, obtain for you peace and salvation, today and always. Thank you!