Pope urges Bosnia-Herzegovina to bring about healing and peace through love

(Feb. 24) - By allowing themselves to be transformed by the love of God, the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina can heal the wounds of the past and overcome today’s difficult challenges. Pope Benedict XVI gave the Balkan state the reason for hope when its Catholic bishops met him in a group on Saturday as part of their so-called ‘ad limina’ visit. The head of every Catholic diocese in the world is required to make an ‘ad limina’ visit to Rome every 5 years or so to report on the state of his jurisdiction.
The 1995 Dayton Peace Accords brought an end to violent ethnic war and bloodshed between Serbs, Muslims and Croats in Bosnia-Herzegovina following the breakup of Yugoslavia; but bishops of the Balkan nation say the accords were flawed and unfairly enforced, resulting in a lack of true peace, justice and adequate human rights protections in the country. The accords have divided Bosnia-Herzegovina into two areas -- one administered by ethnic Serbs and another by a Muslim-Croat federation. This, however, has left the mostly Catholic Croat minority with little to no political power in both areas, the bishops complained. In his address to the bishops of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Pope urged them to be peace makers and to reinforce communion and radiate mercy, understanding and pardon, within the Christian community, in the name of Christ. The only way to this is through love, which, he said, needs to be enlightened by the truth of God and thus be transformed into a higher measure of justice and mercy. In this way, the Pope said, they can help heal the still open wounds of the past and overcome resistance and divisions. Pope Benedict particularly drew attention to the problem of refugees, equality among the various religions, unemployment and ethnic tensions.