About 15 priests concelebrated, including: the provost of the Chapter and professor at the Sarajevo KBF, Msgr. Pavo Jurišić, and the secretary of the Apostolic Nunciature in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Msgr. Javier Camañes-Forés.

At the beginning of the Holy Mass, Msgr. Vukšić greeted those present, reminding them that the Epiphany is also called Vodokršće and Epiphany among the Croatian people, but that the message is the same: God's revelation to all nations and every person with a call to salvation. Having said this, the Archbishop blessed the water with which he then sprinkled the faithful present in the cathedral.

After the Gospel, the theologian of the Mostar-Duvno Diocese, Stipe Gabrić, according to ancient church custom, read the Epiphany proclamation of Easter for 2025, which the Church will celebrate on April 20^th, as the centre of the entire liturgical year from which other holy days and movable feast dates derive.

He came to everyone

In his sermon, the Archbishop of Vrhbosna first considered the connection between the Epiphany and Christmas. In this regard, he wondered what the content of both celebrations was and what their messages were. Following this, he pointed out that the meaning of the Epiphany is found in a passage from the Epistle to the Ephesians, which states that even the Gentiles are heirs of Jesus. "This truth is a 'newness' that was manifested in the event of the gifts of the wise men from the East who came to Bethlehem following the star and passing through Jerusalem, asking where to find the Newborn. All nations are thus called to be part of the new people of God called the Church. Today, this seems understandable, normal and acceptable to us. However, at this time when Jesus was born in the Jewish people, it was not exactly understandable, it was not often acceptable," said Msgr. Vukšić, emphasizing that this caused jealousy among the Jewish people who thought that God came only to them and that He was “only their God”.

Two important messages

Updating the message of the gift of the wise men, the archbishop emphasized two messages. As the first, he explained that “we should be grateful to God for this ‘universal offer’ of salvation and for this call to all people to salvation”. Reflecting on how pagans could also become part of God’s people from that time on, he emphasized that thanks to this, “Croatian Catholics could also become part of the chosen new people centuries later through baptism”.

“Another important message for us, Christians of this generation, could consist of information about where the wise men from the East looked for Jesus (...) And today, like the Three Wise Men, we can ‘inquire’ where Jesus is. The answer is found in the word of God, in the sacraments, in every brother and sister, especially in those who suffer for any reason, illness, poverty, inability to attend school, lack of work, lack of a fair wage, war devastation, violent deaths, persecution... In all these places, Christ the Lord is present," said Msgr. Vukšić, recalling that God revealed himself on the Epiphany and that this fact should be a call to thank the Lord for that grace.

"This is the greatest blessing that heaven can and has given to all of us in this world. May the dear God bless all of us so that by imitating Jesus Christ, the God-man, we can be messengers and missionaries of truth in this world", said Archbishop Tomo.

The liturgical celebration was animated by the cathedral mixed choir Josip Stadler under the direction of Rev. Marko Stanušić. The theologians of the Vrhbosna Theological Seminary under the direction of the professor of liturgy, Rev. Ivan Rako, assisted.

Let us recall that, by the decision of the Bishops of the Catholic Church of BiH in 2004, Epiphany is also celebrated in BiH as the Day of Holy Childhood or World Missionary Children's Day.