The Assembly began with a Eucharistic celebration in the cathedral led by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Vrhbosna and Apostolic Administrator of the Military Ordinariate in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Msgr. Tomo Vukšić. Concelebrating with him were the Apostolic Nuncio in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Msgr. Francis Assisi Chullikatt, Provincial of Bosnia and Herzegovina, OFM Zdravko Dadić, Vicar General of the Vrhbosna Archdiocese, Msgr. Slađan Ćosić, and more than 180 priests present.

At the beginning, Msgr. Vukšić greeted those present and thanked them for coming to the mother of all churches of the Vrhbosna Archdiocese. "We have a special grace that, in addition to gathering at our regular session, we are celebrating this Holy Mass at a time when the Eucharist for the election of the new Holy Father is beginning in the centre of the Catholic Church", he said, adding that the local "Vrhbosna Church" joins the universal one in praying that "the dear God will praise his community with a shepherd who will be a model for the flock, keep it in the faith and lead it on the path of sanctification and salvation."

Ten Jubilee Churches

In his homily entitled Priests as Pilgrims of Hope in the main one of the ten churches scattered along the roads of the Vrhbosna Archdiocese, Archbishop Tomo first emphasized that priests meet regularly primarily to thank the Lord for the trust he has placed in them by calling them to be His collaborators in the work of sanctification and salvation of man and the whole of human history. He added that they gather to exchange information about what they have done as well as about future intentions and plans. Noting that the meeting was originally scheduled for April 30^th, the Wednesday after the feast of Easter, he emphasized that the Franciscans were having their regular Capitular session at the same time, and they agreed to move the date by a week ", which should certainly be recognized as a sign of fraternal respect".

Saying that 2025 is the Jubilee Year of the Birth of Jesus, he reminded the audience that, in accordance with the proposals from Rome on the celebration of this important jubilee, ten churches in the Archdiocese of Vrhbosna have been declared jubilee. "One of them is this cathedral. We opened the Jubilee Year in it with a solemn celebration, and we will also close it in it (…) It is very important to be aware that this jubilee will direct the journey of the entire Church and every Christian believer towards another anniversary that is fundamental for all Christians: towards 2033, when 2000 years will be celebrated since the glorious act of redemption of man through the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ", said Msgr. Vukšić and added that Christian life is an honourable path, but very demanding.

He further reminded the audience that pilgrimage is an essential element of every jubilee event. “Life is a journey through time, a pilgrimage, and persevering in it in a symbolic sense is full of meaning for those who seek the meaning of life and is very appropriate for rediscovering the value of silence, effort and concentration on what is essential”, he stated, adding that in the particular Churches, special attention will be paid to the preparation of priests and faithful for confession and to ensuring the possibility of individual confession” (Spes non confundit, 5).

“Faithful to the intentions of the Church, we have gathered today in the main one of the ten churches scattered along the roads of our Archdiocese for the Jubilee Pilgrimage of the Presbytery: for thanksgiving, for prayer, for the Sacrament of Reconciliation and for reflection, so that, returning to our places of service, reconciled with the Lord and strengthened in faith in Christ the Lord, our hope, we may have the moral right to proclaim to our brothers and sisters the grace, mercy and peace of God the Father and of Christ Jesus our Lord (1 Tim. 1:1-2)”, said Archbishop Vukšić, emphasizing that in every period and circumstance the Church is called to recognize the signs that the Lord sends her.

"Jesus also spoke about them and the need to recognize them (Mt 16:3), and the Church's teaching on the same subject adds: 'The Church is obliged at all times to examine the signs of the times and to interpret them in the light of the Gospel so that it can respond to the eternal human questions about the meaning of the present and future life and their mutual relationship, in a way that is appropriate for each individual generation' (Second Vatican Council, Gaudium et spes, 4). In this regard, the late Pope Francis adds that as Christian believers and witnesses of hope, first of all 'we must pay attention to the many good things in the world so as not to fall into the temptation of considering ourselves overwhelmed by evil and violence. But the signs of the times, which contain within themselves the longing of the human heart in need of God's saving presence, seek to be transformed into signs of hope' (Spes non confundit, 7). This is the honourable task of Christians", the archbishop concluded, adding that a Christian is called to recognize the truth that the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord (Ps 33:5) and to be a witness, builder and promoter of the good signs of the times.

Courageous Witnesses of Christ

"It is also true that these signs are not always good and that there are periods when bad signs are very present and threaten the harmony that God desires and introduce various forms of unrest among God's creatures. And the mission of Christians is to proclaim Christ, our hope, even in such circumstances. Today's first reading from Holy Scripture (Acts 8:1-8) speaks of one of such dangerous times and the courageous preaching of Christ in it", he emphasized, adding that the sign for the presbytery of the Archdiocese is today's passage from the Acts of the Apostles in which Saint Luke recalls the severe persecution that struck the Christians in Jerusalem after the stoning of the martyr Stephen (Acts 8:1-8) and describes their reaction to the dangers to which they were exposed.

“…the most important message of this biblical passage is that the disciples were scattered during the time of great persecution but continued to proclaim the Word of God. Thus they were courageous witnesses of Christ, signs of hope. Good signs of their time. And an example to all later generations of Jesus’ disciples”, added Msgr. Vukšić, claiming that “the sign is also the fact that we are holding this gathering of ours on the very day when the conclave for the election of the new head of the Church begins.”

He recalled that the apostles, just before they were going to elect Matthew to their council, gathered and prayed (Acts 1:24-25) and only then made their choice.

Towards the end of his sermon, he recalled that in the document announcing the Jubilee Year, Pope Francis called Christians pilgrims: following this, the Archbishop added to all wishes for the realization of signs of hope, as Jesus' disciples and his witnesses, "we promise our contribution and add a humble prayer that the sowing of fear in Bosnia and Herzegovina ceases, that social dialogue, advocacy for the common good, protection of human dignity and respect for human rights are achieved". At the end of the sermon, he read the prayer of Saint Francis, which, presenting it in the service of witnesses and pilgrims of Christian hope, he emphasized as a prayer and program for all priests.

At the end of the Holy Mass, the Archbishop prayed that the cardinals at the conclave would elect a new pope.

The liturgical celebration was animated by the Cathedral Mixed Choir Josip Stadler under the direction of Rev. Marko Stanušić.

A priest should be a builder of peace

After the Holy Mass, the working part of the meeting followed in the hall of the Priests' House of the Archdiocese of Vrhbosna, which this time, due to the celebration of the Jubilee Year, was exclusively of a spiritual nature. The address on the topic of the Jubilee 2025 in the light of the Bible and the documents of the Magisterium was given by OFM Anto Popović, a professor at the Franciscan Theology School in Sarajevo.

The program was moderated and led by the Vicar General, and the presbyters were first addressed by Provincial Dadić, who, welcoming those present in the Year of Hope, called it a clear call for priests to be pilgrims of hope. "The moments when the Holy See is vacant are the times when we think that God is sending us a clear message that he knows who the Pope is who will lead the Church. That is why we must know what our task is at this moment, especially for us in Bosnia and Herzegovina where tension is felt. We need to be the ones who will build bridges, speak about peace and in dialogue with others clearly state our positions as both the Church and the people", said OFM Zdravko, wishing that the joint meeting of priests would be "an enrichment for all of us", Archbishop Tomo then welcomed the lecturer and the priests present. "It is our greatest honour to be witnesses of hope, which is another name for Jesus Christ. Hope is not only the positive side of life that guides and inspires people, but it is the source of all that is positive in human lives, which is virtue, goodness and what is beautiful", said Msgr. Vukšić, wishing that the dear God blesses us on the path of conversion and sanctification and "helps all of us to discover that Christ is not only the beginning, but also our hope, the source as one person of the Most Holy Trinity and one of the first to fall asleep."

Lecture on the topic of the Jubilee 2025

This was followed by a speech by OFM Ante, which consisted of four parts, and was accompanied by a special textual presentation via projector. In the introduction, he first interpreted certain elements from the logo for the Jubilee 2025, and then provided a wealth of factual information about Pope Francis' document Spes non confundit, by which he declared 2025 a Jubilee, or Holy Year.

In the second part of the lecture, he highlighted many important messages from this document, while special attention was paid to the third, most comprehensive title within it: Signs of Hope (no. 7-15), in which priests and the faithful are called to become concrete signs of hope for brothers and sisters living in difficult conditions: war, deprivation of liberty, illness, old age, loneliness, being refugees, poverty. He highlighted the special concern that Pope Bergoglio had for prisoners and migrants

In no. 10 Signs of Hope cited key biblical texts that reveal the foundation and meaning of the Holy Year. He further emphasized that the fifth title of this document, Anchored in Hope (no. 18-25), speaks of hope “that we will live forever in Jesus who died and rose again, but also of God’s judgment, of the reality of sin, of the sacrament of Penance in which the Lord destroys our sins, and of the fullness of God’s forgiveness that removes the consequences of sin.” OFM Anto also emphasized that Jesus’ mother, Mary, is our Mother of Hope and “comes to our aid and calls us to believe and continue to hope” and is especially “the spiritual mother of all priests.”

The third and final part of his lecture analysed the first word of the motto of this Jubilee Year, which is “peregrinantes in spem.” He connected the word peregrinantes with the "stations" of refreshment needed by pilgrims on their journey, which were interpreted by means of the apostolic letters Dies Domini (St. John Paul II) and Aperuit illis (Pope Francis). He particularly referred to the beginnings of Christianity during the time of the Roman Empire, when that state was "miniature globalism" and security, which helped Christianity to spread throughout all its parts using the very "stations of refreshment" that existed on all Roman roads that were tens of thousands of kilometres long. He also spoke about the universality of the Greek and Latin languages in that empire, Roman law and the denarius currency. Comparing travelers during the Roman Empire with pilgrims in Jubilee 2025, he said that all travelers need stations of refreshment, which today's people find in Sunday, church and the Eucharist.

He concluded his lecture with a message in English, which was outside the lecture program, which is found in the churches of the Sisters of St. Mother Teresa, which is that priests of Christ should celebrate every Holy Mass as if it were their first Holy Mass, their only and last.

The Priests' Council was closed by the Vicar General who invited those present to continue their communion around the family table.