The Holy Mass was led by the Bishop of Mostar-Duvno and Apostolic Administrator of Trebinje-Mrkan, Msgr. Petar Palić, in communion with the President of Croatian Caritas, Bishop of Varaždin, Msgr. Božo Radoš, and with the concelebration of several priests and the participation of 45 employees of Caritas BiH and Croatia, as well as numerous believers.

At the beginning of the celebration, Msgr. Palić gave a welcoming speech, first mentioning Bishop Božo, and then the Acting Director of Croatian Caritas, rev. Ilija Dogan, the Acting Director of Caritas BiH and Secretary General of the Bishops’ Conference of BiH, Rev. Bojan Ivešić, as well as all the directors and employees of Caritas from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Vicar General of the Herzegovina dioceses, Msgr. Nikola Menal, and the Duvno parish priest and guardian, OFM Božo Milić.

"This Solidarity Week, but also today's Solidarity Sunday that we are conducting in the area of the Bishops' Conference of Bosnia and Herzegovina, remind us of how important it is to have a heart open to the needs of others, to recognize Christ in our neighbour, especially in those who are in need, lonely or in trouble. Today's Eucharistic celebration is therefore a thank you for every good deed of love and solidarity, but also an encouragement for our hearts to always remain sensitive to the word of God and to the person next to us. Let us therefore open our hearts to the Lord who brings us together and allow his word and this Holy Mass to inspire us even more strongly to love, kindness and solidarity", Msgr. Palić invited in the introduction.

A Cure for Heart Disease

Bishop Božo delivered the homily, expressing at the beginning his joy for the unity on the occasion of the end of the Week of Solidarity with the Church and People in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which this year was marked under the motto "Do not harden your hearts."

After thoughts on the Lenten journey, in which he presented God as a physician who heals man from the disease of sin, in the context of the Holy Mass readings he spoke about the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman, with an emphasis on Jesus' relationship with women, which was always marked by acceptance and restoration of dignity. "Have you come across a woman in the Gospel who did not accept Jesus and whom Jesus did not accept? Jesus understood women. Women had hearts for Jesus. They always got along well. Never once did a woman leave empty-hearted, humiliated, but the Lord always lifted women up. Especially in this time when we follow the Way of the Cross, then we feel the beauty of the relationship between Jesus and women. Women under Jesus are those who shine, who have light, who have warmth of soul, those who stand on Jesus' side. Women have a sense of love that men do not have", said the president of Croatian Caritas.

Speaking of the Samaritan woman who comes to the well, Bishop Bože emphasized that Jesus approaches her humbly, not arrogantly. "He does not approach arrogantly, but says that he needs us. He does not immediately say: 'You, woman, need me,' but says: 'Give me a drink.' The little you can do is the most important thing to him. He humbly asks her to give him a good deed", he explained, explaining that through this conversation Jesus offers the woman "living water" that becomes a spring in her soul.

Solidarity as a fruit of faith

In the third part of his sermon, Monsignor Radoš spoke about how every encounter with God in which he softens the heart gives birth to solidarity. "Solidarity is not just an addition to faith, but always a fruit of faith. Today, our entire Church in Croatia thinks, prays and feels the thirst of this people. We are not those who are indifferent and we cannot be, because that is not a Christian attitude. We want to see people who have the same face as we have, because that is the face of our heavenly Father", he emphasized, calling on the faithful to pray for families who silently carry their crosses, for the elderly who guard their homes, and for the young who are looking for a reason to stay. "If we hear his voice today – and that is the voice of our conscience and the Word of God – let us not harden our hearts, let us open them. Let us give him a small crack so that from that crack in the rock of our heart that water can flow as in the desert. If we give him just one crack, he will make our life fruitful, he will soften our heart and make it sensitive to others, not only with feelings, but also with deeds of love", concluded the Bishop of Varaždin.

At the end of the Holy Mass, the parish priest, OFM Božo Milić, thanked the bishops and priests for coming, as well as the Caritas workers and numerous believers for participating in this celebration. "May God grant that our unity and solidarity grow", said the parish priest.

The Holy Mass celebration was animated by the parish choir under the direction of Pero Tokić.

Let us remind, that Solidarity Week is traditionally celebrated on the Third Sunday of Lent, and the collection collected on that Sunday supports numerous projects in BiH, in cooperation with Caritas Bosnia and Herzegovina. Thus, over the course of almost two decades of the program, believers from Croatia have contributed to co-financing projects in the fields of education, social entrepreneurship, social, health and humanitarian work of Catholic Church institutions and associations. The total value of the projects financed so far is around four million euros.