Several hundred faithful arrived at the shrine of Our Lady early in the morning, where they had the opportunity to approach the sacrament of reconciliation. This was followed by the blessing of the pilgrims by the Archbishop of Vrhbosna, Metropolitan Msgr. Tomo Vukšić.

After the prayer of the rosary, a Holy Mass was celebrated, led by Archbishop Tomo in concelebration with about 30 priests, including the provincial of the Franciscan Province of Bosna Srebrena, OFM Zdravko Dadić, and the custodian of the shrine in Olovo, OFM Ilija Božić, who at the beginning sent words of greeting and invited those present to pray for peace.

After him, the attendees were greeted by the Provincial, OFM Zdravko, who encouraged the faithful, through Our Lady's intercession, to pray for new priestly and religious vocations, without which, as he pointed out, it is difficult to expect the survival of the Croatian Catholic people in BiH.

Mary – Queen of the Apostles

At the beginning of the homily, Msgr. Vukšić recalled some of the epithets given to Mary, which are found in the litanies. He particularly emphasized that she is the “Queen of the Apostles”, not only because she was present in the early Church and with the apostles from the beginning, but also because her maternal role extends to all of Jesus’ believers. “In addition to being present and seeing, the Blessed Virgin Mary is in the community of Jesus’ disciples as the one who prays with them”, the archbishop noted, explaining that she is the prototype of every believer. He also said that Our Lady is an example to believers in her way of life, her self-denial and her way of serving. He noted that her presence, prayer, giving and mediation of the Saviour of the world are ideals that inspire honour and pride, but also an obligation for every believer, in accordance with their capabilities and using their talents, to be bringers of God to people.

Two Biblical Examples

In the second part of his sermon, Msgr. Vukšić also spoke about biblical examples that testify that Our Lady is the Queen of Apostles. He reminded us that the Holy Scriptures do not contain many of her words, but that two examples: “Let it be done to me according to Your word” and “Do whatever He tells you”, are enough to call her a teacher.

Finally, the Archbishop of Vrhbosna invited the gathered believers to pray for new, good apostles who will call others to such a life by their own example and who will themselves be imbued with the Gospel so that they can proclaim the same Good News to others.

The liturgical celebration was animated by harmonious singing by the parish choir of St. Stephen from Čerin, and the Holy Mass was broadcast live on the sanctuary’s YouTube channel and on the waves of Radio Bobovac from Vareš and Radio Marija BiH.

Finally, „military beans“ distribution was organized for all those present, by members of the Armed Forces of BiH.

It is worth mentioning that the sanctuary in Olovo is considered the oldest in the Balkans. According to data, the church and the Franciscan monastery were built in the 14^th century. The church is currently undergoing renovation, and according to established practice, the May devotions in the Vrhbosna Archdiocese begin precisely at the sanctuary in Olovo, and end on the last weekend of May at the Our Lady's Sanctuary in Komušina.