This annual gathering of ministrants was jointly organized by the Vrhbosna Theological Seminary (VBS), the John Paul II Archbishop's Centre for Youth Pastoral Care (NCM) and the Catholic School Centre Sv. Josip (KŠC).

To praise the Lord in the temple

The program consisted of two parts: a liturgical celebration in the cathedral and an entertainment-sports-recreational one on the grounds and in the premises of the KŠC.

The arrival, gathering and short rest of the participants took place in the VBS building, from where the ministrants, more than 200 of them, went to the nearby cathedral, without the procession that was common in pre-pandemic times.

The Holy Mass celebration was led by the VBS economist rev. Josip Papak. A dozen priests concelebrated, mostly those who came accompanied by ministrants, among whom was the parish priest in Novo Sarajevo and the spokesman of the VN, rev. Dražen Kustura.

At the beginning of the Eucharist, rev. Josip pointed out that "they gathered in this temple of God to praise the Lord together". "We came from our parishes from various parts of the Vrhbosna Archdiocese to share with each other the joy of serving, socializing and playing", said the VBS economist.

Being a ministrant is also a renunciation

In his homily, rev. Papak began by quoting the Gospel of Matthew (11:25), in which Jesus thanks his Father for hiding the revelation from the wise and intelligent, and revealed it to little ones, and encouraged those present to thank the Lord for calling them "to this wonderful service".

He then quoted Pope Francis during his address to the French ministrants, when he pointed out that their service is sometimes difficult and full of renunciation, and further explained that Jesus cares for all children. "...Perhaps sometimes we feel like we’re not for ministrant services, or it has become boring to us, or we have grown up and are a little ashamed to stand on the altar. These are all questions that many young people have asked before you. We should not be afraid of such questions", he pointed out and added that "serving at the altar shows how much they love Jesus".

Furthermore, he spoke to the young people about St. Catherine of Siena, whose feast day was celebrated that day, and at the end of the sermon he emphasized that everyone is called to discern what their life path is and to know what God wants from them.

The liturgy was animated by the professor at the KBF in Sarajevo, Dr. rev. Ivan Rako.

At the end of the Eucharist, rev. Papak expressed his satisfaction that the cathedral was filled with young ministrants at the altar and wished that their number would be even greater in the coming years.

After the Holy Mass, there was first a rest and refreshment, and then a multi-hour entertainment-sports-recreational program at the KŠC.

At the end of the day, the ministrants of the parish of Žepče were the best in senior football; second are young people from Novi Travnik (Holy Trinity), and third place was won by their neighbours from the Ascension of the Lord faith community. Among younger football players, the first place was taken by young people from Bistrica; second from Novi Travnik (Holy Trinity), while third place was taken by Žepče ministrants.

In table tennis, Mihael Jezerčić (St. Ana, Podkraj) won first place, Nikola Tomić (Žepče) came second, and Danijel Zoranović (Sarajevo – Briješće) came third.

Toma Vrbić (Žepče) showed the best in chess, followed by Ana Šimić (Kupres) and Marina Žilić (Podkraj).

In the quiz, the best was Marko Babić (Prozor), second was Valentina Lovrenović (Podkraj) and Andrija Anđelić (Prozor).

In animation games, the ministrants from Novi Travnik (Holy Trinity) were the most successful, others were also from Novi Travnik, but from the Ascension of the Lord parish, while ministrants from Kupres took third place.

Let us remind, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the ministrant's meeting was not held for three years, so the last meeting was on May 11^th, 2019, in the parish church of St. Luke in Novi Grad, while sports games were held in NCM.