On Saturday, July 17th, the parish of St. Filip and James in Mrkonjić Grad celebrated the 200th anniversary of its existence and on that occasion, the parish church was dedicated. The solemn Eucharist was led by the Bishop of Banja Luka, Msgr. Franjo Komarica.
A dozen priests concelebrated with the bishop, among whom were: the parish priest, rev. Darko Anušić, “war” parish priest in this town and the current parish priest in Sasina rev. Adolf Višaticki, parish priest of Banja Luka Vladislav Žarko Ošap and the parish priest from Drvar, Rev. Davor Klečina.
The solemn ceremony began in front of the former worship space in the parish house. In the procession, with appropriate songs, those present walked around the church and gathered in front of the church door.
Afterwards, the main supervisory body for construction in the Banja Luka diocese, Ljubica Kos, presented numerous, in the last 20 years, work that was done in stages. After that, the keys of the church were handed over to Bishop Komarica, which he handed over to Rev. Anušić. The parish priest opened the door and the faithful, singing the appropriate psalm, entered the church and followed the rite of consecration of the church and the altar in which the relics of Bl. Ivan Merz are built in.
In the appropriate sermon, Bishop Franjo interpreted the read biblical passages and the meaning of certain parts of the rite of consecration of the church. He recalled the dramatic history of the Catholic community in that parish over the past 200 years: flourishing, suffering and rebuilding, both the church and the religious community.
He paid tribute to the present parish priest as well as to the former ones, among whom there are martyrs for the faith and persons of holy life, for all they have done for the glory of God’s name and for the benefit of Christ’s Church. He especially praised all those who, either with material help or personal effort, provided a beautifully decorated church building that can be the pride of Catholics and all other citizens of Mrkonjić Grad.
At the end of the Eucharist, rev. Anušić addressed those present and thanked God, Bishop Komarica, benefactors, parishioners, and builders from several companies – from Banja Luka, Jajce and Sanski Most.
The Holy Mass celebration was animated by the parish choir from Glamoč with the leader sister Simplicija Šimić, ASC, and at the end, those present sang the song of thanks We praise God.
More than 200 believers took part in the celebration. The few remaining believers of the parish in Mrkonjić Grad, formerly Varcar Vakuf, were joined by dozens of friends from neighbouring parishes Liskovica, Jajce, Glamoč, Ključ, and a number of exiled parishioners who now live in some European and non-European countries.
After the Eucharist, a common meal was held in the churchyard. At that time, the faithful were joined by the Mayor of Mrkonjić Grad, Dragan Vođević, and other guests. By the way, the Consul General of the Republic of Croatia in Banja Luka, Zoran Piličić, was also present at the Holy Mass.
It should be noted that the godfather of the church is a parishioner who has lived in the USA for several years, Zdravko Baković, and bishop Komarica handed out letters of thanks to the most deserving parishioners.
Also, for this solemn occasion, the parish in Mrkonjić Grad issued a leaflet on the history of the parish, prepared by Dr. Msgr. Anto Orlovac.
KT
www.nedjelja.ba
Mrkonjić Grad – July 19, 2021
