MOSTAR, April 13 (Hina) - Banja Luka Bishop Franjo Komarica on Sunday announced that Pope John Paul II would visit this north-western Bosnian city on 22 June and beatify a Catholic intellectual, Ivan Merz, on that occasion.
MOSTAR, April 13 (Hina) - Banja Luka Bishop Franjo Komarica on
Sunday announced that Pope John Paul II would visit this north-
western Bosnian city on 22 June and beatify a Catholic
intellectual, Ivan Merz, on that occasion. #L#
Bishop Komarica is thus the first dignitary to give the exact date
the Pontiff's tour to the capital of the Bosnian Serb entity.
"Official information in relation to the arrival of the Holy Father
in Banja Luka will be given by the Holy See at least six weeks before
the planned visit," Msgr. Komarica explained.
According to some estimates, about 100,000 believers are expected
to welcome the pope in Banja Luka.
Local authorities in the Republic of Srpska, the Bosnian entity
mostly populated by residents who belong to the Serb Orthodox
Church, describe the announced visit of Pope John Paul II to Banja
Luka as one of the most important events in the last eight years
since the conclusion of the Dayton peace accords.
(hina) ms