BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA BISHOPS AGAINST SELF-DECLARED BISHOP

MOSTAR, May 31 (Hina) - The presence of a self-declared bishop in Herzegovina is an attempt to disrupt the unity of the Catholic Church in Bosnia-Herzegovina and its ties with Rome, the Bosnia- Herzegovina Bishops' Conference said in a statement on Wednesday. "The presence of a member of a non-Catholic community, who recently performed the ritual of confirmation in three parishes of Mostar- Duvno diocese is a direct attempt to disrupt the unity of the Catholic Church in this country and its centuries-long unity with the Holy See," reads a statement released after an extraordinary session of the BH Bishops' Conference, held in Mostar on Tuesday. BH bishops have called on the faithful to be united with the Holy See. By "inviting a non-Catholic to perform a Catholic religious ceremony," the dismissed and disobedient Franciscan priests "have acted directly against the sacredness of the sacraments and unity of the Catholic Church," reads the statement. The self-declared bishop Srecko Franjo Novak performed on the last three Sundays the illegal ritual of confirmation on 1,000 children in three parishes in Herzegovina, in Grude, Capljina and Topcici. (hina) sb rml