CROATIAN BISHOPS' CONFERENCE IN SESSION

( Editorial: --> 9044 ) LOVRAN, March 12 (Hina) - The Croatian Bishops' Conference (HBK) started its 15th session in the north-Adriatic town of Lovran on Thursday. Attending the session is also the Apostolic Nuncio in Croatia, Msgr. Giulio Eunaudi, as well as Bishops from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia, the Bishop of Mostar and Trebinje, Ratko Peric, and the Bishop of Subotica, Ivan Penzez. President of the Bishops' Conference, Archbishop of Zagreb, Msgr. Josip Bozanic, spoke about the newly-established Centre for the Promotion of the Social Doctrine of the Church. He said that the Croatian society, which had just come out of Communism and war, needed new impulse and inspiration, and the new Evangelisation, underlined by Pope John Paul II, was a crucial task. "Despite the frequent public claims of our Christian and Catholic affiliation, we feel that the process of de-Christianisation has clutched our society," Bozanic said. "The way in which the social transition is being carried out shows how little the value of the Gospel and principles of the Catholic social doctrine is respected in our everyday lives," Bozanic said. "The Church in Croatia is facing all of the specifics of after-war difficulties, especially with the material and spiritual revival of those who had suffered great loss during the war... Our Church communities feel how much we need at this time the spirit of forgiveness and reconciliation, as well as the promotion of civil harmony and tolerance," Bozanic said. The Bishops' Conference will also focus on the implementation of the Agreement on Religious Education in schools, and the draft statute of the Military Ordinariat. Bozanic will also submit a report about the work on the fourth agreement between the Holy See and Croatia, relating to economic issues. (hina) lm jn 121253 MET mar 98