CROATIAN BISHOPS TO WELCOME POPE IN SARAJEVO

ZAGREB, March 14 (Hina) - Croatian Bishops will attend ceremonies during the visit of Pope John Paul II to Sarajevo on April 12-13, the Croatian Bishops Conference said in a statement on Friday after a plenary session in Zagreb on March 11-13. The session reconsidered a draft document on "Sunday as the Lord's Day" in quest of forms of spiritual renewal. The aim of the document is to protect the right of believers to observe Sunday as a holiday, the statement, carried by the Catholic news agency IKA, said. As regards forthcoming elections for the upper house of the Croatian parliament and local councils, the Bishops appealed to the Catholic believers to take part in the ballot. The Bishop of Krk, Josip Bozanic, spoke of further steps necessary for implementing the ratified agreements between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia. The bishops were also informed about steps being undertaken by the Roman Catholic Church in Croatia regarding preparations for the celebration of the great jubilee in the year 2000. The session supported in principle a proposal for establishing a new diocese in the Lika region. As regards the pastoral visit by the Holy Father to the Roman Catholic Church in Bosnia-Herzegovina on April 12-13, Bosnian Bishops Conference president Cardinal Vinko Puljic invited Croatian bishops to visit Sarajevo, stressing that all pilgrims would be guaranteed safety. The Croatian bishops accepted the invitation, urging the clergy and the faithful to follow that great event with prayer and Christian love. (hina) vm mm 141933 MET mar 97