Press Release Regarding the Alleged Commission on Medjugorje
by Don Ante Luburic, Chancellor
The Croatian daily newspaper "Ve?ernji list" on 27 June 2008 published the following sensational headline on its front page: "The Vatican. The highest circles of the Catholic Church have decided to follow the phenomenon of Medjugorje — A new Commission for Medjugorje", while on page 5 an even more sensational title appeared: "A Commission of the Holy See is being established", accompanied by the header: "Medjugorje — Cardinal Pulji? on the anniversary of the phenomenon of the apparitions of the Madonna". Regarding this text the following statement is presented:
The text mentions a falsehood that "seventeen years ago the Commission of the Bishops' Conference of the former Yugoslavia made a decision on Medjugorje declaring that there are no supernatural apparitions and ordered further enquiries…".
The truth is that no Commission of the Bishops' Conference made any decision, nor did the Commission order any further enquiry, but that this decision was made competently by the Bishops' Conference, which on 10 April 1991 declared in Zadar that: "On the basis of investigations made thus far" — hence on the basis of the investigations and conclusions of the Commission established in 1987 by the Bishops' Conference of that time — "it cannot be affirmed that these events involve supernatural apparitions or revelations".
The text of the article begins with the affirmation: "The President of the Bishops' Conference of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Cardinal Archbishop of Sarajevo Vinko Pulji?, announced the formation of a new commission which will investigate the phenomenon and which will be under the jurisdiction of the Holy See".
This affirmation is then followed by confusing claims and the Cardinal himself in the text that follows refutes the statement in his radio-interview published by "Ve?ernji list".
The first is that this Commission "will most probably be under the jurisdiction of the Holy See". Hence it is not clear, but only assumed and anybody's guess.
Secondly, this Commission "will — if it is established, as is probable — be like an international commission which will override our jurisdiction".
Thirdly: "It is certain that the international commission will receive, if it is established, different instructions which remain to be seen".
One may ask what kind of assertions and declarations expressing extremely doubtful statements are these: "Most probably" followed then by "probably"; "if" and then "like"; "it is certain" — "if it is established"; "which remain to be seen"?
A contradiction then appears since this so-called and most probable Commission "will override our jurisdiction" and then: "Yet the local bishop will never be excluded, since he is the most competent person for everything that goes on within a diocese".
After reading this, even a more than average reader of "Ve?ernji list" will not know: has the formation of a Commission only been pre-announced or is it really being established? Will it finally become a reality and when? Will it be established at all and when? Will it be under the jurisdiction of the Holy See and in which form? Will it override the competency of the Bishops' Conference of B-H but not the jurisdiction of the local bishop? The only thing that is certain in all of these media announcements, journalistic fabrications and Radio-Medjugorje guesses is that the local bishop of Mostar knows nothing about it at all!
We ask ourselves why do we need such compromising statements and who needs these radio-interviews on the case of Medjugorje for the anniversary of the supposed "apparitions"?
As if we don't have more important Church issues to deal with in these difficult times and as if there don't exist more pressing social issues that require our attention in this country, amongst our people and in this region, than the spreading of unfounded, incoherent news and contradictory statements on the phenomenon which was already in 1991 theologically and authoritatively resolved at the level of the Bishops' Conference which declared: On the basis of comprehensive investigations on the entire phenomenon of Medjugorje — to this day — there has been no valid proof that these events concern supernatural apparitions or revelations!
Don Ante Luburi?, Chancellor
Diocesan Chancery Office
This item 8308 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org
