Bishop of Eisenstadt Egidije Živković appeared on the Croatian Catholic Radio programme “Aktualno” on 11 October 2019 to announce the benefit concert “Pax et Bonum for the Children of Vukovar”. The concert was scheduled for Sunday, 13 October, at the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall in Zagreb, beginning at 20:05.
According to the announcement at the time, tickets had sold out, and a live broadcast was planned on HRT2, with a broadcast on HKR as well. The charity phone number published for financial contributions was 060 9004. This number is included here solely as part of the 2019 announcement, not as a current call to donate. The concert was organised by the International Association of Burgenland Croats – Burgenland Association Hrvat S.A.M., under the patronage of the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the City of Zagreb.
Bringing people together with the old homeland
The bishop explained that the name Hrvat S.A.M. represents Burgenland Croats in Slovakia, Austria and Hungary. He said he wanted to bring these communities together with one another, as well as with Croatia, which they call their old homeland, and with Bosnia and Herzegovina. “For 500 years we were divided and separated from one another, especially during the last 50 years because of the Iron Curtain, and now this people needs to be brought together again,” he said. He cited the effort to build ties with Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina as the reason for founding the association.
He particularly emphasised the role of the Catholic Church in preserving the national and religious identity of the Burgenland Croats. He said he was a descendant of theirs in the eighteenth generation and judged that the people would have become Protestant if their pastors had not accompanied them to the new Pannonian lands. In his words, it was only in the Church that the mother tongue, as well as the culture, had been nurtured over those five centuries. “I learned the Croatian I know in my family and in the Church,” he testified.
Concrete help for Vukovar’s children
Živković said he had the idea of helping the children of Vukovar the previous year, when he celebrated Mass in the city. “Somehow it stirred something in my soul. It is important that I accompany what I do in the religious sphere with action. That is how the idea came about to do something for the children of Vukovar,” he explained. According to his announcement, proceeds from the benefit were being collected for Vukovar’s Kindergarten I and II. He emphasised: “We must take a new step forward with children, because children are the future of the people and of the Church.”
The concert was announced to feature the “Pax et Bonum” choir with soloists, led and conducted by Ivo Šeparović, as well as guests Jasna Zlokić, Tereza Kesovija, Matko Jelavić, Zorica Kondža, the klapa “Rikordo”, ŽTO “Stjepan Bujan-Stipić” and others. The choir of Burgenland Croats from Slovakia, Austria and Hungary was described in the announcement as having around 180 singers and, as the bishop said, representing all of Burgenland.
Živković said that the choir performs every year. The previous year it had performed in Burgenland, and, in addition to the Zagreb concert, a performance at the philharmonic in Bratislava was planned for November 2019. Through performances like these, he explained, they wanted to bring Burgenland Croats together and connect them with their old homeland, as well as bring together all the peoples of the region where they live. He warned of nationalism and weakening unity in Europe: “We see nationalisms sweeping across Europe, while unity is being lost. Borders, fences and walls are put up quickly, but bridges are difficult to build.”
A culture of remembrance against forgetting
Speaking about Croatia, the bishop judged that the wounds of the Homeland War were still open and that a culture of remembrance could be a path towards their healing. “Today, a culture of forgetting prevails. If we do not face our past and examine it scientifically and historically, if we do not find common ground, we will not be able to take a new step forward into the future,” he said.
He also highlighted the Church’s role in opposing this culture of forgetting. Referring to the encouragement of the Second Vatican Council, he advocated engagement in society and the witnessing to Christian values. “Let a Christian truly be a witness to Christian values in today’s society,” he said.
The same report announced his participation in the one-day international academic conference “Europe and the Culture of Remembrance”, scheduled for 12 October 2019 in the Vijenac Hall of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Institute in Kaptol. The conference organiser was named as Fr Božidar Blažević, president of the Hrvat S.A.M. Association.
The explanation of the conference’s purpose highlighted the need to reflect on a culture of remembrance that must stand against a culture of forgetting. European historical memory was presented as a topic to be fostered in every sector of society, while recalling the shared European principles and values that Europe was founded on. Christian foundations were also emphasised as an enduring reminder of the roots that shaped Europe and its identity.
For the same day, 12 October 2019, at 18:00, it was also announced that Bishop Živković would celebrate a Mass for the homeland and veterans at the Church of Pope John XXIII in Zagreb’s Dubrava district.
