The new issue of **Glas Koncila**, prepared for Sunday, **October 11, 2026**, has come off the press. Among its featured topics is the celebration across Croatia of the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi. Readers can also look forward to conversations about Caritas’s care for young mothers and children, the renewal of catechesis, and an introduction to the life story of Marino Restrepo. The issue’s contents were announced by the editorial staff, and the notice was carried by the Catholic News Agency (KTA), citing IKA.
Franciscan celebrations in a report and photo story
On the feast of St Francis of Assisi, the 800th anniversary of his death was marked through various forms of prayer and remembrance of the saint’s life. Across Croatia, people gathered in prayer to remember his passing and processed with his relics; images of Francis were blessed, and his life was also presented in dramatic performances.
Eucharistic celebrations in Franciscan churches and shrines held a special place in the commemorations. They were led by Croatian bishops from two continents. The new issue of *Glas Koncila* brings some of this celebratory atmosphere closer to readers through a report and photo story, recording the different ways in which the anniversary was marked.
House of Love: the challenges of care and life stories taking a turn for the better
Ahead of the Solemnity of All Saints, Caritas of the Archdiocese of Zagreb is holding the campaign **“When you do good, do twice as much good.”** The funds raised will go to the House of Love in Zagreb. The campaign is the occasion for a conversation with the House’s director, Maja Baljak, who speaks about caring for young mothers and children.
The conversation also covers the challenges of this work and its happy endings. Baljak emphasizes the value of positive changes in the lives of those who use the service: “The most beautiful thing is when the life story of one of our beneficiaries starts moving in a good direction.” Alongside announcing the fundraising campaign, the new issue also offers the director’s perspective on the everyday care the campaign is intended to support.
Catechesis that does not separate proclamation from life
Is work with young people today more missionary than catechetical, and how can evangelizing zeal be renewed amid the routines of pastoral work? These questions open an interview with **Dr Sr Marijana Mohorić**, an associate professor in the Department of Theology and Catechetics at the University of Zadar. As a new pastoral and catechetical year begins, she speaks about renewing catechesis and the role of laypeople in it.
In the interview, she also reflects on the catechetical “decalogue” that continues to inspire her, written by the founder of her congregation, the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Speaking about the founder’s example, Sr Mohorić connects proclamation with concrete life: “She bore witness to the fact that the best catechesis is the kind that does not separate proclamation from life. Her response to the needs of the time was spiritual, educational and social at the same time.”
The life story and apostolate of Marino Restrepo
Marino Restrepo’s visit to Croatia in October, during which he spoke in several parishes, provides the occasion to present his life story and apostolate. The announcement of the new issue compares his youth to the Gospel parable of the prodigal son: he lived in his native Colombia, briefly in Germany, and then for a number of years in the United States.
According to that account, his life changed completely when he was 47. For around twenty years now, he has travelled the world, bearing witness in his apostolate to God’s mercy and the love of Jesus, which, according to his own testimony, he experienced. *Glas Koncila* presents his life story in connection with this apostolate and the talks he gave during his visit to Croatian parishes.
