Slovakia has changed profoundly since last papal visit

When Pope Francis touches down in Slovakia on Sunday, Sept 12 he will find a country greatly changed since a pope last set foot on its soil, according to a local bishop.

Sep 11, 2021

Bishop Jozef Ha?ko, auxiliary bishop of Bratislava, Slovakia


By Andrea Gagliarducci

When Pope Francis touches down in Slovakia on Sunday, Sept 12 he will find a country greatly changed since a pope last set foot on its soil, according to a local bishop.

Bishop Jozef Ha?ko, an auxiliary bishop of Bratislava archdiocese, said that the “atmosphere around the Church” had altered since Pope John Paul II visited in 2003, in his third trip to the central European country.

“Pope Francis’ visit to Slovakia must be viewed in the context of St. John Paul II’s visits,” said the 57-year-old bishop.

“Already during communism, before 1989, a large petition was launched asking that the pope be invited to Slovakia. The communist secret police stifled this voice of the people, even persecuting those who had organized the collection of signatures.”

“Still, they were not able to stop this popular movement. The letters, in one way or another, got to John Paul II. The Pope was moved by it. For this, he came three times – in 1990, 1995 and 2003.”

“The older generations retain a strong memory of the visits,” Bishop Ha?ko said. He explained that in the following 25 years, Slovakia has changed profoundly.

“In the 1990s, there was enthusiasm after the fall of Communism. This enthusiasm also involved the Church, perceived as the only officially existing body to fight the Communist regime,” he recalled.

But the new generation “does not perceive things that way. The Church is no longer considered in a positive light solely because of what it did during Communism,” he said, adding: “The atmosphere around the Church has thus changed.”

Bishop Ha?ko, who was named a bishop by Benedict XVI in 2012, said it was difficult to assess whether there is more or less trust in the Church today. But he suggested that the decline in the number of vocations was a strong indicator, though it is part of a wider European trend.

“Secularisation cannot be denied. It is powerful. It enters much more deeply into the mentality, into the collective unconscious, through social networks and the media,” he said.

Though Communism has collapsed, some of the scars remain. And though the perception of the Church has changed, the memory of what the Church did must be kept alive, said the bishop.

“The big call is to be grounded in the truth and to be understandable to modern man, without diluting the Gospel’s words. Our testimony must speak of the Kingdom of God every day.”

The Prelate hopes that Pope Francis’ Sept 12-15 visit will help to revive this spirit.--CNA

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