A Eucharist celebration led by Pope Benedict XVI's envoy Slovak Cardinal Jozef Tomko on Sunday in Ludbreg marked the culmination of two-week celebrations of the 600th anniversary of the eucharistic miracle which happened in the castle chapel in 1411 in that northern Croatian town and which was confirmed by Pope Leon X in 1513.
In attendance at today's commemorations were Croatia's President Ivo Josipovic, other state officials and tens of thousands of pilgrims from Croatia and neighbouring countries.
In his sermon, Cardinal Tomko called on the Croatian people to have the Eucharist and Christianity as the backbone of its survival and future.
In order to secure their survival and their future, the Croatians must place God in the centre of their life, the dignitary said.
He said that this should also apply to the entire Christian Europe.
The European culture can recover its health provided that it recover its soul and take back Jesus Christ, Tomko said quoting excerptions from the Blessed Alojzije Stepinac's speech at the Zagreb Radio on Easter Monday in 1939.
Before the mass, Deputy Parliament Speaker Ivan Jarnjak spoke about the connections between the Croatian parliament and the Catholic Church throughout centuries.
"The Catholic Church's role in strengthening the Croatian tradition is immeasurable," Jarnjak said.
He thanked the pontiff for his visit to Croatia this June and for the support he gave to Croatia on its road towards the European Union.
In his brief comment to reporters on today's event before the beginning of the religious service, President Josipovic said the Ludbreg pilgrimage shrine had also cultural and tourist significance apart from its importance for the faithful.
