Thursday, June 19, 2008
ORTHODOX VIEW OF VATICAN INVOLVEMENT IN THE BALKANS
Pravda interviewed Nemani Klaic, a Serbian historian, an outstanding member of the Orthodox community of Croatia, about the role of The Vatican in Balkan wars and about relations between the Orthodox and the Catholic Churches. Given the history of Medjugorje and the impact of this apparition on the war, his remarks are interesting.
Has The Vatican-led policy in Serbia undermined the idea of recreating the single Christian Church?
The first half of the 20th century has left many deep wounds in the history of the Serbian nation and the Serbian Orthodox Church. The Vatican has long striven to weaken Orthodoxy in the Balkans and maybe even to destroy it. It has been trying to do it peacefully, although it often happened that force was widely used to achieve the goal at all possible costs.
The Catholic Church in Croatia was helping The Vatican to execute its goals. It is worthy of note that on June 28 1914 the troops of the Austrian Empire entered Sarajevo to affect religious and national feelings of the Serbs....
What was the price of establishing the new state of the Serbs, the Croatians and the Slovenians?
After the war the Serbian King Alexander wanted to united all Slavic nations – the Serbs, the Croatians and the Slovenians – into one state where everyone would be equal in terms of religion and nationality. However, Rome took certain efforts to make any kind of agreements between Serbia and Croatia impossible.
The Vatican openly disliked Yugoslavia. Italian fascist leader Benito Mussolini had his own views on the Balkans, which coincided with interests of The Vatican in Serbia.
To implement its plans, The Vatican used the combination of religious and national chauvinism in Croatia. It was especially noticeable during the existence of the Independent State of Croatia in 1941-1945. The Roman Catholic Church was virtually collaborating with Croatian thugs.
Read the interview here.
