Medjugorje is one of the world’s most famous Roman Catholic sanctuaries. Having become familiar through the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a phenomenon first appeared in 1981, Medjugorje become a religious destination for tourists. Ever since then this place in Herzegovina has become one of the most visited tourist attractions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with approximately a million Catholic guests from all around the world.
The central place of gathering in the Queen of Peace Sanctuary, an official name of the sanctuary from Medjugorje, is the St James’ Church, situated in the very core of Medjugorje. A parish priest of the St James’ Church, Fr. Marinko Šakota likes to emphasize how Medjugorje is a worldwide spiritual, religious, educational and praying centre for the faithful and pilgrims. Terracon News team has asked the parish priest, who is also a director of this sanctuary, Fr. Marinko, to say a few words more about the faithful, other guests, all the open-hearted people in Medjugorje, as a place of spiritual bonding and confession, in addition to other educational and music activities and gatherings of the young from all parts of the world.
In conclusion, let’s just add some information about the St James Church. Upon the establishment of the parish in 1892, the first parish church, for the time large enough and beautiful, was soon completed in 1897. Being built on a seismic area, its walls soon began to break making the whole construction sink, so a new church needed to be raised, its construction having lasted from 1934 until 19 January 1969, when it was blessed. The St James’ Church is now a pivotal place of a sacramental and praying life not just for the parishioners, but worldwide pilgrims as well.
D. Šabić
