Seven seminarians and two priests from the College had the good fortune to travel to Požega (Croatia) to attend the ordination to the diaconate of Antun Stipić, until recently our companion in the seminary. The first part of the trip took us to Venice, where we had a short tour of the city before spending the night at the Patriarchal Seminary. The next day, after Holy Mass, we left for Croatia. When we arrived in Požega, the first thing we did was to accompany Antun and Ivan, the two deacons who were to be ordained the following day, in an evening of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. We also witnessed their profession of faith and their promise of celibacy.
On Friday 27th the ordination took place in the afternoon. So in the morning we had the honour of being received by the new Bishop of Požega, Mgr. Ivo Martinović, T.O.R., who received us with great affection and spent a time of interesting and pleasant conversation. Marijan Pavelić - a former PUSC student and director of the diocesan Communications Office - we visited the old church of St. Lawrence, the Cathedral of St. Theresa and the magnificent Diocesan Museum. Many thanks to Don Marijan for all the attention he gave us.
The ordination was beautiful and moving, with a magnificent choir and the cathedral crowded with the faithful. Afterwards there was a celebratory dinner and Antun, on behalf of the two new deacons, gave a moving speech with a few minutes in Italian which we found very moving. It was also great to meet again several former Sedes students who are now happily working as priests in the diocese: Fr Dragan, Fr Tomislav, Fr Sirko, Fr Jurko, Fr Matej, Fr Robert, Fr Marko and Fr Karlo.
On Saturday, the 28th, we participated in the feast of the diocese with a mass in the cathedral celebrated by the Archbishop Emeritus of Zara, Mgr Želimir Puljić. Again there was a festive meal, where we were able to make friends with some seminarians from Požega, Zagreb and Mostar, who had come for the occasion. In the evening, a very pleasant party in Antun's village, with his family and friends, put the finishing touch to this unforgettable trip. We would like to thank Antun once again for his great affection and all the attentions he showed to us. And also, especially to Fr. Marko and Fr. Sirko, who accompanied us in the accommodation and always made sure that everything went well..