Abstract | Kršćanstvo nekada i danas uvelike se razlikuje. Bit kršćanstva je vjerovanje u jednoga Boga kao i život po vjeri te evanđelju. Nakon utemeljenja kršćanstva stvorile su se različite konfesije te je svaka od njih odabrala kako će živjeti. Katolička vjera dopušta klanjanje Bogu, ali s druge strane vjernici mogu štovati blaženike i svece te tražiti zagovor kod Boga putem njih. Tijekom povijesti Katolička crkva prošla je kroz burna vremena. Bilo je tu zabrana, diskriminacije, mučenja i ubijanja. Kroz mučeništvo za svoju vjeru su nastali mnogi blaženici i sveci. To su osobe koje su živjele svoju vjeru, propovijedale je i na kraju za nju dale i svo je živote. Živjeli su u čistoći, poniznosti i iskrenosti te ušli u srce naroda i postali njegovi uzori. Kroz različite režime i različite vlasti na Hrvatskom tlu, ali i u svijetu, sveci su bili mučeni i ubijani jer se nisu željeli odreći Isusa Krista. Danas je stanje Katoličke crkve, vjere i vjernika mnogo bolje. Ljudi su slobodni da žive svoj život kako žele te da vjeruju u ono što žele bez da im itko nameta nešto ili im prijeti. Pa su tako i katolici slobodni živjeti po evanđelju i Božjoj riječi. Kršćanstvo je prisutno na hrvatskom tlu od sedmog stoljeća. U Hrvatskoj i na području Istarske županije ima mnogo svetaca i blaženika. Svaki grad ima svog zaštitnika kojem se vjernici mole i kojega štuju. Kroz to vjerovanje i štovanje stvorila se tradicijska vrijednost te identitet hrvatskog naroda. Podignute su mnoge bazilike, crkve i samostani koji dan danas daju upečatljivu notu gradovima u kojima se nalaze. Uz katoličku vjeru došlo je i do različitih proslava, procesija i slično. Sve to stvorilo je vrlo bogatu kulturnu baštinu Hrvata, kako materijalnu tako i nematerijalnu. Danas je ta baština, uspostavljena na vjeri, svecima i blaženicima, upravo ono što ujedinjuje narod. Postali su uzor ljudima kako treba živjeti, povezali ih u njihovim različitostima te im dali slobodu. Sveci poput Leopolda Mandića te blaženici poput Miroslava Bulešića poznati su i štovani u čitavom svijetu. Fešte poput Feste svetog Vlaha (svetac zaštitnik grada Dubrovnika, ali i Vodnjana) i procesije poput Za križen čvrsto povezuju ljude diljem svijeta. Prisustvuju im i ljudi koji nisu katoličke vjeroispovijedi. Za kraj može se reći kako vjera, blažene i svete osobe povezuju kulturnu baštinu, lokalno stanovništvo i hodočasnike, kao i ljude diljem svijeta, čuvajući tako kulturni identitet mnogih naroda. |
Abstract (english) | Christianity of today differs very much from Christianity in the past. The essence of Christian religion is believing in one God as well as living by faith and the gospel. After the foundation of Christendom, different denominations were created and each of them chose its way of life. Catholic faith allows worship of God, as well as worship of the blessed and saints and pleading with God for believers. Throughout history, Catholic Church has gone through some turbulent periods. There were prohibitions, discrimination, torture and killings. Many blessed and saints arose by going through martyrdom for their faith. They were persons who lived for their faith, preached it, and eventually gave their lives for it. They lived in purity, humility and sincerity. Because of that they entered the hearts of people and became their paragons. Through different regimes and authorities on Croatian soil and all over the world, the saints were tortured and murdered because they had not wanted to abjure Jesus Christ. Today the position of the Chatolic Church, faith itself and believers is much better. People are free to live their lives the way they want and to believe in what they want with no imposing or threatening of any kind. So Chatolics are free to live by the gospel and by the Word of God. Christianity has been presented on Croatian territory since 7th century. There are many of the blessed and saints in Croatia and in Istrian County. Every place has its patron to pray to and worship. Through this belief and worship, traditional values and identity of Croatian people were created. Many basilicas, churches and monasteries were built, which today give an impressive mark to the places where they are located. Due to Catholic faith there have been various celebrations and processions. All this together created a very rich cultural heritage of Croats, both tangible and intangible. Today, this heritage based on faith, saints and the blessed, is exactly what unites people. They have become models for living, connecting people in their defferences and giving them freedom. Saints like Leopold Mandić and the blessed like Miroslav Bulešić are well known and respectable all over the world. Festivities like The Festivity of Saint Blaise (the saint patron of the town of Dubrovnik as well as of the town of Vodnjan) and processions like Za Križen make close link among people around the world. Even those who are not Catholic come to celebrate and take part in festivities of this kind. In the end, it can be said that faith, the blessed and saints put together cultural heritage, local population and piligrims, as well as people around the world, protecting cultural identity of many people. |