In 1948 the Communist regime of Yugoslavia seized the property of the Italian Benedictines of Dajla near the city of Novigrad and banished the monks. Although the monks received 1.7M lire in 1975, the Holy See is demanding that compensation for the property, now being used as a retirement home, be given to the Italian Benedictines. Sadly, the local Diocese of Porec, Istria, that received all of the meadows, acres, forests, and buildings from the State of Croatia in the 1990s, sold all that to finance the construction of new ecclesiastical properties. Most Rev. Ivan Milovan, the local ordinary, was reluctant to comply with the Vatican decision that would necessitate raising 30M € to re-acquire the property, some of which is about to become a golf course. Although the prime minister, Jadranka Kosor, and the regional tourist authorities support the bishop against the Pope, a possible way of raising the money might be the sale of the diocese’s late antique (6th c.) Euphrasius Basilica, a magnet for German and Austrian tourists. Unesco inscribed the basilica complex — church, memorial chapel, atrium, baptistery, and episcopal palace — on its World Heritage List in 1997. Croatian politicians see the Vatican’s demand as an attack on Croatia’s sovereignty since the courts have already ruled against the Pope. The Holy See has suspended Bishop Milovan and sent a Spanish bishop to bring an end to opposition in the diocese.
originally posted at http://www.osb.org
