Page 157 - Dark Shades of Istria
P. 157
8.2 Case Study Event 1
Table 8.2 Event Schedule
Beginning Event Observation
: Holy Mass at the Cathedral Yes
: Wreath laying ceremony at the Central Cross and giving No
honour to Croatian defenders in the Homeland War
: Wreath laying ceremony at Franz Joseph i park and giving Yes
honour to Croatian defenders in the Homeland War
: Parade of Croatian Veterans of the Istrian County Yes
: A brief programme at the House of Croatian Defenders Yes
: Opening of the exhibition ‘Krvatska’ Yes
Notes Author’s elaboration based on Grad Pula (2018c).
message was available to the public on the webpages of the City of Pula
and the Istrian County (Istarska županija, 2018).
description of the dark commemorative event
Pula was the main venue for the national holiday in the Istrian County.
The memorial day was composed of six different events, which in fact
constitute one commemorative whole – see Table 8.2. Events where the
observation was carried out are indicated in the column to the far right.
The Holy Mass at the Pula Cathedral (Cathedral of the Assumption of
the Blessed Virgin Mary), which begun at 8 am, was the first event on
5 August 2018 (Table 8.2). A police car and van were parked in front of
the cathedral, which indicated a special occasion. However, the interior
of the cathedral, which was not full of believers, was not specially deco-
rated; only ordinary Catholic symbols were naturally present. Homeland
war veterans (defenders) in azure T-shirts as well as eleven uniformed
police officers also participated, while high representatives of the Munic-
ipality or County did not attend. As with every Eucharistic celebration,
the Holy Mass had a more or less fixed structure; the war veterans did the
mass readings. The sermon offered more interesting content for investi-
gation. The police chaplain talked about Croatian defenders, although he
did not advocate excessive engagement with the past, but with the present
and the future. Here he highlighted present successes, especially of Croat-
ian footballers, which made his sermon very topical. These successes were
then linked with Catholic values. Topics such as past totalitarian regimes,
anti-fascism, Istrian convivenza, regionalism and the present political sit-
uation in the region or in the state, death- or suffering-related tourism or
pilgrimage were ignored. Hence, the sermon as well as the whole ritual
157
Table 8.2 Event Schedule
Beginning Event Observation
: Holy Mass at the Cathedral Yes
: Wreath laying ceremony at the Central Cross and giving No
honour to Croatian defenders in the Homeland War
: Wreath laying ceremony at Franz Joseph i park and giving Yes
honour to Croatian defenders in the Homeland War
: Parade of Croatian Veterans of the Istrian County Yes
: A brief programme at the House of Croatian Defenders Yes
: Opening of the exhibition ‘Krvatska’ Yes
Notes Author’s elaboration based on Grad Pula (2018c).
message was available to the public on the webpages of the City of Pula
and the Istrian County (Istarska županija, 2018).
description of the dark commemorative event
Pula was the main venue for the national holiday in the Istrian County.
The memorial day was composed of six different events, which in fact
constitute one commemorative whole – see Table 8.2. Events where the
observation was carried out are indicated in the column to the far right.
The Holy Mass at the Pula Cathedral (Cathedral of the Assumption of
the Blessed Virgin Mary), which begun at 8 am, was the first event on
5 August 2018 (Table 8.2). A police car and van were parked in front of
the cathedral, which indicated a special occasion. However, the interior
of the cathedral, which was not full of believers, was not specially deco-
rated; only ordinary Catholic symbols were naturally present. Homeland
war veterans (defenders) in azure T-shirts as well as eleven uniformed
police officers also participated, while high representatives of the Munic-
ipality or County did not attend. As with every Eucharistic celebration,
the Holy Mass had a more or less fixed structure; the war veterans did the
mass readings. The sermon offered more interesting content for investi-
gation. The police chaplain talked about Croatian defenders, although he
did not advocate excessive engagement with the past, but with the present
and the future. Here he highlighted present successes, especially of Croat-
ian footballers, which made his sermon very topical. These successes were
then linked with Catholic values. Topics such as past totalitarian regimes,
anti-fascism, Istrian convivenza, regionalism and the present political sit-
uation in the region or in the state, death- or suffering-related tourism or
pilgrimage were ignored. Hence, the sermon as well as the whole ritual
157
