Croatia: Conference “Pastoral Care in Healthcare” On the Occasion of The Feast of St. Luke
Croatian Medical Association, October 20th, 2025
On the occasion of the feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, heavenly patron of physicians and members of the Croatian Catholic Medical Association (CCMA), a conference titled “Pastoral Care in Healthcare” was held on Friday, October 17, 2025, organized by the Croatian Bishops’ Conference, the CCMA, and the Catholic University of Croatia.
The conference was solemnly opened by the president of the Croatian Bishops’ Conference, Msgr. Dražen Kutleša, Archbishop of Zagreb. The ceremony began with a prayer led by the Secretary General of the Croatian Bishops’ Conference, Prof. Rev. Krunoslav Novak, who also moderated the program. He then welcomed the participants, introduced the speakers, and presented the schedule of the day, which would conclude with a Mass at 7 p.m. in the Basilica of St. Anthony, celebrated by Archbishop Kutleša together with the spiritual assistants of the CCMA and other priests.
Vice-Rector of the Catholic University of Croatia, Prof. Rev. Ante Crnčević, speaking on behalf of absent Rector Prof. Željko Tanjić, addressed the participants, noting that the Catholic University of Croatia strives in all its programs to promote the values of Christian anthropology and advocate for a holistic approach to the human person, fostering care for both physical and spiritual health. “For this very reason, it was appropriate to organize this Conference at the Catholic University of Croatia, which particularly cultivates programs in the field of biomedicine and health sciences. (…) The wholeness of care for the sick reveals the almost forgotten Croatian verb for healing ‘zacijeliti’ – ‘to make whole, to heal completely’, and there can be no wholeness in health if one forgets care for the spiritual dimension of the person. Salvation itself is described as God’s ‘embrace of wholeness’ toward humankind, and all those who bear the ministry of pastoral care in healthcare are servants of that divine embrace to those afflicted by illness, as well as to all participants in healthcare,” Prof. Crnčević emphasized. He concluded by wishing everyone a fruitful day and congratulated Prof. Rok Čivljak on his election as president of the European Federation of Catholic Medical Associations (FEAMC).
President of the Croatian Catholic Medical Association, Prof. Rok Čivljak, expressed joy and satisfaction in co-organizing the event, saying: “I believe that all of you here feel the need to discuss the topic of pastoral care in healthcare, to review what we have done so far, and to consider what more we can do to integrate pastoral care into the healthcare system as an essential part of the medical service we provide to our patients—not only to patients, but also to their family members in need, and to healthcare professionals themselves.”
Before the opening of the study day, Archbishop Kutleša stated in his address that he welcomed “the choice of theme ‘Pastoral Care in Healthcare,’ as it reflects your sensitivity and commitment to the integral care of the human person—for body, mind, and spirit.”
“Although holistic care for the human person should be the goal of all humanistic professions and vocations, it must be remembered that pastoral care primarily belongs to the priestly vocation and mission. By the very nature of his ministry, the priest is a shepherd of souls—’curator animarum’. No priest, regardless of his specific assignment, can be merely an administrator, a preacher, or a teacher of religion. Above all and in everything, he is a shepherd of souls. Of course, pastoral care includes concern for the temporal as well as the spiritual needs of the faithful, but if a priest neglects the salvation of souls, he fails in his vocation, and what he neglects cannot be made up by anyone else,” the Archbishop said.
Connecting the ministry of priests with that of healthcare workers, Archbishop Kutleša pointed out that “we priests must sadly admit that in our time,we are losing the sence of the need to care for the soul. This trend is imposed by modern culture itself. In the context of healthcare, doctors and medical professionals carry the burden of concern for health, while those in need of medical assistance primarily seek physical healing. Yet pastoral care in healthcare encompasses much more than care for the sick and dying—it embraces an entire network of relationships. Modern society increasingly avoids confronting death, and unfortunately, that same fear often enters the hearts of younger priests. Confused by human suffering, they sometimes avoid the rooms of the seriously ill and dying.”
The Archbishop concluded with words of encouragement: “Dear priests and healthcare workers, do not be afraid! Your daily encounters with suffering, weakness, and the limits of life make your mission one of the most exalted forms of witnessing to hope. I especially urge you, my brother priests, to return with renewed enthusiasm to your original ministry—pastoral care. Let us be shepherds who do not retreat from the demands of our ministry, but who enter into the darkness with Christ to light the flame of eternity. Every soul lost through our neglect will be our loss before God.”
After the welcoming addresses and official opening, the working part of the Conference followed, during which the pastoral care in healthcare was discussed from the perspectives of a priest, a healthcare professional, and a patient. The current state of pastoral ministry in healthcare in Croatia was also presented, along with a proposal for an interdisciplinary program for the education and formation of pastoral caregivers in healthcare.
Prof. Harold G. Koenig from Duke University, USA—one of the most cited scientists in the field of pastoral care and spirituality in healthcare—spoke about the importance and benefits of integrating spirituality and faith into the healthcare system, as well as about the role of the so-called The Hospital Spiritual Care Team model used in the United States.
In the afternoon interactive session, four panel discussions were held, involving pastoral and healthcare professionals, patients and their family members, representatives of different associations and foundations, and members of the broader academic community. These panels addressed the advantages and shortcomings of different models of pastoral care in healthcare and explored ways to improve the existing system of pastoral care within Croatia’s healthcare framework.
President of the CCMA Prof. Čivljak moderated the final plenary discussion, in which representatives of the panels presented their conclusions and proposals arising from the day’s discussions. Prof. Čivljak summarized the content of the full-day program in several key points:
- Pastoral care in healthcare must be integrated into the Croatian healthcare system, as a holistic approach to patients—beyond physical and psychological care—including the spiritual dimension of those affected by illness and death. It represents an essential part of a comprehensive approach to the health and the disease.
- Pastoral care should be organized so that spiritual assistance is directed primarily toward patients in greatest need, but also toward their family members and the healthcare professionals who care for them, since the burden and challenges of their vocation often affect their own spiritual integrity.
- In addition to the existing legal foundations for pastoral care in healthcare in Croatia—based on agreements between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia—further legal provisions should be considered to ensure that pastoral care operates in accordance with the broader legal framework of the national healthcare system.
- Such a demanding and complex pastoral ministry can only be performed by educated, qualified, and competent pastoral caregivers; therefore, a formation model for pastoral workers must be developed. Although pastoral care primarily belongs to the priestly vocation and mission—since a priest by nature is a shepherd of souls (curator animarum)—healthcare professionals and laypersons (family members, members of humanitarian organizations, volunteers, etc.) should also take part in spiritual care for the sick. They, too, must acquire certain knowledge and skills in pastoral care through lifelong learning and continuing education programs.
- Holistic and multidisciplinary healthcare requires that the pastoral caregiver becomes an integral member of the healthcare team—a team providing not only for the patient’s physical and psychological needs but also for their spiritual needs, as well as spiritual needs of family members and healthcare workers within the clinical environment.
The rest of the program and the Book of Abstracts are available at the link.
Rok Čivljak
