Meeting of Catholic Families in Aljmaš: Hranić Calls for Care for Persons with Disabilities

The slogan of this year's 5th meeting is "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer!", and Archbishop Đuro Hranić stated in his homily that he wants these words of the Apostle Paul to truly encourage and strengthen both the Church and society.

We will become a truly inclusive society only when we stop talking about what we will do for persons with disabilities and ask ourselves what we can do together with them, said the Archbishop of Đakovo-Osijek, Đuro Hranić. Through what these people offer us, all of us become better and more noble individuals, Hranić pointed out from the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Refuge in Aljmaš during the central Eucharistic celebration of the 5th National Meeting of Croatian Catholic Families, organized by the Croatian Conference of Bishops (HBK) and the Archdiocese of Đakovo-Osijek.

Around 4,000 believers from all over Croatia and abroad participated in the central Eucharistic celebration, along with numerous Croatian archbishops and bishops, including the Archbishop Metropolitan of Zagreb and President of the Croatian Bishop’s Conference, Monsignor Dražen Kutleša, as well as the Apostolic Nuncio to Croatia, Monsignor Leopold Girelli.

Important steps taken in increasing sensitivity for vulnerable groups, but room for improvement remains

Archbishop Hranić assessed that in recent years, Croatia has taken important steps in increasing sensitivity toward socially disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, as well as persons with disabilities. He highlighted measures such as the introduction of the inclusive allowance, the legal regulation of personal assistance and teaching assistants, professional rehabilitation measures, support for integrating children with developmental difficulties into the educational system, and the promotion of employment. He also noted that social sensitivity to the needs of these individuals, as well as awareness of the importance of palliative care, has grown.

However, he believes there is still plenty of room to improve the care and support provided to persons with disabilities and their families, as significant gaps still exist between legal rights and real life.

Greater number of home visit teams needed

"Persons with disabilities, their family members, and the associations that gather them testify to the need for accelerating disability evaluations and the processes for acquiring certain rights. They also emphasize the need to increase the availability of personal assistants, remove architectural and communication barriers in our churches and pastoral spaces, enable higher-quality integration into the regular educational system, further expand employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, and develop services that allow every person to live in the community instead of facing isolation," he said.

“There is also a felt need for a greater number of home visit teams to help parents in caring for their children with disabilities,” he added, “as well as for a larger number of specialized institutions for early diagnosis and rehabilitation, half-day and full-day care centers to relieve parents, and palliative care centers.”

Source Voice of Croatia

Translated by Branko Lozančić