XI. FORGIVENESS

In Vinkovci, I asked the parish priest : “ Where is Wounded Christ?” He replied : “ When I heard you were coming I knew what you were going to ask me. I have Wounded Christ here, he is waiting for you.”

The sculptress, Mrs. Ulman, had modelled Him crucified. On 24th October 1991, during a bombing raid of Vinkovci, Christ was shot.

What remained of him was his left hand , lacking a forefinger. Nevertheless, wounded and pierced, that hand possessed immense power. It needed no words to understand, support, help, protect and lead. Christ was destroyed, but, at the same time, He was liberated. When all what was left of him was his hand, he turned it into a giving hand.

Until then I had always claimed that Wounded Christ needed help, only to realise that he was the one who helped me, you, us, for Christ meant giving. I understood the message. Croatia, having been crucified, has to attain its own freedom by lending its hand to those who crucified, attacked and destroyed it. A hand given by the crucified leads us to freedom, dignity, faith and resurrection.

Christ Gives His Wounded Hand


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