Djamila
Bosnjakinja
THE STUP CHURCH
FAITH THAT COULD NOT BE SMOTHERED
FAITH THAT COULD NOT BE SMOTHERED
I'm having fun with my threads today, sharing stories that I find inspiring or that make me especially happy.
There are few Christian stories of Sarajevo that compare to the story of the Stup Church.
Stup is a suburb of Sarajevo, a relatively benign district of residential housing and a few business districts. There is little distinctive about it other than it had the unfortunate luck of being near the front line during the Siege of Sarajevo.
Its majority Roman Catholic residents suffered greatly. They dealt with the thousands of shells and snipers bullets that rained down on Sarajevo every day from Orthodox Christian positions around the city. They also dealt with living in an area near the front lines, where all young men were charged with helping defend the city - whether they were willing or not.
One of the first victims of the war in Stup was the Stup Church. It was hit with 45 shells in the span of two hours and everything inside that was not made of stone went up in flames, including priceless Church records that told the story of every birth and marriage among Stup's Roman Catholics since the 1600s.
The Catholics of Stup, though, refused to be beaten down. Every Saturday night and Sunday morning they held a proper, Roman Catholic mass. For many residents of Stup, the Body of Christ was the only food they recieved that day.
It made for inspiring scenes, which were broadcast around the world at the time.
There are few Christian stories of Sarajevo that compare to the story of the Stup Church.
Stup is a suburb of Sarajevo, a relatively benign district of residential housing and a few business districts. There is little distinctive about it other than it had the unfortunate luck of being near the front line during the Siege of Sarajevo.
Its majority Roman Catholic residents suffered greatly. They dealt with the thousands of shells and snipers bullets that rained down on Sarajevo every day from Orthodox Christian positions around the city. They also dealt with living in an area near the front lines, where all young men were charged with helping defend the city - whether they were willing or not.
One of the first victims of the war in Stup was the Stup Church. It was hit with 45 shells in the span of two hours and everything inside that was not made of stone went up in flames, including priceless Church records that told the story of every birth and marriage among Stup's Roman Catholics since the 1600s.
The Catholics of Stup, though, refused to be beaten down. Every Saturday night and Sunday morning they held a proper, Roman Catholic mass. For many residents of Stup, the Body of Christ was the only food they recieved that day.
It made for inspiring scenes, which were broadcast around the world at the time.
The Stup Church was rebuilt last year, and officially opened last August. Every Roman Catholic resident of Stup pressed their hands against the wet paint on the interior walls, to leave their hand prints on the walls of the Church that they kept alive, and rebuilt. Special memorials were erected for all those who were killed by sniping or shelling during the war-time masses.
Archbishop of Bosnia, Vinko Puljic, said the Stup Church is the only one he cannot complete a mass inside without crying with happiness. He said the power of faith in that Church is so strong that even heart most closed to Jesus Christ could be opened by simply stepping inside it.
And here is the Stup Church today:
Archbishop of Bosnia, Vinko Puljic, said the Stup Church is the only one he cannot complete a mass inside without crying with happiness. He said the power of faith in that Church is so strong that even heart most closed to Jesus Christ could be opened by simply stepping inside it.
And here is the Stup Church today:
