Ivan Merz | |
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Born | Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria-Hungary | 16 December 1896
Died | 10 May 1928 Zagreb, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes | (aged 31)
Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church |
Beatified | 22 June 2003, Banja Luka, [Bosnia and Herzegovina by Pope John Paul II |
Feast | 10 May |
Influences | Ljubomir Maraković |
Influenced | Marica Stanković, [1] Uskrs fest [2] |
Major works | Dnevnik (Diary) Zlatna knjiga (Golden Book) |
Ivan Merz (born 16 December 1896 in Banja Luka; died 10 May 1928 in Zagreb) is a saint of the Catholic Church. The Croat from Bosnia was an important layman and supporter of the church in Croatia. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2003. Ivan Merz promoted the liturgical movement in Croatia and together with Ivo Protulipac created a movement for the young people, Hrvatski orlovski savez ("The Croatian Union of the Eagles", hr), inspired by the "Eucharistic Crusade", which he had encountered in France.
Merz entered military service as a young adult, completed it after three months and began studying in Vienna in 1915. During the First World War he was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian army and fought on the Italian front.
After the World War, Merz devoted himself entirely to serving in the Roman Catholic Church and took a vow of chastity. He wrote numerous articles, essays and reflections for various magazines.
In October 1920, Merz went to Paris and studied at the Sorbonne and the Institut Catholique de Paris. In 1923 he received his doctorate from the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Zagreb with a dissertation on the influence of liturgical language in the work of French writers, especially the Renouveau catholique.
He died in 1928 at the age of just 31. Merz was beatified on June 23, 2003, by Pope John Paul II during a visit to Banja Luka.
The Director of the Confraternity, Dave Ceasar Dela Cruz was elected as the vice postulator of the cause for the canonization of Blessed Ivan Merz [3] on 19 March 2008 by the Vatican through the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.