Members of the CCLD and HKDMST marked the World Day of the Sick at the CCC by participating in the Holy Mass and the lecture “Illness and Healing in Selected Works of Christian Art”. The ceremony was attended by Assoc. Prof. Prof. Dr. Rok Čivljak, President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, prim. Dr. Ivan Barišić, President of the Zagreb Branch of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce “Branimir Richter” and Sister Slavica Janković, President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce.

On Wednesday, February 11, 2026, the Catholic University of Croatia celebrated World Patients’ Day, organized by the Faculty of Health Studies, the Croatian Catholic Medical Association (HKLD), the Croatian Catholic Society of Nurses and Technicians (HKDMST) and the Nutrix Nursing Students’ Club. Members of the Croatian Transplant Association also joined the ceremony.

The program began with a Holy Mass in the University Chapel, led by Fr. Branimir Jagodić, university chaplain. In prayer, all the sick and needy are entrusted to God, with the request that they may find comfort and strength in Mary’s maternal embrace and, like the participants in the wedding in Cana of Galilee, through her intercession experience the transformation of their trials and taste the “good wine” again – a symbol of joy, beauty, health and peace.

After the Mass, the program continued in the hall “Blessed Alojzije card. Stepinac”, where the gathered were greeted by the acting dean of the Faculty of Health Studies, doc. Ivica Matić. In his address, he thanked for the long-term successful cooperation of all the institutions and associations involved, especially emphasizing the ten years of joint celebration of the World Day of the Sick and emphasizing the importance of unity in promoting care for the sick and Christian values.

This was followed by a multimedia lecture by doc. Ph.D. Dario Sambunjak, MD, a member of the Croatian Catholic Medical Association and a former teacher at the University Department of Nursing of the Catholic University of Croatia, entitled “Illness and Healing in Selected Works of Christian Fine Art”.

During the presentation, a dozen works from the rich treasury of European sacral painting, from the early Renaissance to the 19th century, were analyzed. The lecturer selected works by painters of the early Renaissance such as Fra Angelico and Masaccio, all the way to 19th-century painters such as Aimé Morot and Carl Bloch. What all the analyzed works had in common was that they directly or indirectly depict illness, suffering, and healing, or healing.

The participants had the opportunity to see depictions of Jesus healing a sick man in the bath of Bethzath, a Good Samaritan who helps a wounded traveler, as well as miraculous healings through the intercession of St. John the Baptist. St. Peter, St. Cosmas and Damian, St. Francis and other saints. The lecture was dynamic and interactive, and the participants actively participated in an online quiz related to the exhibited content.

The winner of the quiz was Mirka Matuša Popović, a first-year undergraduate student of nursing at the Catholic University of Croatia. At the end, she was presented with a commemorative award – a framed depiction of St. Francis, hand-carved in wood, which the lecturer personally made for this occasion. After the official part of the program, the gathered people stayed for a short gathering. This year’s World Day of the Sick was once again celebrated in an atmosphere of togetherness, solidarity and sincere care for the sick.

Text source: HKS unicath.hr