Ivan Merz (16 December 1896 − 10 May 1928) was a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

layman In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. ...

from Bosnia and important supporter of the Catholic Church in Croatia. Merz promoted the Liturgical Movement in Croatia and together with Ivo Protulipac, he established a movement for the young people, ''Hrvatski orlovski savez'' ("The Croatian Union of the Eagles"), inspired by the Eucharistic Crusade, which he had encountered in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He was beatified by Pope

John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

in 2003.

Life

Ivan Merz was born in Banja Luka, Bosnia, on 16 December 1896. Merz entered military service for

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

as a young adult, completed it after three months and began studying in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

in 1915. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he was drafted into the army and fought on the Italian front."Ivan Merz (1896-1928)". Vatican News Service
/ref> After the World War, Merz devoted himself entirely to serving in the Roman Catholic Church and took a vow of

chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains from sexual activity that is considered immoral or from any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for exampl ...

. In October 1920, Merz went to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and studied at the Sorbonne and the

Institut Catholique de Paris The Institut catholique de Paris (, abbr. ICP), known in English as the Catholic University of Paris (and in Latin as ''Universitas catholica Parisiensis''), is a private university located in Paris, France. History: 1875–present The Institut ...

. In 1923 he received his doctorate from the Faculty of Philosophy of the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb (, ) is a public university, public research university in Zagreb, Croatia. It is the largest Croatian university and one of the oldest continuously operating universities in Europe. The University of Zagreb and the Unive ...

with a dissertation on the influence of liturgical language in the work of French writers, especially the ''Renouveau catholique''. Upon his return to Zagreb, he taught French and German at the Archdiocesan Classical Gymnasium. He started the "League of Young Croatian Catholics" and wrote numerous articles, essays and reflections for various magazines. Merz became one of the principal promoters of the liturgical renewal in his country. He died in 1928; his remains are kept in Zagreb, in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Merz was beatified on June 23, 2003, by Pope John Paul II during a visit to

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city in Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is the tr ...

Canonisation process

Dave Ceasar Dela Cruz was chosen as the vice postulator of the cause for the canonization of Blessed Ivan Merz on 19 March 2008.

Patronages

* Bl. Ivan Merz

Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

in Slatina (established by Antun Škvorčević on 22 July 2003) * Bl. Ivan Merz Parish in Špansko-Oranice,

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

(est. 2011) * Catholic School Centre "Bl. Ivan Merz" in Banja Luka * Dr. Ivan Merz Elementary School in Zagreb (est. in 1901, named after Merz in 1 January 1995) * Domus Croatia Dr. Ivan Merz, an organization of Croatian pilgrims in Rome * Bl. Ivan Merz Croatian Catholic Mission of the Diocese of Krk in

Astoria, Queens Astoria is a neighborhood in the western portion of the New York City Boroughs of New York City, borough of Queens. Astoria is bounded by the East River and is adjacent to four other Queens neighborhoods: Long Island City, Queens, Long Island C ...

(under the Brooklyn Diocese). * Humanitarian association Ivan Merz in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

(est. on 1 September 2006)

Memorials

* Bronze

relief Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...

in the Dr. Ivan Merz Elementary School in Zagreb, work by Ivan Starčević, uncovered on 1 January 1995. *

Sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

by Slaven Miličević in the Alley of Croatian Saints of the Holy Trinity Catholic Parish of Prečko (Zagreb), uncovered on 3 June 2007 * Bl. Ivan Merz Street (Ulica bl. Ivana Merza) in

Popular culture

Documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

"Ivan Merz – život za ideale" by

Jakov Sedlar Jakov Sedlar (born 6 November 1952) is a Croatian film director and Film producer, producer. A former cultural attaché during the 1990s in the Franjo Tuđman government, his documentaries promote Croatian nationalism, Croatian nationalist views t ...

, premiered on 8 May 2013 in Banja Luka.

References

Literature

* *

External links

Official website of the Postulature

YouTube channel dedicated to Bl. Ivan Merz

Documentary about bl. Ivan Merz (with English subtitles)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merz, Ivan 1896 births 1928 deaths People from Banja Luka Croatian Jews Jews from Austria-Hungary Croatian Austro-Hungarians Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatian Roman Catholics Croatian beatified people Catholic Church in Croatia Roman Catholic activists Roman Catholic Diocese of Banja Luka Catholic philosophers 20th-century venerated Christians Croatian people of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Jewish descent Beatifications by Pope John Paul II Venerated Catholics by Pope John Paul II Bosnia and Herzegovina Jews Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb alumni