Vinko Puljić

When Bosnian War broke out in 1992, Archbishop Puljić immediately became involved in helping the thousands of refugees and exiles, mobilizing all the forces of the local Church. During the war, he frequently risked his life while making pastoral trips to his parishes, so he was imprisoned during one visit for twelve hours by the Serbian military in Ilijaš, running a serious risk when he rode in a United Nations Protection Force tank to Vareš. John Paul II once said to him, "When I imposed hands on you...to consecrate you in the office of Pastor of the Church of Sarajevo, I had no idea that very shortly your cross would be so heavy and your cup so bitter."

Cardinal Puljić, speaking at the 2004 assembly of the Synod of Bishops, complained that the reported apparitions of Medjugorje were becoming a source of division in the Church,[3] and was involved in setting up in 2006 of a commission to examine the alleged Marian apparitions.[4]

Cardinal Puljić has said that before the war, relations with Muslims were very good, but that in recent times, the situation has somewhat deteriorated. The first sign was the arrival of humanitarian aid from Arab countries : it was distributed only to Muslims, while at the same time it was prohibited to give it to Christians.[5] In 2012, Cardinal Puljić warned about the spreading Wahhabism in the Southeastern Europe, especially in the Bosnia and Herzegovina, stating that the state authorities are not capable to prevent it. At the same time he warned about the discrimination of Catholics in the Bosnian society demanding equal treatment for Catholics in employment, education, and other areas. He confirmed that he will continue to try to establish a dialogue and peaceful coexistence between Christians and Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was disrupted by the recent war in the country.[6]

In May 2016, Puljić drew controversy and mockery onto himself[7] after appealing to women in a sermon in Zadar, Croatia not to have sexual intercourse before marriage so that they wouldn't become a "štraca", which is a local slang word for a "whore". [8][9] The word became a meme, as well, spawning the creation of various Facebook groups numbering thousands of people.[10][11] The cardinal claimed in response that his words were "taken out of context" despite different implications based on the transcript of the sermon, but concedes that the word he used is too harsh.[12]

In February 2019 Puljić said in an interview that there were several cases of clergy abuse in Bosnia and Herzegovina as well[13][14], but that he did not report them to the police[15] Puljić did not publish the names of the abusers or the place where they were at the service.[16]