This time every year, Croatian people, as well as many other nations in Europe, honour the Assumption of Mary not only as a religious holiday but also as a national one. It is an event traditionally praised on the 15th of August that symbolizes the departure of Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus, from this life and the assumption of her body and soul into heaven. It is celebrated throughout Croatia with people mainly gathering in several famous Marian sanctuaries, Catholic pilgrimage sites that mark the spots where the Virgin Mary allegedly appeared to the folk.
The Assumption of Mary is also a very esteemed and respectable day for the people of Dubrovnik. This year Bishop of Dubrovnik Mons Mate Uzinić will lead the evening Eucharistic liturgy at 7 pm in the Dubrovnik Cathedral which is, alongside many other churches in our city, dedicated precisely to the Virgin Mary, thus called the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The Mass will traditionally be followed by a procession with the image of the Virgin of Porat and blessing of the old port.