Croatia

Croatia Brief History

The lands that today comprise Croatia were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the close of World War I. In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes & others formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. The war in Croatia cost thousands of lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of people, who have started new lives in Croatia and other countries. Croatia will enter the European Union in 2008.

Demographic Profile

There is freedom of religion in Croatia but there also is a blurred boundary between the state and the favored Catholic church. It is generally understood that to be a "good Croatian" is to be Catholic. Out of 4.5 million people there are about 0.5% evangelical believers. Zagreb, the capitol, has a population of over 1 million and only 6 evangelical churches. In many areas, such as Istria, Dalmatia and Zagorjé in the west and on the coast, there are very few churches.

Ministry Outlook

Croatia experienced a rise in spiritual openness during and shortly after the war in the '90s. But interest in church and in God is now on the decline. In general, the "hunger" for God is all but gone, and people are looking for something or someone else to meet their deepest needs. A desire for security and prosperity drives the nation to look toward the West and to materialism, but in that pursuit many have become disenchanted and overcome with a sense of hopelessness.

A small team with Josiah Venture moved to Zagreb during the summer of 2005 and has begun to work with Baptist youth groups in the region surrounding Zagreb. However, there are few, if any, youth groups that are effectively reaching the lost in Croatia. Yet young people, Christian and non-Christian, desire leadership and direction in their lives. There are some amazing opportunities to help support and develop healthy youth ministries all across the country. The greatest need is for evangelism that builds on a relational approach with an emphasis on the next generation. New forms of churches could bridge the gap between young people disillusioned with traditional religion, yet hungry for something real and genuine in their lives.

More official information about Croatia at http://www.croatia.hr/

Jamey & Meredith Hutton
Jamey and Meredith’s hearts are to see God's truth and love revealed to and accepted by the youth in Eastern Europe so that their lives will be transformed and richly blessed more...

Rob & Liz Trenckmann
They’ll focus on developing a healthy youth ministry of evangelism, disciple-making, and leadership development in Rijeka. more...

Stevo & Sarah Vuletic
Stevo and Sarah are working in Crotia as teachers/trainers responsible for a model-making ministry with youth and college-age students. more...