The Cathedral of Saint Bonaventure in

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 ...

is one of four Roman Catholic

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

s in

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. It is the seat of the Banja Luka Bishopric currently led by Bishop

Franjo Komarica Franjo Komarica (born 3 February 1946) is a Bosnian-Herzegovinian prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Banja Luka from 1989 to 2023. Early life One of eleven children, Komarica was born in Novakovići near Banja Luka, ...

. The cathedral was built in honor of Saint

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; ; ; born Giovanni di Fidanza; 1221 – 15 July 1274) was an Italian Catholic Franciscan bishop, Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal, Scholasticism, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister General ( ...

, a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

from the Middle Ages. It was constructed by

Alfred Pichler Alfred Pichler (18 December 1913 – 17 May 1992) was the Roman Catholic Diocese of Banja Luka, Roman Catholic Bishop of Banja Luka, the first bishop of Banja Luka who was diocesan priest and the first who was born on the territory of the Diocese ...

in the 1970s after the original had been damaged in an earthquake. The building suffered damage in the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

, but was reinaugurated in 2001 after the completion of repairs.

Burials

Marijan Marković Marijan Marković (October 20, 1840 – June 20, 1912) was a Bosnian Croat Franciscan friar of the Franciscan Province of Bosna Srebrena, bishop and apostolic administrator of Banja Luka. Biography Marković was born at Dolac, near Travnik in ...

References

Buildings and structures in Republika Srpska Churches in Banja Luka Roman Catholic churches in Diocese of Banja Luka Roman Catholic churches completed in 1973 1972 establishments in Bosnia and Herzegovina 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Bosnia and Herzegovina {{Europe-RC-cathedral-stub