Petar Čule (18 February 1898 – 29 July 1985) was a Herzegovinian Croat prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Mostar-Duvno and of apostolic administrator of Trebinje-Mrkan from 1942 until his retirement in 1980. After his retirement, he was named titular archbishop of Giufi in present-day Tunisia. Serving as bishop during World War II, Čule was an opponent of the Ustaše regime in the Independent State of Croatia, helping to save the persecuted Serbs and political dissidents. Imprisoned under false accusations by the communists in 1948 and released only in 1955, he was also a political victim of communist political persecution.
Čule, a sickly child from a well-to-do family, was born in the village of Kruševo near Mostar. A notable student from an early age, after finishing elementary education in Ljuti Dolac near Široki Brijeg, he enrolled at the Jesuit gymnasium in Travnik. Determined to become a priest, Čule entered the Catholic Faculty of Theology in Sarajevo and was ordained a priest in 1920. He went for further studies at the Catholic University of Leuven and Collegium Canisianum in Innsbruck, where he earned a doctorate in theology in 1923. As a priest, he led the HKD Napredak, a cultural society in Mostar, published two books and several articles and translated Thomas J. Campbell's book on the history of Jesuits. He was also in charge of the education of the secular clergy in the Diocese of Mostar-Duvno, which at the time was insignificant in numbers compared to the dominant Franciscans. Under his leadership, the number of secular priests grew significantly. The Franciscans, who by the papal Decisia of 1899 had lost the care of over half of the parishes but still made up the vast majority of the clergy, wanted to preserve the dominance of their Province. They managed to influence Mišić not to raise the secular clergy to remain in small numbers. Finally, in 1923, with mediation from Mišić, they managed to get a rescript from the Holy See that, although temporarily, returned most of the parishes to their care. The Franciscans sought to ignore this temporality and cement the rescript as permanent. Working as a diocesan archivist, Čule discovered these attempts in 1937 but was assured by Mišić's secretary that the rumours were false.
In 1942, after Mišić's death, Čule was appointed bishop, with significant opposition from the Franciscans and the fascist Ustaše government of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH). The Franciscans gained protection from the Ustaše government. However, this didn't dissuade Čule from seeking Rome's intervention in the dispute regarding the division of the parishes, raising the question again in 1943. During the war, Čule helped to save Serbs, Jews, and political dissidents from the Ustaše persecution. After the war, however, he was imprisoned by the new communist authorities under false accusations of helping the collaborators and spreading anti-communist propaganda. He was sentenced to eleven years in prison. While imprisoned, his health declined considerably. Later, he petitioned the Yugoslav dictator Josip Broz Tito to be released, pleading his innocence. The petition was approved, and he was released in 1955. He assumed the administration of his dioceses again in 1958. Čule also participated in the Second Vatican Council from 1962 to 1965, where he initiated the inclusion of St. Joseph in the canon of the Roman Mass. The issue of the division of parishes was again raised. It resulted in Romanis Pontificibus, a 1975 papal decree, by which half of the parishes would belong to the secular clergy, while another half would be under the Franciscan administration. The decree was met with fierce opposition from the Franciscans, which resulted in violence in a few parishes. The success of the implementation of the new decree was thus limited. In 1980, Čule oversaw the completion of the Mostar cathedral. He retired in 1980, and due to his contribution to the local church, Pope John Paul II named him the titular archbishop of Giufi.
Early life
Čule was born in Kruševo, Mostar in a wealthy family of Juriša and Jaka née Šarac. His father, Juriša, was a respectable man in his village, who contributed to the establishment of a special parish for his village and to the construction of the parochial residence. Čule was the third child with five brothers and three sisters. The same day he was born, Čule was christened. As a child, Čule couldn't start speaking for a long time and between ages 4 and 5, he suffered from malaria and would often faint, barely surviving. However, he was noted for his good memory.
A rarity at the time, Čule and his three brothers were sent for further education, while two other brothers remained at the estate. His sisters were married. Čule had a very religious upbringing. Since his home village didn't have either an elementary school or a church, Čule went to Ljuti Dolac for education, where he met the local Franciscans, who served as his educators. The education was conducted in a private house. His Franciscan teachers recognised a special potential in him and wanted him to continue his education at the Franciscan friary in Široki Brijeg. However, his father, advised by his late cousin who served as a parish priest in Blagaj, was determined to send young Čule to the Jesuit gymnasium in Travnik.
Jesuit gymnasium in Travnik
In 1909, Čule sent an application for the gymnasium in Travnik, while the Franciscan parish priest also applied to him for the school in Široki Brijeg. He was then informed that his application in Travnik was lost and needed to send another one. Čule's application to Široki Brijeg was rejected due to his poor health. However, it turned out that his application to Travnik was accepted, but the notification was delayed due to poor postal connections. Čule arrived in Travnik in 1909. At first, Čule's performance in school was bad, as the village schools gave a poor background for further education. However, a month later, he became one of the best students. He managed to finish all eight grades with excellent success.
In 1912, in the third grade, Čule suffered inflammation of the hypochondrium. As Austria-Hungary prepared to enter the Balkan Wars in 1913, they occupied part of the seminary for war purposes, so the school sent some students home, including Čule. Since Austria-Hungary didn't enter the war, the seminary returned to the school, so the students returned. However, Čule was still sick and asked for a prolonged leave, which was granted to him. In the summer of 1913, the school informed Čule that he would lose the right to education if he didn't get well soon. The doctor found Čule to be healthy but diagnosed him with anaemia. He returned to Travnik and was obliged to take all the exams from the fourth grade to enrol in the fifth grade. While in the fourth grade, Čule got tuberculous lungs with caverns, however, got well quickly. In that period, Čule developed his devotion the Madonna.
During World War I, the part of the seminary was once again converted to a hospital as Austria-Hungary entered the war. Even though it was accustomed to getting tonsure in the seventh grade, Čule and his colleagues got it in the sixth grade in 1915 and thus became clerics. The reason for premature tonsure was that the clerics were not obliged to serve in the military. In 1916, while in the seventh grade, Čule was diagnosed with nerve disease due to stress from excessive studying. Nevertheless, Čule managed to finish the seventh grade as an excellent student. As the Jesuit gymnasium wasn't a public school, its students had to take the graduation exam before the Sarajevo gymnasium. On 6 June 1917, Čule excelled in his graduation exam, and the commission president offered him a state stipend for university studies. However, Čule was determined to become a priest.
University
In the autumn of 1917, Čule enrolled at the Catholic Faculty of Theology in Sarajevo. The Jesuits, who greatly impacted Čule, led the faculty, serving as professors and their heads. He was an excellent student. After finishing the third year, Čule was ordained a priest on 20 June 1920 by the then diocesan administrator of Vrhbosna Ivan Šarić who later became the archbishop. Čule held his first mass on his name day, 29 June 1920. Since Kruševo still wasn't a parish nor did it have a church, Čule held his first mass at the local Sajmište cemetery, where his mother, who died in 1919, was buried. Dominik Mandić held the sermon.
Croatian historian Fr. Miroslav Vanino had good connections in France and managed to secure stipends for four Croatian students. Three stipends were for Institut Catholique de Paris and were used by Đuro Gračanin, Ivan Merz and Juraj Šćetinec. The fourth stipend came from Belgian Cardinal Désiré-Joseph Mercier, the archbishop of Mechelen–Brussels for the Catholic University of Leuven. The students jointly went to Zagreb, with the first tree going via Trieste to Paris, while Čule went via Vienna to Leuven. However, in Leuven, Čule became troubled by the fact that the financier, the Archdiocese of Paris, had financial troubles, and even though his stipend wasn't cancelled, this was the main reason why he decided to leave Leuven. Other reasons were that the students in Leuven were theologians who wanted to specialise in a specific branch of theology, while Čule intended to deepen his general theological knowledge. Also, the Belgian climate didn't suit the young Čule. Therefore, Čule returned to his homeland around Easter of 1921.
Šarić wanted to secure the state stipend for Čule. Although his grades were satisfactory, Čule also needed confirmation on the property status of his parents. However, the bishop of Mostar-Duvno Alojzije Mišić intended to appoint him a parish priest in Blagaj, from where he expelled a local Franciscan for disorderly conduct and couldn't replace him with another Franciscan due to the opposition from the locals. The Provincial of the Herzegovinian Franciscans asked Mišić to find a diocesan priest. Čule was supposed to take the post on 8 September 1921—this endangered Čule's intention to continue his education. However, the Provincial changed his mind and proposed Mišić yet another Franciscan for the duty. Mišić agreed to drop the appointment but still insisted on keeping Čule as a parish priest or a chaplain. Nevertheless, Čule asked the bishop to send him for further education. The time for the stipend already expired. However, the rector of the Catholic Faculty of Theology in Sarajevo Antun Prešern managed to arrange a place for Čule at the Jesuit Collegium Canisianum in Innsbruck, Austria. As he didn't manage to secure the stipend, Čule managed his financing by himself. At the end of September 1921, Čule was in Innsbruck. The study system was the same as in Sarajevo, which suited Čule. On 12 July 1912, Čule defended his doctoral thesis titled De statu hominis of St. Bonaventure and was given the title of doctor of theology. He finished his studied in Innsbruck with summa cum laude.
Priesthood