Jordan Zaninovic, the bishop of Hvar

Jordan Zaninovic was a Dominican and the fifty first bishop of Hvar. At the same time, he was only the fourth bishop of Hvar that originated from this island, and the sixth that came from the Dominican order. He was one of the best contemporary philosophers in Dalmatia, and he was also well known by his poems written in Italian. Zaninovic was born in peasantry family in Stari Grad on 13th February 1840. His father was Dominik and mother Marija (born as Plancic). His first humanistic teacher was famous archeologist don Sime Ljubic, and since Jordan was quite a good pupil his parents decided to send him to Split. During his education at Split's gymnasium Zaninovic decided to join the Dominican order. When he was sixteen (1856), he received the Dominican habit in the church of St. Sabine in Rome. The next year he solemnly pledged oath in Viterbo in the church of the Our Lady of the Oak, and in the 1862 he was ordained. Already at the beginning of 1863 he returned to Split, and joined the convent of St. Catherine. During this time he lectured Italian and Latin in the local gymnasium. In 1878 he gained the highest scholarly rank in the Dominican order--Dottore e maestro in Sacra Teologia. Consequently, when he was only 29 he became a prior of the convent, and he maintained this duty for many years. Similarly, in 1886 he was appointed to the provincial duty for the first time, and then was three times reappointed. In 1902 the emperor Francis Joseph appointed him to the duty of the bishop of Hvar, and the pope Leo XIII confirmed this decision on 6th February 1903. Zaninovic was ordained in Split on 19th April by the Dalmatian Metropolitan Mate Dvornik, and then he came to Hvar on 10th May 1903, where local population warmly welcomed the new bishop. As bishop, Zaninovic founded deaneries' choirs and promoted Eucharistic piety. During his reign he undertook two pastoral visitations but the third one he could not undertake because of his illness. In the period between 1910 and 1912 he initiated renovation and building extension of the Bishop's Palace in Hvar. Still, the major part of his pontificate was marked by the conflict with Kuzma Scarpo, the parish priest in Stari Grad, and the entire case was even brought to the Roman court Sacra Romana Rota. At the same time, Zaninovic also actively participated in the finding solution regarding the problem of the Old Church Slavonic liturgy. However, because of the illness from 1914 he rarely participated in the public lif