On the 50th anniversary of the death of Lojze Grozde, the Archdiocese of Ljubljana started a process to recognize his martyrdom and also his beatification and canonization. When Pope John Paul II visited Slovenia for the first time in 1996, he mentioned Lojze Grozde twice. He said, "The servant of God Lojze Grozde is just one of innumerable innocent victims of Communism that raise the palm of martyrdom as an indelible memory and admonition. He was a disciple of Christ." Pope Benedict XVI said that "saints are not the past, but they represent the present and the future of the Church and society. They fully realized love in truth, which is the highest value in Christian life; their figures are like prisms that in various casts reflect the unique light of Christ."