The second of August is a landmark date for the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania. On this day in 1992, Archbishop Anastasios was enthroned in Tirana as Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania. Together with 24 June, the day of his election, 2 August marks the canonical restoration of the Church of Albania after the totalitarian atheist persecution.
One year earlier, in July 1991, Anastasios, then Bishop of Androusa, had arrived in Albania as Patriarchal Exarch. He encountered a wounded Church: churches destroyed or converted to other uses, only a few elderly clergy remaining, and a people who for decades had been denied the freedom to express their faith openly. Yet within this desolate reality, he also discerned the living seeds of the Orthodox faith that had remained hidden in the souls of the people.
The arduous journey of restoration began with the paschal greeting, “Christ is Risen.” On 24 June 1992 he was elected Archbishop, and on 2 August he was presented to the Orthodox faithful of the country and enthroned. The acceptance and steadfast support of the faithful accompanied him throughout his long archiepiscopal ministry.
His enthronement address bore the meaningful title “The Orthodox Church, a Blessing for Albania.” This phrase encapsulated the vision of the new course: that the Church should be rebuilt from its foundations while generously offering faith, hope and love to the whole of Albanian society, without distinction.
A multidimensional ministry followed. The parishes were reorganised and the Holy Synod was constituted. The “Resurrection of Christ” Theological Academy was founded, and a new generation of indigenous clergy emerged. Churches and monasteries were built and restored; schools, youth centres, medical institutions and social ministries were organised; publishing work was developed; and Radio Ngjallja was established. At the same time, religious harmony, mutual respect and cooperation for the common good were steadily cultivated.
The outward work was extensive and visible. Even more important, however, was the restoration of human souls: the return of hope, the rebirth of liturgical life, the formation of living parishes, and the firm conviction that the Church is not a closed institution, but a presence of love and service within society.
The late Archbishop himself consistently attributed everything that had been achieved not to himself, but to the grace of God. In his spiritual testament he wrote: “From 1991 onwards, I devoted myself to the restoration of the suffering Church of Albania, which I loved with all my soul. Whatever of substance was accomplished belongs to the grace of God.”
Thirty-four years after that historic enthronement, 2 August is not merely the anniversary of an ecclesiastical event. It is a day of gratitude for the raising of the Church from the ruins, for all those who worked with self-sacrifice, and for the late Primate who bore the cross of restoration with faith, patience and unwavering hope in God.
This ministry is continued today by His Beatitude Archbishop Joan of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania, who succeeded the late Archbishop Anastasios. For many years he remained close to him as a trusted collaborator and fellow traveller, taking part from the earliest steps in the entire course of the Church’s restoration. He experienced the difficulties at close hand, shared the vision, and made an essential contribution to the foundation and development of the Church’s ministry.
As Archbishop, he continues along the same path with ecclesiastical wisdom, steadfastness and the same love for God and humankind. Safeguarding the unity and precious legacy entrusted to him, he leads the Church into its next steps with faith, discernment and a profound sense of responsibility.
Thus, the legacy of Archbishop Anastasios continues to live in the course of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania, in the ministry of Archbishop Joan, in the work of its clergy and laity, in its churches and institutions, but above all in the hearts of the people who rediscovered faith and hope.
May his memory be eternal.
Fr. Harallamb Gjoka, Grand Oikonomos
Source: Church of Albania
