The Anniversary of the Resurrection of the Church

The Albanian Orthodox Church
FILE NEWS- JUNE 2011

By:Thoma Dhima
Translated by Aleksia Dervishi

On June 24, the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania celebrated the 19th anniversary of the election of His Beatitude, Archbishop Anastasios, at the Annunciation Church in Tirana. A hierarchical liturgy was celebrated by members of the Holy Synod with the faithful who came from cities across the country. Nineteen years ago, Albanian Orthodox believers recognized the Archbishop’s contributions and values and deemed him the right person to resurrect the Church in Albania.

In March, 1992, a large delegation of clergy and lay officials of the Ecumenical Patriarchate visited the church in Albania and agreed with this assessment. Then, on May 30, 1992, the General Council of the Orthodox Church of Albania made a formal request to His All Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew. The Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, after reviewing this request and taking into consideration that there were no remaining Albanian-born bishops and valuing the exceptional work of the then Bishop Anastasios, decided to elect him as Archbishop of the Orthodox Church of Albania on June 24, 1992. This represented a significant cross for the Archbishop; however, through perseverance, self-sacrifice and the Holy Spirit, the church that we know today was resurrected.

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