A Festive Divine Liturgy on August 2nd
– The 25th Anniversary of the Election and Appointment of Archbishop Anastasios as Head of our Church Celebrated –
The canonical revival of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania has two significant dates – June 24th, which is the most important date that marks the day when His Beatitude, Anastasios was elected by the Patriarchate of Constantinople as the Arch-hierarch of the Church of Albania that was already plagued by atheism, and August 2nd, the day when the new Archbishop presented himself before his flock in the Church of Annunciation through the Service of Enthronement. Just twenty-five years ago, these two events would mark the beginning of a miracle: the unique revival of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania from the ruins and its ongoing progress which still continues to the present.
In this important anniversary, the hearts of all members of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania are filled with joy and gratitude towards the person who made this miracle possible; the person who prayed, designed, accomplished and supported the Church even in its most difficult moments, that is Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania, Anastasios. Even in the most difficult moments, with abundant blessings from God and the continuous support of the Orthodox faithful of Albania he accomplished a real miracle.
On this occasion, in the Resurrection of Christ Cathedral in Tirana, a festive Divine Liturgy was celebrated with the attendance of the members of the Holy Synod of our Church, the Metropolitan of Berat, His Grace Ignat; the Metropolitan of Korça, His Grace Joan; the Metropolitan of Gjirokastra, His Grace Dhimitri; the Metropolitan of Apollonia and Fier, His Grace Nikolla; the Metropolitan of Elbasan, His Grace Andoni; the Metropolitan of Amantia, His Grace Nathanail, and Bishop Asti of Bylis. Present at the liturgy were also the first Orthodox clerics who were ordained in the early years by the Archbishop after being graduated from the newly opened Theological Seminary in Durres. Also, besides many believers from Tirana, and despite the fact that it was a working day and the weather temperatures were extreme, there were also other faithful from all of the Metropolises who had come to express their gratitude and wishes to Archbishop Anastasios.
At the end of the Divine Liturgy, on behalf of the Synod and the faithful, Archbishop Anastasios congratulated the Metropolitan of Korca, His Grace Joan, who also spoke about the extraordinary work and contribution of Archbishop Anastasios. Later, His Beatitude, Archbishop Anastasios extended his thanks to the participants for their heartfelt wishes and also recalled the path followed by him since the beginning of his work till the present. He noted, in particular, that these achievements are simply the starting point of an ongoing journey of resurrection and in addition he mentioned a series of important projects that were underway or would soon begin in various areas of the Church activity.
Part of these celebrations was also the festive concert organized by the Orthodox youth, which contained church songs, folk songs and dance. It was held in the Cultural Center Hall of the Cathedral, which was fully packed. The best groups of performers coming from the Archiepiscopate and the Metropolises joined each other on stage and were encouraged by continuous applause. The culmination of the event was a film documentary which presented the activity of Archbishop Anastasios since the early years until 1995. The presentation was attended with lots of interest both by the elderly who recalled those first years along with the unforgettable events accompanying them and also by the younger generation who had the opportunity to get introduced to the extraordinary efforts made in the past in order to reach at the point where we stand today.
