of Albania after the fall of the Communist System

1 Aspects of the reshaping the parish consciousness in the Orthodox Church of Albania after the fall of the Communist System

Thoma Çomëni

As. Lecturer of Christian Ethics, Department of Theology & Culture, University College Logos, Tirana

Corespondence:

e-mail: thoma.comeni@kulogos.edu.al

Abstract

The parish is the cell of church life. It’s the focus of Church life, and as such carries a significant weight in church life and activity. As such its absence creates emptiness in the life of the Church. The topic analyzes some aspects of the parish life and the reshaping of its consciousness in the case of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania, after the fall of the communist system. Coping with the physical absence of parishioners, the impact on their consciousness and subconscious of the ideology and propaganda of the communist system, the fossilization of memory, the acceptance and assimilation of divine truths are some aspects that make up the effort to form the ecclesiastical consciousness. The challenges of overcoming collectivization, massification and the power of propaganda, created by the communist system with the individualism, secularism and consumer spirit offered by contemporary society are part of the effort to form the ecclesiastical consciousness. Considering the memory and heritage of traditions and customs in the faith is another aspect of forming the parish consciousness. Feeding them with new personal experience in relationship with God makes them not merely fossils of the past, but an important basis for continuing and enriching the ecclesiastical experience. Sermons, catechistic teachings, spiritual speeches, the publication of books with theological and spiritual content, the remembrance of various saints, local or not, who have an impact on the lives of believers and the Church are another attempt to form the parish consciousness. The analysis is based on facts fixed by reality and daily life, combining it with the tradition, life and theological thought of the Church.

Keywords:

parish, parish conscience, temple, pastoral care, worship life, collectivism, individualism, dialogue, Eucharistic society. Citation:

Çomëni T. Aspects of the reshaping the parish consciousness in the Orthodox Church of Albania after the fall of the Communist System. Theology & Culture. 2022; 4: 11-26. Doi: 10.13140/RG.2.2.20312.57600

The parish is a society in which the faithful, under the ecclesiastical guidance of the bishop and the priests, participate in a god-human society centered on Holy Eucharist. Each parish is a community, whose members are associated with faith in the Triune God, with the Christian ethos and the worship life, where the Divine Liturgy has an essential and central role. The parish is a society that is based on faith in Christ and is formed, becomes felt and strong in a specific area, which surrounds the parish church (Gregoriati,1993, p. 16). This is a priest-centered thanksgiving gathering within the boundaries of the episcopal Church. This shows that the parish has an essential need for the presence of the priest, who operates and manages the sacraments, the teaching, and the catechism of the flock, with the aim of guiding the deification of the members of this flock. The presence and guidance of the priest in the parish includes the whole spectrum of the society, that is, his ministry includes the whole society with its characteristics, without losing its characteristic as a divine Eucharistic society.

Starting from this dimension, we understand that its construction or reconstruction and its continuous functioning is one of its most difficult but blessed missions. The above thought implies that the inspirer and leader of this mission, whom God has called to accomplish and who leads the believing people in spiritual challenges, has significant weight. And in the case of the Orthodox Church in Albania, the revival of the spiritual life of the parish is connected with its head, Archbishop Anastasios, who inspired and inspires this mission in the strong faith in God. The development of the topic will highlight the fact that the dimension of the resurrection of parish life has the seal of God, but also the effort, faith, hope and joy of Archbishop Anastasios. It is a resurrection experience over the absence of churches, clergy, and an ecclesiastical conscience. Thus, this topic tries to touch not only the events that accompanied this resurrection of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania, under the leadership of Archbishop Anastasios, but also to present some pastoral theological elements.

1. The parish church in Albania from death to the Resurrection

The destruction and conversion of the temples for other uses by the totalitarian regime is an act without the will of the Church crew, which interrupted

the life of the Church, the close relationship of the parishioners and the close mutual relationship between the Church and the of the world. The temple expresses the faith and the life of the generations. These characteristics make him a place of reference for the continuity of the spiritual and worship life. Their leveling or conversion interrupted the relationship of people with their ancestors, but also with their contemporaries and their future, “because man cannot be understood without his ancestors and contemporaries, in fact he is often largely determined by them” (Mantzaridis, 2003, p.310). The construction or restoration of temples contributes to the reconnection of people with tradition and to the rebirth of tradition. He recalled the reasons, the history, the motives and the way the temples were built, as well as the relationship of the community with the church, the role that the parish church played in the relationship between man and God. Inside this temple the priesthood is connected with the sacramental life and the preaching of the word of God. In the holy orthodox temples that are operating again comes the Albanian society that had suffered deeply atheistic and ideological pressure and now are the members with a close or loose or indifferent participation in the life of the Church or do not agree with the church life. The latter are members of the Church who have been baptized before the ban on religious freedom. Thus in the life of the sanctuary, the parish meet the characteristics of today’s Albanian society: the search and the atheistic attitude (Anastasios, 2011, p.58).

The pastoral work of the parish of the Albanian Orthodox Church is confronted with these features of modern Albanian society. To help the spiritual search of the people, the search emphasized the revival of tradition, because the older generations still remember the events, the moments from their daily Christian parish life and that of their ancestors. The presence of the temple among other things helps in the remembrance of these events. Which means that for man the decision of today is important, which is based on yesterday. In this way the memory of yesterday is linked to the identification and refers to tomorrow (Mantzaridis, 1996, p. 173). Thus, with the restoration of the church and the formation of the parish and the community of believers in Christ, the past is utilized, it is experienced today and it is an important element of determination for tomorrow. However, the relationship with tradition must be real, in order to unify tradition itself and make it active in the life of the Church, keeping it away from any dogmatism and ideological symbolism, open to any change that comes in the life of the Church (Lialiou, 2000, p. 49). Tradition becomes real when man or community bases it on faith in Christ. Faith made the Apostle Paul turn the tradition of his ancestors into a force of

The function of parish life renews the Christian tradition, experiences that did not exist in the age of atheism. The period when religion was persecuted was indirectly or directly a big gap in the tradition, because the continuity was interrupted, but at the same time the spiritual confrontation of the social phenomena that oppress the daily life of the world is absent. The reopening of the temples in a short period of time is a great effort to bridge the gap created by the anti-religious and anti-Christian actions of communism. It is an important impetus for parish life, because it enables the faithful to communicate with the sanctified place. Free access to the sanctified place, the worship and spiritual life in it reshapes the parish, which finds its three characteristics: “a - the worship unit, b - the loving relationship and c - the variety of gifts” (Matsouka, 1997, p. 102).

In 1944 the Albanian Orthodox Church had four dioceses, 365 parishes and 373 priests and 23% of the Albanian population (Beduli, 1992, p. 31). In 1967, when religious freedom was banned, the parish number was 365, the clergy 217. At the beginning of the democratic development there was no parish, while there were 22 clergy left in old age. Today 460 parishes were reorganized and 146 clergy were ordained (Kalendari Orthodhoks 2012). This effort encountered many difficulties due to the problems left behind by communism, but also to the challenges of modern society.

With the reopening of the parish life, the church was reconnected with the priest and the worship life. The function of the parish requires the worship service of the priest, the appropriate place, the participation of the faithful and the preaching of the word of God. In the era of communism after 1967 the first three important factors (priest, temple and people) in some cases existed, but were cut off from each other. The worship life was missing, the divine Eucharist, the central sacrament of union of the body of Christ, the function of the altar but also the function of the speech. In this way the freedom of the worship of God finds its true dimension, because the freedom of faith is also connected with the possibility of participation in the sacramental life of the Church, where each of its actors (priest, temple, people and word of God) has his position.

2. Reopening of temples in Albania as a transition from collectivism to Eucharistic society

The periods before and after the totalitarian regime have an important and common element for the tradition. In both periods the function of the parish is the local living Church, the body of Christ that shapes the Christian tradition in Christ. This means that the Church in her life shaped the tradition into “living bodies and innumerable monuments” (Matsouka, 2000, p. 184). This tradition is shaped in the local Christian communities and becomes the consciousness of the Church, as it is based on the example, on the teaching and practice of Christ (Acts 1:1 “all that Jesus began to do and teach”), who gave the disciples a regulatory interpretation of how to interpret the old scriptures (Matthew 5:20-48), and teach in his name (Matthew 28:20). Jesus Christ also gave the living example of how to act and do. In the letter to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul, expressing his ecclesiastical perspective, emphasizes that the communion between members of the Church must have the humility that Christ had and showed (Karavidopoulos, 1992, p. 299-300). While in the first letter to the Corinthians “the example of Christ is generally shown by His emptiness and by the reversal of the historical Jesus to all kinds of people” (Agouridis, 1982, p. 175).

The reopening and refunction of parishes after the fall of communism enabled Christians to experience the example of Christ, at the same time another dimension of society, of man’s relationship with fellow man and of man with God. This other dimension finds itself in opposition to the relations formed by communism or projected by the new conditions of today’s society. Communist society is distinguished by the character of collectivism (Berdyaev, 2002, p. 145-46) and in another form exists today by participating in various political and social organizations. The large number of these organizations confirm to us the fact of existence, as well as in other societies, of individualism and selfishness, as fear and anxiety are found among the members of this society (Keselopoulos, 2009, p. 290). The re-function of parish life enables the faithful to move away from collectivist gatherings of people and to experience communion with one another as the “body of Christ” (1 Cor. 12:27) the “communion of the Holy Spirit” (2 Cor. 13:13, Philip. 2:1). This means that life flows in the Church, in it the human experiences of faith find their meaning, because the Church is “a divine, unchangeable and unshakable foundation, while human transcendences have transience and often wrong experiences” (Gioultsi,

1999, p. 327-328). The young clergy who serve lived a special experience, as long as they studied during their years of training at the Ecclesiastical Seminary (Theological Academy) by participating in communal life, in the sacraments, and the sacred sacraments (Anastasios, 2011, p. 48) as a small parish.

This special, important and essential difference in the nature and function of the Church makes it impossible for the Church to identify or submit to society. As this distinction of the Church from society made her withstand the pressures of the caesarean and dictatorial powers and the various groups that have a negative attitude towards it. In fact, after 1967 there are cases when the priests and the faithful continued the work of the parish, but in a secret way. They are parishes that did not have as their center the temple, but the houses of the faithful. In the houses the Divine Liturgy, the baptisms and other worship prayers took place, and the chanting in a low voice, which came from the depths of the soul. The priest without beard and beard, but had deep faith, hope and love. The believers of this parish were not from the same neighborhood, village or town, as is usually a parish, but they were believers who were united by the grace of God. One of these cases is that of Father Kosmas from Bestrova in Vlora (Bulika, 2005, p. 24-25). But also in other cities such as Korçë, Tiranë, Durrës, etc. (Tushi, 2012, p. 49-53).

This tendency of disobedience to the rulers of this world has continued in recent years in the Albanian Orthodox Church. The pastoral presence of the Archbishop and other high priests, the ordination of priests, the worship, pastoral and spiritual function of the parishes is directed by the ecclesiastical body and not by various political non-religious actors. In the first 20 years after 1990 the political power tried hard to enter the life of the parish by promoting national, patriotic ideologies, in order to divide the life of the parish and the Church (Anastasios, 2011, p. 87, 97). However, the unifying grace of God confronted the divisive tendency of power, because the Church relies on the power of authority and not on the power of sovereignty (Karras, 2001, p. 232). The authentic and non-authoritarian attitude of the offering and ministry of the Orthodox Christian Church is different from the dominant authoritarian attitude of the world. This nature of the Church did not allow the parish to participate or become a community with a political spectrum, although members of the parish - Church have the right to vote and to be elected (Anastasios, “Orthodox must be responsible citizens”, “Ngjallja” 44 (1996), p. 12. Papapavli, “A happy anniversary for the Orthodox community of Albania”, “Ngjallja”, Special edition - 2 Αύγουστος 1997, p. 4). This expresses the spirit

that the Church is a peaceful authority, based on the acceptance of the Passion and Resurrection of Christ, passion, humility and patience for the sake of others (Anastasios, 2007, p. 103). which is different from the power of communism and democracy exercised in the 20th century and early 21st century in Albania. While the former is a dictatorship in its entirety the latter often has “dictatorial” signs in the years after the fall of communism. As for the Church, power is liberation from sin and its consequences.

In the post-communist era, Albanian society, lived by church members, is caught between two different trends, collectivism and individualism. The ideology of the Christian identity of people of Christian origin, but have not been baptized, although they express a kind of collectivism at the same time they express an individualism, which in today’s society is a common phenomenon. Collectivism creates a pseudo-reality, because man does not ask to know his real situation, but transfers his problems to superhuman and anonymous organizations (Berdyaev, 2002, p. 147-148). Collectivism shapes individual relationships, but leaves no room for personal relationships. Today’s life in large urban centers helps to create relationships between individuals and not individuals. Participation in the spiritual and worship life of the parish is a gathering, which contained faith, love and hope. Experiencing these three dimensions of the Christian life makes the difference between any ideological and collectivist identity.

These two tendencies of social life affect the ecclesiastical life, while the second one finds more ground in recent years. For example, today there is no tendency for a family religion in contrast to the situation that was until the beginning of the 20th century when religion was a family affair, while today it becomes a personal affair. There are many cases of people who are of Christian origin and declare themselves atheists or hold an attitude of indifference to the faith1. Such as the cases where members of society declare both tendencies at the same time. That is, they declare that they are Christians of family origin, but they are not baptized and consequently do not participate in the sacramental life of the Church, in the communion of persons. This is a

1 Thus, in a study conducted in 2008 by the company Albanian WB Data & Statistics on 25000 people aged 14-75 years, it appeared that the question: do you believe in God? 29.21% answered Yes, 15.83% answered I do not know and 54.96% No. To the other question: what religion do you believe in? 70.21% answered None, 10.33% in the Orthodox Church, 8.09% in the Roman Catholic, 9.34% in Islam (Sunni), 1.2% in the Bektashi, 0.7% in the Protestant Church and and 0.6% in other religions. Another question was Do you go to any religious places? 81% answered No, 13.62% Sometimes and 5.30% Often. http://www.scribd. com/doc/15738681/Feja-ne-Shqiperi.

trend that manifested itself in former socialist countries, where the end of one ideology gave impetus to the formation of other ideologies, where Christian origin became a way of ideology with a national and often racist spectrum (Mantzaridis, 2001, p. 25). This is because Christian identity begins with baptism into the Triune God, where the believer is born and walks into a new life. The Christian identity is an identity that has a personal dimension and demands the voluntary will, faith and actions of man for his salvation (Matsouka, 2001, p. 479). In these years in Albanian society an attempt is made to project the distinction between a true Christian identity and a supposed Christian identity. Just as a distinction is made between customs and tradition. Baptism enables the believer to understand, feel and form a personal and lively relationship with tradition, that is, to become a member of the unbroken history of the Christian church life, of the Christian tradition.

In this way it is understood that the communion in Christ of a parish is closely related to the place where it develops. Thus the parish is structured geographically and not sociologically, as shown by the references of the Apostle Paul in his letters2. The Church is shaped geographically and locally, because the temple for Christians became not only a symbolic residence of God and a place of worship and gathering of the community of God (Foundoulis, 1995, p. 41). In fact, in ancient times the sanctuary was a place of reference for the whole environment, which expressed the close relationship of the wider environment with the sanctuary. The breaking of this connection of the temple with the environment creates difficulties in the realization of communion in Christ. In Albanian society this place of reference, the parish church, was either destroyed or converted (“The orthodox churches that were demolished were 600 of the 1600 that the Orthodox Church had in 1944”, (Qiriazi, 2000, p.171) or “disappeared into the mass of taller buildings or confused in people’s homes which is a common phenomenon in today’s society” (Boulgarakis, 1993, p. 33-34).

The function of the parish church expresses the connection of the sanctuary with its surrounding area. The Temple includes the world to sanctify it, because the world is a creation of God. At the same time, the Church, with its presence in the world, offers to the culture, to the social, moral and economic life, that is, to the daily life of the world. The remodeling of parish life in Al-

2 “To the church of the God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified In Christ Jesus, called to be saint together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ..” (1 Cor. 1:2), “the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia” (2 Cor. 8:1), “the brothers who arë with me. To the churches of Galatia” (Gal 1:2).

bania highlighted the Church’s relationship with the world. On the one hand it is the Church that includes the world, but on the other hand it is the world that influences the Church.

3. The refunction of the orthodox churches in Albania and the sanctification of the world

The liturgical life of the parish community includes the prayer and the interest of the Church to sanctify the world (Galani, 2002, p. 80-82). On this general finding there is a special finding that has to do with the operation of the Church in various places. The Church as a community of love unites time, because it has a divine origin. Although it is a minority in the world, it affects society, its morals, its perspective, as it did in the first centuries (Mantzaridis, 1996, p. 94-96). The Celebration of the Despotic feasts (The Holy Nativity of Christ, the Epiphany, the Resurrection), the feasts of the Mother of God (Dormition of the Mother of God is excluded), the feasts of some saints (Peter and Paul, Nicholas, Georgios, Demetrios, Blaise in Durrës, Kosmas in Kolkondas at Fier, Vladimiros in Elbasan, Nikodimos in Berat) are cases in which not only Orthodox Christians participate, but also members of other religious communities3. These cases express the impact that the church has on the world, on people who are not members of it, who live in a society with many prejudices, which in the communist era took on wider dimensions. The parish in most villages, towns and cities is a community that is different from each community, because it has elements that are visible, while it is heavenly, it lives in the world, but it is not of this world, it is the body of Christ, but it consists of sinful members (Karavidopoulos, 1990, p. 82-83). This participation of people of other religions in the Orthodox Christian holidays is connected with the interest and love of the local Church for others (Anastasios, 2011, p. 51, 281-283).

At the same time, this case gives the orthodoxy the willingness of the Orthodox Church to go beyond its “repressed limits” in order to offer the Christian message to people who do not have an orthodox Christian origin. This open attitude towards these people expresses the meaning of the same term

3 In the newspaper “Ngjallja”, a monthly edition of the Albanian Orthodox Church, there are many articles that talk about the participation of members of other religious communities in the Orthodox Christian holidays. “Kremtim i festës së shën Vlashit në Durrës-Celebration of the feast of St. Vlash in Durrës”, Ngjallja 5 (1993), p. 6, “Kremtim i ndritshëm i Pashkës - Bright celebration of Easter”, Ngjallja 20 (1994), p. 1, “Festohet dita e Ujit të Bekuar (Theofany)- Celebrated the day of Blessed Water”, Resu 16 (1994) , p. 1, “Besimi e mundi vdekjen - Faith overcame death, Ngjallja 55 (1997), p. 3.

Church (I call, call, invite, gather), but also the universal and ecumenical character given by the Apostle Paul, because the Church belongs indiscriminately to Jews and Gentiles (Rom. 11:11) since and it is not the external factors that shape it, but the faith in Christ (Rom. 9:6) (Vassiliadis, 2000, p. 401). In this theological, real and ecclesiological attitude the nature of the Church is expressed, which is in and out of time, out and in the world, includes the whole world, but is not identified with the world. This will say that to the Church belongs the whole world felt and imagined, as well as man, body and soul (Matsouka, 2001, p. 356-358). Also in an open attitude towards those who do not have orthodox origins the Church shows the liveliness of the ecclesiastical body, because chooses with the energies, actions, desires, faith and sensitivity of the people. At the same time the Church projects the truth, which had before the creation of the world and accompanies it throughout her life.

Also this tendency of the Church to choose with the world makes evident the ability of the Church not to choose, but to understand the world and to respond to its challenges. For example, before the banning of the Church, the parish had its geographical boundaries, in fact the Christians generally had their neighborhoods and their operation was done in traditional ways, while today things are different, because in Albania as in the rest of the world the parish service is not done in a traditional way. This means that the demographic movements brought to the surface a new form of operation of the city, but also of the parish, “social function affects the way of operation and parish” (Mantzaridis, 1993, p. 71-71). Within these geographical boundaries of today’s parish are people of other religions, atheists, agnostics, various non-governmental organizations. Today, there is a parish in most cities in Albania. The parish church is located at a great distance from the believer and as a result it is difficult to participate normally in the worship and spiritual life of the Church. They are difficulties that are overcome in the life of the same parish. Unlike the old practice, in which various sacraments were performed in the houses, now the parish church is the place where all the sacred sacraments and the sacred services are performed. Equally important are the visits to the families of the faithful, the revival of the name holidays or the operation of the various catechism groups. All these parish activities are efforts to overcome the great distance from the church and the pastor to meet more easily with the parishioners and the world.

The experience of the three components of the Christian life (faith, love and hope) gave the strength to face two forms of modern collectivism that are now

found in Albanian society: socialism, which shadow still affects society and mass mobilization, in the dwellings (the high-rise apartment buildings), in the movements (the internal and external movements or migrations), changed the structure of the neighborhoods and the ways of communication between people. This situation makes it difficult for the faithful to communicate with each other, because in large urban centers there is one parish or at most two parishes. On the one hand the Orthodox are a minority and on the other the form of modern society constitute this difficulty. However, the strength of faith does not depend on the percentage of the population and external difficulties, but on devotion to the crucified and risen Christ. In the first letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 1:18-31) the Apostle Paul says that the preaching of the cross is unacceptable to the messianic traditions of the Jews and foolish for the pursuits of the Greeks. Jewish eschatology was refuted, as was the attempt by Greek philosophers to propose a solution to the human search. Through the mole of the cross the faithful find God and salvation where for others God is absent (Agouridis, 1982, p. 53-61). The Church in Albania, which is challenged, operates on such faith and action, which since the apostolic times, in the 2000 years of its history, has shown its spiritual power, which is based on faith, worship life and the Christian ethos. The history of the Orthodox faith, the presence of saints who were sanctified or martyred for the faith in the region of Albania, the monuments and the offering to the culture, the whole Orthodox tradition are samples of spiritual power of the Orthodox Christian faith, of the spiritual and social experience in the her life. These are the main components that make the Orthodox Church, with its parishes within the Albanian society “a factor of stability, tolerance and mutual understanding (Anastasios, 2011, p. 836). This presence of Orthodox parishes in each local community makes the difference from other governmental and non-governmental organizations.

One of the differences is how women are treated by the parish in relation to society. In Albania today, perceptions of women who existed as before the imposition of the regime survive, as well as the exploitation of its role for propaganda purposes, as well as the increase in violence in these post-dictatorship years. In this society the Church offers theological wealth and a different approach. In a society where the woman had no right to property, neither in her own family, nor in the man’s family (Luarasi, 2001, p. 15). Some progress is being made in the communist regime with the legal recognition of the rights, for the education of women and their participation in the social, economic, educational, administrative life of the Albanian society (Etnografia Shqiptare,

1987, p. 107), but did not cultivate a corresponding spirit. This is confirmed by the existence of the phenomenon of male violence in Albanian society today, which stems from some cultural prejudices about the role, personality and bio-social destination of women in society (Tushi, 2006, p. 68).

The ecclesiastical treatment of this reality in Albania is the active participation of women in its life (Koukoura, 2005, p.84), which had started from their participation in the Clergy Council in 1991 (“Zgjedhja dhe fronëzimi”, Ngjallja 233 (2012), p. 10) and 1997 with the opportunity to study at the Theological Academy (http://www.orthodoxalbania.org/new/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=113%3Athe-theological-academy-resurrection-of-c. accessed 12/10/2012). This initiative is based on the theological support of the idea of parity, as the Apostle Paul emphasizes “….there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:28). Through these actions the Church recognizes the particularities of women and the opportunity to offer as active members of the parish church life. Through this energy the Church connects the worship life with their social and spiritual contribution.

At the same time is the social action of the Church in the organization of the various educational programs mainly in rural areas by “Diakonia Agapes” (http: //diakoniagapes.org) with the social contribution of women, a fact that connects the social contribution with the social ministry. This action leads the woman to a higher standard of living, while at the same time helping the parish community to treat women not as a precaution, but as valuable persons in society. After all, this action is offered not as revenge against the opposite sex, but as a natural right. In order not to be an ideology and to have the same results, all social action towards women is connected with the worship life. With the seriousness and equality of participation in the sacramental life and especially in the sacrament of marriage that forms the family, which turns into a place of spiritual meeting of the spouses (Gioultsi, 1999, p. 108).

Conclusion

Building a parish in the context of its physical existence can be easy, as society has infinitely similar forms as governmental and non-governmental organizations. But the formation of a parish consciousness is the great challenge and that similar examples cannot be found in non-church organizations or organizations. Even when in a society there was an ecclesiastical parish, pressure was exerted to distort it or it was stopped by law and the members

of this parish lived with the memories of the parish existence, but did not revive it with the daily spiritual life then the difficulty becomes great, but not hopeless. And exactly the case of the formation of the parish consciousness in the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania is an attempt to transcend memories and to make them alive and under the illumination of divine grace.

Building, restoring or rebuilding temples more than a work of building sacred objects, or to foster and enhance human sensitivity is to provide a point of reference for believers and not just to orient their spiritual and social lives. Thus memories from fossil elements in the human mind turn into nutrients of the spiritual life directing human life into other dimensions, anthropological, social and experiential.

Respect for people’s lives and fostering parish life activity to value human life is the other element in fostering a parish conscience. Sermons, catechistic activity, spiritual conversations, and worship life are attempts to shift believers’ human thought from the influence of human consciousness or subconscious from communist ideology or the tendencies of modern society toward strengthening divine consciousness, where it becomes part of the transforming power of human life.

It is often the parish itself, which in the pressure of ideology and the pressure of power, and nationalist thoughts encounters difficulties in preserving its identity. Especially when the period we are talking about comes after the fall of a power of disbelief, the challenge is great, because in the majority of them citizens, both believers and non-believers live under the influence of ideological or nationalist propaganda. And on the other hand is the influence of opinions and modern attitudes, which exert pressure by highlighting secular, consumerist, and human rights elements and which tend to elicit enormity from time and place by considering it utopian and acronymic.

Collectivism, massification on the one hand and individualism on the other are two elements that undoubtedly challenge the effort of ecclesiastical consciousness, as the insistence on promoting these social phenomena within the parish and identifying the parish with them is an attempt to alienate the parish identity. Thus while parish is the local and temporal extension that people come together to worship God and transform their lives, it is neither a collectivizing unit nor a group of individualists, but a society of persons, where people retain their uniqueness. The didactic life of the parish and more the worship life of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania have aimed towards this society of persons and love. Trying to turn the parish and the

temple closely associated with it into a reference point for the development of the spiritual and social life of the people.

The connection of parish life with the memory, experience and reverence of various saints who have made an impact on the lives and memory of people is the next attempt to discover the real dimension of parish, where truth, memory, place, time, divine values and human, experiential power are together within it and that make it the guarantee for the transformation of human lives.

Spreading the message of salvation through traditional and contemporary forms of communication on the one hand and their content on the other are attempts to provide divine revelation and calling to people, whether believers or not. It is the effort where the Church and its activity to lead people to salvation do not remain on the borders of a clash of ideas, thoughts and perceptions with the world around her, but in a dialogue where obviously the divine message has supremacy in content but difficulty in acceptance and implementation .

Thus, the re-creation of the parish conscience is a challenge for the Orthodox Church of Albania and for an important fact, as over the years new situations are formed and developed, which mean confrontation and constant effort. But from this entire parish’s attempt to form its consciousness is guided by three basic elements: faith, love, and hope.

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Berdyaev Nikolai (2002), Basileio tou Pneumatos kai Basileio tou Kaisara (transl. B. Youltsis), Thessaloniki, P. Pournara. Bulgarakis Ilias, I (1993), “Enoria: Adieksoda kai Dieksodoi”, Enoria – Pros mia nea Anakalipsi tis Athens, Akritas. Galanis Ioannis A. (2002) Themata Theologias tis Kainis Diathikis, Thessalnoniki, Publications Service of AUTH. Gioultsis Basileios T. (1999), Pneumatikotita kai koinoniki zoi, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara.

Karavidopoulos Ioannis A. (1992), Apostolou Paulou pros Efesious, Filipisious, Kolossaious, Filimona,Thessaloniki, P. Pournara. Karavidopoulos Ioannis A. (1990), Meletes Ermineias kai Theologias tis Kainis Diathikis, Thesaloniki, P. Pournara. Karras Kostas (2001), Agia Triada, Ekklisia kai Politiki – Zontani Orthodoxia ston Synchrono Kosmo, Athens. Estia. Keselopoulos Anestis G. (2009), Protaseis Poimantikis Theologias, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara.

Koukoura Dimitra (2005), I thesi tis ginaikas stin Orthodhoksi Ekklisia, Thessaloniki, Sfakianaki. Lialiou Despo Ath. (2000) Ekklisia, Kosmos, Anthropos, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara

Mantzaridis Georgios I. (2003), Christianiki Ithiki ΙΙ, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara. Mantzaridis Georgios I. (1996), Orthodoxy theologia kai koinoniki zoi, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara.

Mantzaridis Georgios I. (2001), Pagkosmiopoiisi and Pagkosmiotita – Chimaira kai Alithia, Thessaloniki. P. Pournara. Matsoukas A. N. (2000), Dogmatiki kai Simboliki Theologia A’, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara.

Matsoukas A. N. (2001), Dogmatiki kai Simboliki Theologia B’, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara.

Matsoukas A. N. (1997), Dogmatiki kai Simboliki Theologia C’, Thessaloniki, P. Pournara.

Fountoulis Ioannis M. (1995), Leitourgiki A’ – Eisagogi stin Theia Latreia, Thessaloniki, Migdonia. Beduli Dhimitër (1992), Kisha Orthodhokse Autoqefale e Shqipërisë gjer ne vitin 1944, Tiranë, Kisha Orthodhokse Autoqefale e Shqipërisë. Bulika Spiro (2005) Bariu i Mirë - Episkop Kozmai, Tiranë, Kisha Orthodhokse Autoqefale e Shqipërisë. Etnografia Shqiptare 15 (1987), Instituti i Kulturës Popullore , Tiranë. Kalendari Orthodhoks (2012), Tiranë, Kisha Orthodhokse Autoqefale e Shqipërisë. Luarasi Aleks (2001), Marrëdhëniet familjare, Tiranë, Luarasi. Ngjallja, Monthly newspaper of the Orthodox Church of Albania: 2/5 February 1993, 1/16 January 1994, 5/20 May 1994, 5/44 May 1996, 4/55 April 1997, Special edition - 2 August 1997, 7/233 July 2012. Qiriazi Dhori (2000), Krishtërimi në Shqipëri, Tiranë, Argeta LMG. Tushi Dion, “Lutjet dhe mundimet tona bënë që të na vijë më i miri”, Kërkimi 9 (2012), Tiranë. Τushi Gëzim (2006), Dilema dhe Probleme Sociale, Tiranë, Dudaj.

2 Religious Coexistence through the Cult of Saints in Albania

Saints George and Blaise*1 Thoma Shkira

Lecturer of the History of the Church of Albania, Department of Theology & Culture, University College Logos, Tirana

Corespondence:

e-mail: thomashkira@yahoo.com

Abstract

The paper examines the importance of the cult of saints in the popular tradition of our country, which contributed over the centuries to the consolidation of religious coexistence. It mentions the forms of reverence of folk traditions especially dedicated to Saint George and Saint Blaise, relying on historical data and phenomena before and after the Ottoman occupation in our country, which crystallized religious tolerance and coexistence even when the religious structure and the social conditions of our people suffered great disproportions. The reason that these two saints are considered is that they are widely honored by the people regardless of religion and are general examples and representative factor for religious harmony and coexistence in Albania. Yet, it is not an isolated paper regarding the cases of these two saints but also in forms of veneration of other saints. The bibliography from the National Library and the Central State Archive, Tirana and materials containing data and information on the forms of honoring Saint George and Saint Blaise will be used for this paper. The latter will be analyzed according to the case of each saint and through their comparison. The purpose of the paper is to show that the cult of honoring the saints in our case study of Gjergj Trofeprurësi and Vlashi of Sebasta, as two of the most popular saints in Albania, being the final factor of religious coexistence which the latter is rightly considered and is trumpeted not only as the unique experience of a people but also as the achieved example of coexistence for the multicultural and multiethnic diversity of the whole human society.

Keywords:

Sacred cult, religious tolerance and coexistence, multicultural and multireligious diversity. Citation:

Shkira T. Religious Coexistence through the Cult of Saints in Albania: Saints George and Blaise. Theology & Culture. 2022; 4: 27-41. Doi: 10.13140/RG.2.2.11923.96807

1* Paper presented at the International Scientific Conference “Integrating Societies through Religious Harmony And Coexistence. The Albanian Model in Tirana”, Tirana, 8th May 2019.

The activity “Religion in Society - The Model of Albania” started on May 6. It coincides with Europe Week, the anniversary of the birth date of our National Hero but also with the day of St. George the Trophy-bearer which in some areas of our country is again celebrated according to the Julian calendar1 .

In this paper entitled ‘Religious coexistence through the cult of saints in Albania, the forms of veneration dedicated to Saints George and Blaise are mentioned, along with the historical data of the Byzantine centuries and the phenomena of Islamization and crypto-Christianity during the Ottoman centuries. All these together crystallized the religious tolerance and coexistence among people, which overcame the historical and political intolerance even when the religious structure and social conditions suffered great disproportions.

Thus, the unique experience of a people who passed ‘in fire and in water’ shaped through the cult of saints the ‘achieved’ coexistence, which remains the contribution of today’s Albanian society where diversity and multicultural, as well as multiethnic stratification stand out.

The cult of honoring martyrs initially had a local character (in the place where he was martyred and where the martyr was known) but then its spread gained ecumenical character. This also happened in our country which honored the local martyrs and then other martyrs, the honor to whom came from the Christian community abroad. The sacrifice of the martyrs became the concrete example of imitation of Jesus Christ and therefore the honoring of their sacrifice was done in the name of the sacrifice and love of God. Thus, their veneration enriched the spiritual life and social conduct, which pacified Christians and established lasting balances in their community and inter-community social life.

Thus we can say that Christians, while maintaining the teaching of the faith of the founder Christ, with the axis of love for every man “love one another” (John 13:34) and “love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44) and freedom of choice “Whoever wills to come after me” (Mark 8:34), crystallized the “spirit” of

1 The Christians of Shpati, Gollobërda and the Prespa area, in addition to the celebrations of the Gregorian calendar used today in the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania, according to their tradition, also celebrate many celebrations of saints according to the Julian calendar. (These two calendars are 13 days apart).

communion and coexistence within the cult of reverence for the saints, even for those who had religious differences.

In addition to material spiritual wealth, their cult in the people is evidenced by all other forms of their reverence as part of intangible spiritual wealth. As it is known, the fulfillment of spiritual needs for every stage of the life of the Arbers was directly related to the cult of the saints in the context of life in and around the ecclesiastical temples. Even after the institutionalization of the Church, the Christians in the territory of Medieval Arberia, during the Byzantine and Ottoman centuries and until today, continued to have the Church at the center of social and spiritual life.

Thus, the spirit of communion and the coexistence of the cult of saints in the traditional Arber faith and the influence of later psycho-social factors observed in various phenomena, such as Islamization and crypto-Christianity, instilled in them tolerance and religious coexistence, which successfully withstood the wave of historical and political intolerance. Today, Albanians within religious pluralism, nurture tolerance and want coexistence with each other, so much so that their unique experience is worth promoting as an achieved example of a people who passed ‘on fire and in water’ and became the Albanian model of multi-religious coexistence.

Many saints such as the Apostle Caesar, Asti, Bishop of Durrës, Erazmi Antiochus, Flori and Lauri, George, Blaisei, Sergji and Bahu, The Seven, Saint Kozmai, etc., treaded and testified to the martyrdom in our country, or the cult of their veneration has been transferred from their country of origin, as in the case of St. George and St. Blaise of Cappadocia, to our country since the early Middle Ages. The forms of their reverence are numerous and to this day, even after the attempt to forcibly liquidate this tradition and every religious and spiritual tradition in the last century by the Albanian Communist Regime, are indicators of their great influence on social life and the spirituality of the people, seen for example in the folk pilgrimages honoring the saints in our country. One of the values of the influence of these religious factors and historical phenomena is the coexistence and inter-religious tolerance of our people.

1. The cult of Saints Gjergj and Vlash in the ecclesiasticalfolk tradition

In Albania, two of the most popular saints are Saint George the Trophy-bearer and Saint Blaise of Sebastia. The popularity and reverence paid to them is multifaceted, which is noticed since the early ecclesiastical reverence by all the Christian people throughout the medieval period.

During this period all material and immaterial spiritual culture, psychology and virtues carried by our people, essentially consisted in the cultivation of spiritual and worshiping life. Albanian academics such as Aleks Buda and Myzafer Korkuti rightly considered Christianity as the main factor in the formation of the Arber nation. (Bërxholi, 2015, pp. 143-144).

The popularity of the saints in the Medieval Arberia is evidenced by the construction of numerous churches and monasteries dedicated to them and by the abundance of toponyms of saints’ names, which have been preserved until present time even after Islamization. According to some scholars, these toponyms date back to the 6th century. Linguists Eqerem Çabej and Shaban Demiraj date their introduction to our language before the 6th century. (Gjergji, 2001, pp. 10-11). Also, Kolec Topalli, based on the evidence of the Albanian language, puts in the oldest names that have entered the first centuries of the spread of Christianity the name of St. George (Topalli, 2000, pp. 407-408).

The centuries-old experience of our people with the saints of the Church, inherited, cultivated and carried in the ecclesiastical conscience and in its historical memory, well-known examples of true servants of Christ, among whom he pays special homage to the great martyrs St. George the Trophy Bearer, and St. Blaise, through the monuments of the churches, and the icons dedicated to him, the toponyms of the same name, the folk traditions, folklore and legends that refer to them.

1.1 Honoring St. George

St. George and his veneration in our country took place in the early Middle Ages. He with his life, miracles and martyrdom witnessed the preservation of true faith in the Triadic God and the defeat of the Dragon of idolatry, otherwise known as the Miracle of the killing of the dragon by St. George in ecclesiastical iconography, where the Saint is depicted riding on a white horse killing the black man-eating dragon. The cult of his reverence is noticed in the

toponymy of his name, in the dedication of many popular traditions and in his emergence in the history of the Arbers.

Firstly, one of the four most revered saints with a church name in our country is St. George. Behind the churches of the Goddess Mary, St. Nicholas and St. Friday are those of St. George the Trooper. Among others we can mention many churches2 and toponyms3 that bear the name of St. George (Elsie, 2007,

2 There is a church of St. George in Tivar, (Montenegro), in Prizren (Kosovo), in St. George on the river Buna, in Sapa of Shkodra, in Drisht of Shkodra (cathedral church), in Kukël of Shkodra, in Nënshat of Shkodra , in Toplan of Shkodra, in Tërbun of Puka, in Calakë of Laç, in Ndërfanë of Mirdita, registered in 1457, in Macukull of Mat, in Reç of Dibra, in Bërzhitë of Tirana, in Shëngjergj of Tirana, in Tujan of Tirana, in Todorenj of Tirana, in Vidhas of Elbasan, in Shëmill of Elbasan, in Bena of Elbasan and in Polis of Librazhd. There was a church of Saint George in Korca, of the XII century, rebuilt in the XIX century, in Mborje of Korca. There were two churches of Saint George in Përmet. In Mbrezhan of Berat there was a monastery of St. George. The name of the village Jergucat in Gjirokastra, took its name from the church of St. George that was located in its center. Jergucati has today the church of St. George: There are churches of St. George: in Berat (XIV century), in the Libofsha District of Fier (1776), in Strum of Fier (1801), in Vithkuq of Korca (year 1767), in Shipska of Korca (XVIII century) in Boboshtica of Korca, in the village of Gollomboç of Prespa (1937), in Nokova of Gjirokastra, in the Terihat of Gjirokastra is the main church of the village named after St. George, in Vllaho Goranxi of Gjirokastra, in Vanisht of Gjirokastra (XVIII century), in Hoshteva, Zagori, today its ruins are located in the porch of the church of St. Kolli built later; in Krane of Delvina (rebuilt from the foundations by Archbishop Anastasios), in the upper Leshnica of Saranda (1525), in Deme of Saranda of the monastery of the same name (XVII century), in Voloter of Saranda, between Nivica-Bubar and Saranda (XVIII century) and St. George, a church in Durrës restored in the years of the Church’s resurrection after persecution by the “power of darkness”. After 1991, the churches of St. George were built with the funds provided by Archbishop Anastasios, the Cathedral Church of St. George Fier, the Cathedral Church of St. George Lushnja (restoration), the Church of St. George in Kuqan of Shpati, Elbasan; in Shkalle of Saranda. Church of St. George in Mborje, Korça, restored in 2018, etc. Mavrogjiro, Gjirokastra. Name of a small church of St. George, Polican Gjirokastra; Ai-Jorgji, toponym to the south of the village Selio, Gjirokastra; In the same village is the ruined church of St. George. In the same place there is also St. George-water source. Toponym Saint George in Sopik, Gjirokastra; The toponymy of the iconostasis where it is located and the condition of St. George by the believers in the village of Sotira, Gjirokastra; In the village of Sofratik, the toponym and the chapel of Saint George; In Hllomo of Gjirokastra, decades ago there was Ai-Jorgji conism in the ruins of the old church; In Topovo there is a chapel and a toponym of St. George. In Konckë there is a chapel (house) of Saint George, there is also a cypress tree of Saint George. In Hoshteva on the porch of the Church of St. Kolli, is the ruined church of St. George. The latter is older and smaller than the first that was later built, the porch of which covers the old church. Ai-Jorgji, toponym in Vanistër Gjirokastër, Raxn Ai-Jorgji, a new conism was built here, earlier it was located next to the central well in Bodrishta, Gjirokastër, Saint George, the name of the church at the head of the village Glinë and the property around of this church. In Dhuvjan, the chapel of St. George. Kato Episkopi, (Lower Bishop), the name of the church of St. George and the place around it, Ai-Jorgji, a very old church in the old cemetery in Kalogoranxi, Gjirokastra, during the dictatorship turned it into a factory of military vehicles. 3 Among the toponyms of St. George in the District of Gjirokastra we can mention: In

p. 74).

There are also macronims of St. George such as: St. George Village (Sveti Djordj), on the river Buna, Shëngjergj village in Tirana, etc. St. George Cave in Dhivër (cultural monument). The city of Korça also keeps St. George the Trophy-bearer as its protector. All of the above show popular reverence for the saint.

Secondly, the many centuries experience of our people with the saints of the church, inherited, cultivated and carried in the ecclesiastical conscience and in its historical memory the well-known examples of the true servants of Christ, among whom we emphasize again the special reverence paid to the great martyr St. George the Trophy-bearer, through folk traditions, folklore and legends.

The celebration of St. George takes place during spring, on April 23, is very widespread in our country. People that day put straps on their belts, put green leaves or branches on their heads. They do the same with cattle and their dishes. These along with their weight control want to symbolize health and life. Also in some northern provinces, fires are lit, as well as lit in other areas for Evangelism or for summer days, to purify the atmosphere (Sako, 1959, p. 28).

Moreover in the folk tradition, songs dedicated to the summer day were also sung for St. George and vice versa. So these two festivals from the similarities they had in some rites and ceremonies were equalized with each other. Songs for this holiday are sung in groups and also performed in churchyards (Daja, 1987, pp. 351-352).

In the village of Gjinar in the area of Shpat, Elbasan, the first song with which it is thought that the games of the feast of St. George or Summer Day started was “Eat, eat, bibishaje”: “Eat, eat, bibishaje/come friends to play,/ because it is St. George day!/ Come, friend, let us play/ As year after year and this time! ” (Daja, 1987, p. 353)

Also, in the Albanian folklore, Saint George in the districts of Korça, in Polena, in Drenova, the highland villages of Tirana and elsewhere, big and small get up early before the sunrise, and take willows and leaves outside the village, pluck the branches and wrap them around their waists, believing that when the corns are threshed they will hardly be in pain. They bring branches home and place them in their objects and at the same time go out and with branches scare away snakes and worms, so as not to damage the crops. From the village

Klisar of Gjirokastra, old church; There is a chapel and toponym of Saint George in Lovina, Gjirokastra.

of Picalli in Tirana, the following was sung: “O Saint George the White, / O Shëngjergj mushtullu, / same time next year,find me with a son / As this tree, let my hair grow. / O Saint George in health, / the Highlanders go in their place”. (Zheji, 1998, p. 60)

In addition, for St. George at the beginning of May (May 5), the people of Dibra until the 60s of the last century overcame the fires with juniper and painted red eggs, an element of Easter4. While to this day many Bektashis on Summer Day (March 14) wish happy spring and give colorless eggs, cakes or house beans and boiled corn, which respectively resemble the Easter egg in spring, the Easter cake and the boiled wheat (koliva) of the Memorials, for the spirits of the Souls Sabbath which precedes the great forty days of Easter in the Christian tradition.

Thirdly, St. George in the history of the Arber people has served as a reference point and their protector. For example, John Kastriot bought the Monastery of Hilandar from the rich, the stack of St. George. This stack was a monastery which, before the purchase of John, joined to the larger Monastery of Hilandar, as had happened with other smaller monasteries that were purchased from the same Monastery. Later the Stack of St. George was called the Stack of Albanians. (Shkira, 2019, pp. 87-88)

Also on a seal of John Kastriot appears an ecclesiastical figure, perhaps that of St. George (Zeqo, 2000, p. 192). The reverence of the Arbers towards St. George is also noticed in the Arbëresh of Italy who have built many churches in his honor; one of them is also known as the Church of Saint George the Albanian in Porto San Georgio (Marche) ”(Karanxha, 2009, p. 48).

All of these above show hope and reverence for the Saint.

It is worth mentioning the prophetic fulfillment of the “legend” of Vojsava who, when she was pregnant with George, dreamed that a dragon was born that had its tail in the Adriatic and its head in Asia. His mouth was open and swallowed thousands of Ottomans (Noli, 1989, p. 87). The latter were called the ‘Dragon of Asia’, who was beheaded in the second siege of Kruja. Also St. George’s Day is associated with great victories of the anti-Ottoman resistance. On the day of St. George, April 23, 1467, the warrior George Aleksi mortally wounded the commander Ballaban Pasha, and with the victory against them, the Second Siege of the Kruja Castle by the Ottomans ends (Biçoku, 1989, p. 500).

4 A story experienced as a child in the city of Peshkëpi by Dr. Stavri Trako, (Narrated in Tirana on 30.04.2019).

It is certain that without the help and example of the one who first killed the dragon of idolatry, George Kastriot would not have won. Albanologist Evlogj Kurilla writes that George Kastriot saw Saint George by his side on the battlefield (Κουρίλας, 1930, pp. 269-270).

Professor Laszlo Veszpremy, in his lecture “The Anti-Ottoman Strategy of Late Medieval Hungary”, delivered on dt. 08.10. 2018 in the “International Albanological Conference dedicated to George Kastriot-Skanderbeg, the time in which he lived and the traces he left in history” when asked by the author of this paper, what was the role of the order of St. George and the cavalry order of the Dragon of Zikismund in the Hungarian-Ottoman wars he replied: “The military order of St. George was founded by Charles I of Anjou in 1320, which is the same as the Knightly Order of the Dragon of Zikismund.” These military orders had a significant effect on the anti-Ottoman resistance and served as an important unifying factor in this war.5” Let us remember that even the folklore of our people speaks about the knights, the dragons that killed the monster (Tirta, 1987, pp. 204-207).

Also, Father Shtjefën Gjeçovi in his study: “Sebaste in Arbeni or Sebaste in Armenia”, mentions that St. Blaise of Cappadocia, at that time small Armenia, was the patron saint of the Order of Kreshniks which was divided into two orders, the first to unravel the evangelical truths and the second to defend the Christian faith with weapons in hand as many times as needed (Gjeçov, 1922, p. 160).

Other military orders were established in Cappadocia, such as the order of St. George and the order of the Janissaries. For this last order Christian children were recruited until the seventeenth century. These last two military orders were established in Cappadocia. The veneration of Saint George continued to the Spahis of Epirus who for two centuries until the beginning of the XVII century held as their flag the image of Saint George the Trophy Bearer (Παπαδοπούλου, 1949, p. 196).

As protopresbyter Georgios Metalinos mentions - The clash of Christian Cappadokia and the Arab conquest in the 11th century brought about Bektashism. At the tomb of Haxhi Bektashi in Cappadokia, Christians also came after claiming that it was the tomb of St. Harallambi or in another case Haji Bektashi was identified with St. Evstathi (Μεταλλινός, 2004, pp. 55-56)

5 Laszlo Veszpremy, The Anti-Ottoman Strategy of Late Medieval Hungary, lecture at the “International Albanological Conference dedicated to Gjergj Kastriot-Skanderbeg, the time in which he lived and the traces he left in history” Tirana, May-November 2018, held on dt. 08.10.2018.

The same phenomenon occurred with the tomb of St. Pandelimon on the mountain of Prizren (Malcolm, 2001, p. 135) and with St. Spiridhon in Kruja, for the tomb of Sari Salltik which according to Bektashi tradition has a total of 7 tombs worldwide. Rightly this phenomenon of placing the later figure on top of the previous figure within the stratification of cultures Prof. Shaban Sinani called it ‘palimpsest’. (Sinani, 2012, p. 356)

In the city of Kruja in Albania, Muslims and Christians celebrated St. George (Clayer 212, p. 446). These celebrations of saints preserved many elements of saints, such as: The Bektashis held icons of St. Spiridhon, St. George, etc. Moreover, the awareness of the veneration of the saints was so vivid that even in 1991, a group of Bektashi believers, following the tradition of their ancestors, organize and go every year to the Church of St. Spiridhon in Corfu, where his not rotten body is located and comparatively equalize it with Sari Salltik. To this day, St. George is the protector of many states, cities and military orders of many states in the world.

1.2 Honoring Saint Blaise

The toponyms of the medieval churches of St. Blaise, and its numerous churches, conclude that in the 15th century, Arberia had dozens of churches of St. Blaise6 and several centuries-old monasteries that honored his name after the veneration of St. Blaise Bishop and occupied a special place among the Christian saints of Albania and not only (Elsie, 2007, pp. 84-85). (Elsie, 2011, pp. 32-33).

In the Middle Ages, Arberia had three famous and miraculous monasteries of St. Blaise. The first was near the former settlement of Sebasta near Laç, where later, next to this monastery and the cave that still bears his name, the Assembly of the Franciscans was built. According to the above albanologist, St. Blaise, who had in his central church the cave of St. Blaise, was an Orthodox monastery that was destroyed by an earthquake in 1853. For the same monastery, the scholar Krutan Baki Dollma writes that after the martyrdom of St. Blaise, the Byzantine monks built their monastery high above the cave (of St. Blaise), a favorite place for these hermits of Christianity (Dollma, 2006, p. 36).

6 “... In all this territory, starting from Durrës to Mirditë, there are extremely many churches dedicated to Saint Blaise. And to be dedicated in such a small territory, over 30 churches dedicated to this saint means that in this place of honor, the devotion to this saint was extremely great through the centuries ... ” See: From the interview of Joan Pelushi, Metropolitan of Korça, in the Documentary on St. Blaise, prepared by the Catechism Office of KOASH. https: //www. youtube.com/watch? VçR9yYkK2z2kk.

The pilgrimage to this monastery of St. Blaise, in Laç, in Sebastë lasted throughout the year and the characteristic for this monastery was that they participated in celebrations, Albanians and not only and after Muslimization continued the same pilgrimage by members of all religions as it continues to this day (Elsie, 2007, pp. 84-85)7 .

Another old monastery of St. Blaise was the Monastery of Saint Blaise of Durrës, which was destroyed in 1967. Since the importance of this monastery and at the same time the respect and reverence of the people, made the communist regime hit this object symbol of Orthodox Christianity in Albania, to then liquidate all religious buildings and institutions and hit the clergy. Ecclesiastical celebrations and visits to this monastery, as well as to other churches and monasteries in the country, were struck by the organized regime as religious practices and backward customs of religions. The forms of this coup were well thought out and well organized by the communist regime in order to enlarge this movement against religion in order to vanish the Christian and the religious heritage in Albania for the younger generations (AQSh. F. 511, v. 1967, d. 20, pp. 36-37). However, the secret believers constantly visited the monastery of St. Blaise, endangering their freedom and life.

The new monastery of St. Blaise was built in 1996, with funds provided by the Archbishop of Tirana and all of Albania, Prof. Dr. Anastasi. Again, this monastery enjoys a large pilgrimage throughout the year and especially during some holy days with the participation of all people, regardless of religion. To this day, at the Monastery Fair on August 15, it is noticed the popular dress of Mirdita women. Today is the venue of the Theological Academy and the Department of Theology and Religious Sciences of Logos University College, where staff is trained to be familiar with the knowledge of different religions and nurture interfaith harmony in Albania.

The third monastery was built on the northern slope of Tomorr Mountain and since 1343 is mentioned as Hibernum S. Blasii (Elsie, 2007, p. 85) however, it is thought to be earlier.

In the city of Vlora there was a former cathedral of the city named after St. Blaise, which functioned as a church until its destruction in 1967.

The continuous reverence of our people for Saint Blaise is reinforced by the

7 There were churches dedicated in honor of St. Blaise in Shkodra (XIV), in Drisht, in Skuraj of Mat, in Gjonëm of Lac, in Mazhë of Kruja, in Mëner of Tirana, in Bishqem of Peqin, in Gjuricaj of Durrës, in Cape Rodoni, in Vlora (St. Vlasi), in Hoshteva of Zagoria, Gjirokastra (there is already a toponym and its micronyms), there is also a nineteenth century Orthodox Church in Dhuvjan of Gjirokastra, etc.

local tradition of reverence of a local Saint Blaise, whose relics (relics) from the village of Draç in Durrës were taken and sent to Dubrovnik, so much so that it is not only considered the patron saint of this city but at the same time the Republic of Ragusa was otherwise known as the Republic of Saint Blaise.

2. Elements of Crypto-Christianity as a factor of religious tolerance

The burden of economic hardship, which was mainly borne on the shoulders of the peasantry of the Christian rajah, became the main reason for the inability to pay the rajah’s obligation to the state and to choose to convert to the new religion of a good part of its population, an alternative which automatically brought the exemption of the jizya tax (Skëndi, 2010, p.177). With the escalation of the crisis in the empire in the seventeenth century, the phenomenon of Islamization prevailed, preceded by the phenomenon of Crypto-Christianity in the South and North of the country.

Crypto-Christians in our country were people who accepted and practiced Islam in the eyes of the world, but in their hearts and consciences practiced and preserved elements of the Christian faith. Although they claimed to have become Muslims, in their hearts they did not deny the first religion. This is mainly evidenced by their secret religious practices. However, the term ‘spotty’ to the two-name crypto-Christians mostly indicates that, the Christian elements in Muslim converts, knowingly or unknowingly, were kept alive for a long time, as should the fact that the process of Crypto-Christianity until in acceptance of the Islamization of a part of the Albanian population somewhere lasted longer and somewhere less (Pelushi, 2003, p. 75). However, the Christian traditions of the ancients as forms of reverence for the saints were not forgotten by both crypto-Christians and Islamists, which made Albanian Muslims aware to this day that their ancestors were Christians. This common popular experience has cultivated mutual respect and inter-religious harmony among Albanians.

The conversion to Islam of only the chief of the family, as happened in many Albanian families, proves the embrace of Islam in terms of survival (Skëndi, 2010, p.180). Consequently, Christian women and children continued to behave as such outside and inside the home. Since the experience of Christian elements continued within the home threshold then conversion to Islam took several generations to happen, as it did. Thus, within these gradual processes, in most Christian families and tribes, when one or more members whole-

heartedly professed Islam, either could be expelled as religious abandoner or when it was performed just for the sake of justification by their relatives. This justification on the verge of religious tolerance is triggered by the common suffering of the Christian members and the newly converted. On one way, the burden of sacrificing the faith of the ancients to them eased the pressure of conversion for the rest of the Christian community. Therefore, there were steady and slow changes in the social and religious structure but which were significantly accompanied by the practice of elements of the Christian cult, which still fostered unity in diversity and nurture healthy tolerance.

Finally, during the Albanian National Renaissance Period in the first half of the 19th century, clergy and laic members of the Orthodox community such as Andrea Idromeno, Vangjel Meksi, Grigor Gjirokastriti, etc. collaborated to translate the New Testament into Albanian. Grigor Gjirokastriti translated it in full into Albanian language, as a representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in collaboration with the British Bible Society. While in the second half of the XIX century in collaboration with the same Bible Society, Konstandin Kristoforidhi, translated the New Testament, in both dialects of the Albanian language and made albanological works, which had a strong impact not only to the Orthodox community but to all Albanians regardless of religion (Shkira, 2021, pp. 97-109).

During this century, Albanians nurtured a supernatural nationalism. They showed uniqueness in interfaith tolerance and coexistence with each other and cooperated in overcoming religious tensions and conflicts. Although they could not coexist and take communion as members of a single religious community they coexisted and cooperated as members of a society of the same ethnicity.

Primary Sources

Central State Archive of Albania (Arkivi Qëndror Shtetëror i Shqipërisë) Fondi i Ministria e Arsimit dhe Kulturës, nr. 511, viti 1967, dosja 20, fl. 1-43

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Interviews

Intervistë me Joan Pelushi, Mitropolit i Korçës, në Dokumentarin mbi shën Blaisein, të përgatitur nga Zyra e Katekizmit të KOASH-https://www.youtube. com/watch?vçR9yYkK2z2kk. Veszpremy Laszlo, “The Anti-Ottoman Strategy of Late Medieval Hungary”, referat në “Konferenca Ndërkombëtare Albanologjike kushtuar Gjergj

Kastriotit –Skënderbeut, kohës në të cilën jetoi dhe gjurmët që la në histori” Tiranë, Maj- Nëntor 2018, mbajtur më dt. 08.10.2018. Intervistë me Dr. Stavri Trako, Tiranë më dt. 30.04.2019.