Pope lauds Albania’s Christians for fidelity amid persecution

September 22, 2014

At a rainy outdoor Mass celebrated in Tirana, Albania’s capital, Pope Francis emphasized that Albania was a “land of martyrs” under Communist rule and called upon Catholics to be missionary disciples.

“The risen and living Lord sends not only the Twelve, but the entire Church; he sends each of the baptized to announce the Gospel to all peoples,” Pope Francis preached. “Through the ages, the message of peace brought by Jesus’ messengers has not always been accepted; at times, the doors have been closed to them.”

“In the recent past, the doors of your country were also closed, locked by the chains of prohibitions and prescriptions of a system which denied God and impeded religious freedom,” the Pope continued. “Those who were afraid of the truth did everything they could to banish God from the hearts of men and women and to exclude Christ and the Church from the history of your country, even though it was one of the first to receive the light of the Gospel.”

He added:

Recalling the decades of atrocious suffering and harsh persecutions against Catholics, Orthodox and Muslims, we can say that Albania was a land of martyrs: many bishops, priests, men and women religious, laity, and clerics and ministers of other religions paid for their fidelity with their lives.

Demonstrations of great courage and constancy in the profession of the faith are not lacking. How many Christians did not succumb when threatened, but persevered without wavering on the path they had undertaken! I stand spiritually at that wall of the cemetery of Scutari, a symbolic place of the martyrdom of Catholics before the firing squads, and with profound emotion I place the flower of my prayer and of my grateful and undying remembrance …

To the Church which is alive in this land of Albania, I say “thank you” for the example of fidelity to the Gospel. Do not forget the nest, your long history, or your trials. Do not forget the wounds, but also do not be vengeful. Go forward to work with hope for a great future.

Speaking to reporters on his return flight to Rome, the Pope said that he had been brought to tears by the story of a priest who had been jailed for 27 years in Albania. "Hearing a martyr speak about his martyrdom is a powerful experience," the Holy father observed.

 

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Further information:

• Holy Mass in Mother Teresa Square (Tirana, 21 September 2014)
• Pope Francis to Albanians: fly high but don't forget the past (Vatican Radio)
• “This is why I got emotional when I listened to those martyrs’ stories” (Vatican Insider)