Information about the Interprovincial Community in Albania (13.09.2014 – 13.09.2015)
The Interprovincial Community in Albania started its missionary activities on Monday 22nd September 2014, in the city of Kamëz, on the periphery of Tirana. At the beginning, the Archbishop of Tirana-Durrës entrusted to us the pastoral care of the Catholic population in the largest parish in the country, Kamëz (Tiranë county), with the church in Kasallë and the rural parish of Luz (Krujë county) – more than 20,000 Catholics. One month later, the archbishop gave us the new established parish in Bathore, located in the city of Kamëz and a rural church in Arrameras (Krujë county). The mission is divided into three sectors: Fr Dominic O’Toole is the parish priest of St John Mary Vianney in Kamëz, Fr Andrzej Michon is the parish priest of St John Paul II in Bathore and Fr Laureano Del Otero is the rector of the community and works as administrator for the communities in Luz and Arrameras.
The mission has three churches. Two of them are very big churches (Kamëz and Bathore), but in other three places (Luz, Arrameras & Kasallë) there is one small church, while there is no water or electricity in either house. The community serves also in a social center in Bathore where the Italian Dominican Nuns works. There are also some Catholic cemeteries in our parishes.
From the very first day, the community celebrated and prays in the Albanian language. At present all the members of the community are able to communicate in simple Albanian, but the preaching is not spontaneous yet. We celebrate regularly baptisms, weddings and funerals (the funeral ceremonies are only in private houses and cemeteries – never in the church!). We conduct catechesis lessons in three churches. There is a Youth Oratory in Bathore, where more than 70 boys are present every morning and evening. There are a very good number of young leaders who are helping in various activities for children in Bathore and Kamëz.
The task of our mission is to take care of the Catholics who arrived to Kamëz from the north part of Albania and who live in mainly Muslim areas. Our Catholic Church wants to support Catholics in their faith and life, because emigration results in impoverishment and in family problems. The communist-atheistic era meant that the adults Catholic did not go to church and now they don’t participate in the sacramental life. Sunday Masses are attended especially by old and young people, and very rarely do we see whole families. Therefore our mission supports the great faith of the old people (confessors), who lived during the times of persecution and we are trying to invite children and young people to the Church as part of the believing community. One of the aspects of our pastoral work is the visits of adults Catholics in their homes because they do not go to church.
The Archbishop of Tirana-Durrës said that the Redemptorists are the gift for his 75th birthday (He is close to retirement). It was very precious gift because the four Italian fidei donum priests left the diocese in the same time as the Redemptorists arrived. As a community of young Redemptorists we lowered the average age of the clergy in the diocese. We are part of the diocesan structures and commissions. The Church in Albania has very few native priests and 80% of priests are missionaries from Italy and advanced in age.
Undoubtedly, the Redemptorist Mission in Albania responds to the our charism to preach the Gospel to the most abandoned people. Albania is geographically in Europe but culturally, economically and socially is totally different. The Catholic community needs a real evangelization and the Church is still in the process of the formation after the totalitarian system. Albanians still expect the Plentiful Redemption of Christ.
Fr. Laureano Del Otero CSsR
