Albania
Renewal of vows in the Mission of Albania
The Albanian Mission witnessed a unique event where a Redemptorist missionary, for the first time, has renewed his vows in this country on 13th January 2019. The celebration took place on Sunday to commemorate the Baptism of the Lord, in the Parish of St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori in Kamëz. Brother Álvaro Ortiz Jiménez de Cisneros is a theological student of the Province of Madrid, who has a year of pastoral experience in the interprovincial community of Albania. He is 27 years old and discovered his vocation when he was a university student...
read moreFirst popular mission – Christmas in Albania
The interprovincial Redemptorist community of Albania is celebrating its fifth Christmas. As is known, Albania lived through the atheist-communist dictatorship of Europe until 1991, which eliminated the religious sense of these dates. When the official atheism of the state was established, Christmas was called “New Year’s parties” and the Christmas tree became the New Year’s tree. Today, although there is religious freedom, the importance of the new year still remains in the minds of the people over the celebration of the Birth of Christ. In...
read moreIntroduction of the New Coordinators
From January 15th to the 19th, 2018, the General Government met with the new coordinators of the Conferences to introduce and plan the Congregation’s agenda for the rest of the sexennium. Present at the meetings were also the General Secretary, Father Brendan Kelly, C.Ss.R., and invited were the three former coordinators: Fathers Jacek Zdrzalek (Europe), Guy-Arnaud Agbossaga (Africa and Madagascar) and Manuel Rodríguez Delgado (Latin America and the Caribbean). The main topics treated at this week-long meeting were the developments in the...
read moreThe consecration of the church of Saint Alphonsus in Albania
The ceremony of the consecration of our Redemptorist church with the new title of Saint Alphonsus took place in Kamez in Albania on 14 October 2017. It is the first church with the title of the founder of the Redemptorists in Albania. The consecration was carried out by the Archbishop George Frendo OP from Tirana-Durres. Many priests, religious and parishioners prayfully participated during the ceremony which took place in the newly renovated church where a life-size statue of Saint Alphonsus was recently erected. Br. Jeffrey Rolle was...
read moreChurch of St. Alphonsus in Albania
The Coordinator of the CRE Fr. Jacek Zdrzalek met our confreres of the Interprovincial Community in Albania from 26 February to 3 March 2017. He lead a retreat day for Fr. Laureano Del Otero and Fr. Andrzej Michoń on the theme: “Witnesses to the Redeemer – in solidarity for mission – to the wounded world”. There were two principal goals of the visit. The first goal was connected to the decisions of the last General Chapter. According to Decision N. 43: “each Unit will provide a forum wherein confreres and lay partners will have opportunity to...
read moreSculpture of Saint Alphonsus in Albania
Our interprovincial community in Albania has received a special gift from the Redemptorists of the Province of Rome. A very large sculpture of our founder Saint Alphonsus arrived in Albania by ferry on Wednesday 5th October 2016. The bursar of the Rome Province and the coordinator of the CRE came with the sculpture. The sculpture of Saint Alphonsus is 170 cm high, and it is the same size and form as the one that the Rome Province offered to the parish of Saint Alphonsus in Rome (diocesan parish) to replace a statue which was destroyed by a...
read moreAlbania: a missionary summer
Summer time is not holiday time, but a time for different experiences in our Redemptorist Mission in Albania,. Our interprovincial community opens its doors to share life and mission with those who want to receive some missionary experience and to meet the most abandoned peole. Seminarists – students Firstly, I wish to say that, our interprovincial community is open for those who are in initial formation. In June, we had with us the student Carlos Alfonso Diego Gutierrez CSsR, from Madrid Province. He is a graduate in translation and...
read moreSecond year of pastoral and social activities in Albania
150 young people (teenagers and also young adults) participated in the annual vocational training courses in our Redemptorist parish in Bathore in Albania. Our parish of Saint John Paul II led by Fr. Andrzej Michoń, Fr. Laureano Del Otero and Br. Leszek Pys, is famous for its various social activities. There are 4,000 parishioners and more than 60% of them are unemployed. Our parish organised courses in sewing, embroidery, cooking, music and dancing during the past 9 months. There are also special activities and courses in our parish for...
read moreAlbania and… St John Paul II
No one has any doubt about the great impact of Pope John Paul II in recent history. Albania is a witness to his evangelizing outreach. John Paul II not only visited this small country in the Balkans, but also authorized the restoration of the Catholic hierarchy – an extraordinary event for both a country and a Pope. The first parish with the name of the Holy Father John Paul II in the world, was announced just after his canonization; and it is the Redemptorist Church of Bathore. Its first parish priest is our confrere Fr. Andrzej...
read moreVisit of the Coordinator of the CRE and the Provincial of Rome to Albania
The Interprovincial Community in Albania welcomed the Coordinator of the Conference of the Redemptorist of Europe (Fr. Jacek Zdrzalek) and the Provincial of Rome Province (Fr. Giovanni Congiu) from 27th February to 2nd March 2016. Fr. Gianni Congiu’s visit was to obtain first hand knowledge of the experience of Br. Leszek Pys during his pastoral year of preparation for perpetual profession. Br. Leszek shares not only the life and the mission of the community, but is also doing the important work of evangelization with children and...
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