Syndesmos, the world federation of Orthodox youth (comprising 26 associations and schools of theology in 41 countries), held its 17th general assembly at Durres, in Albania, in recent weeks. This was an historic assembly: it marked the 50th anniversary of the federation’s foundation. It was attended by over 150 delegates, guests and observers from various continents. “You shall be my witnesses”, the theme of the meeting, focused on mission. “When I was young, it was from Syndesmos that I received the inspiration for my missionary vocation, first in Kenya and later in Albania”, said Anastasius, archbishop of Tirana and primate of the Albanian Orthodox Church, according to whom “the Church must rediscover the sense of her apostolic and missionary identity”. Warning against an “attitude too frequent in Orthodoxy: that of concerning itself exclusively with internal problems rather than addressing those who do not yet know the Gospel”, the primate condemned the “isolationist tendencies” of some Orthodox Churches, and stressed the need for “common commitment, “both within pan-Orthodox and inter-Christian relations”: this he said is “a factor of rapprochement more effective than discussion”.
