The diocese of Scutari, in Albania, whose bishop is Msgr. Angelo Massafra, president of the Albanian Episcopal Conference, promoted a meeting for the new year in recent days, to which the representatives of the civil community and the leaders of other religions, including those of the Moslem community, were invited. “We thought it would be a favourable occasion for bringing closer together the various social and religious groups explains Msgr. Massafra as a way of promoting dialogue and mutual understanding. As a gift to the participants we commissioned a translation of the Pope’s message for the World Day of Peace, of which we distributed 1200 copies. The evening was spent in Scutari’s Migieni theatre, with a reading of some passages from John Paul II’s message and a concert of classical music and ballet. A troupe from national television intervened, describing the event as a significant sign of the desire for dialogue and collaboration between the various components of Albanian society in this period of growth for the country”. Albania is continuing its efforts to overcome the state of isolation and poverty to which it was confined for decades under the Marxist dictatorship. “It will still be a long haul to get out of the tunnel says Bishop Massafra because pockets of chronic poverty still remain in various zones of the country, especially in the north. In the political field, on the other hand, some progress is being made in terms of greater unity of aims in support of national development: one of these is represented by the accord for the approval of the new electoral code, in preparation for the general elections due to be held later this year. On 9 January we commemorated the tragedy of Karabururi, when some thirty people lost their lives, the bodies of eight never recovered, following the capsizing of a rubber dinghy carrying a group of Albanian clandestine emigrants. At the requiem mass I appealed to the population not to use these means to flee the country, and urged the state authorities to undertake reforms to promote economic development”. In spite of these difficulties, the Albanian Church is trying to open the horizons of the faithful: on Epiphany prayers were said in all dioceses and funds collected for the victims of the tsunami in South-East Asia. Constant attention is also being devoted to the growth of ecumenical and interreligious dialogue: typical commitment of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, when moments of common prayer between Catholics and Orthodox are being held in Albanian dioceses”.
