TIRANA, Albania — On Thursday, a large gathering of Albanians took place in the capital to honor the legacy of Archbishop Anastasios, a pivotal figure in the revival of the country’s Orthodox Christian Church following the end of Communist rule in 1990.
Anastasios, who served as the Archbishop of Tirana, Durres, and All Albania as well as the leader of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania, passed away on January 25 in Athens at the age of 95.
A reflective atmosphere enveloped the streets surrounding the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in central Tirana as mourners came to bid farewell.
“To honor a personality of such significance is to honor our church and our nation,” stated Metropolitan John of Korça, the acting head of the church in Albania, during a liturgical service conducted in both Albanian and Greek.
“Without a doubt, Anastasios was unmatched as a personality and an archbishop,” remarked Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.
For 23 years, from 1967 onward, Albania underwent a complete ban on all forms of religion, with the regime severing the country from external influences. Communists took possession of properties belonging to Islamic, Orthodox, Catholic, and various other religious communities.
After the church’s re-establishment in 1991, Anastasios took on the significant responsibility of leading it.
Albania’s political leaders were joined by visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and representatives from Orthodox churches worldwide during the service. Numerous Albanians and international religious figures attended the ceremonies to pay their respects.
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama reflected on Anastasios’s profound impact, stating, “He arrived among us 33 years ago as a priest from Greece and departs as Albania’s Anastasios.”
Mitsotakis characterized him as “a bridge of friendship between our two peoples” and “a diplomat of love.”
The funeral procession took two days to reach Tirana by vehicle after entering through the southern border with Greece.
An earlier memorial was held at Athens’ central Greek Orthodox Church before the casket made its journey to Tirana.
Inside the cathedral, religious leaders and attendees paid their final respects by kissing Anastasios’s right hand as they passed by the casket, which would later be placed in the crypt for rest.
Born Anastasios Yannoulatos in Piraeus, Greece, on November 4, 1929, he moved to Albania in 1991 following the downfall of the Communist regime that had dominated since the mid-1940s.
Anastasios has been lauded for rebuilding the Orthodox Church from its foundations, constructing hundreds of places of worship, launching educational and charitable organizations, and preparing a new generation of clergy.
According to the recent census in 2023, roughly 7% of Albania’s 2.4 million population identifies as Orthodox Christian, though church officials assert the figure may be higher. The majority of the population identifies as Muslim, with Orthodox and Catholic Christians making up a large portion of the remainder.
The Albanian Orthodox Church is set to select a successor to Anastasios.
