Albania
Country
Albania is a small, mountainous country in Southeastern Europe, located along the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. Albanians are the descendents of the ancient tribes of the Illyrians, and therefore considered to be one of the oldest peoples in the Balkan Mountain region. Albanians are a distinctive and fiercely independent people, but tragically their history has been an ongoing struggle for freedom. Throughout its past the country was invaded and conquered numerous times by Serbs, Turks, Italians and Germans. In its recent past the country was oppressed by its communist ruler Enver Hoxha, who drove the country into poverty and isolation. After the opening of Eastern Europe in 1989, Albania has slowly begun to move toward democracy.
People/Society
In the Albanian society, family, ethnic heritage, personal and family honor are very important. Those who live in the mountainous north are known to be courageous, resourceful, courteous and hardy. But these are also the groups in society who tend to engage in blood feuds and who resist to be governed by others. Albanians in the south are more emotional and more socially liberal. Generally speaking, the people in the country are more accustomed to force and brutal rule than to democracy and the rule of law. Lawlessness and the lack of social order have almost destroyed community and national values. Poverty and hopelessness make many Albanians feel utterly discouraged.
Religion
Prior to the invasion of the Turks, Albanians were mostly Christians, but during the Turkish rule a large percentage converted to Islam. During communism, religious practices were outlawed altogether; believers were harshly persecuted. Only in 1990 freedom of religion was restored and has since gained importance in the daily lives of the people. It is estimated that 70 percent of the total population of 3.5 million Albanians are Muslim. About 20 percent are Orthodox Christian, and 10 percent are Catholic. Protestant Christian Churches have only begun to establish a presence in the country.
History
As the communist regime was losing its power in Albania in the early ‘90s, the country plunged into lawlessness, unrest, economic crisis and utter despair. The people had been mentally and physically imprisoned; they broke out violently, only to find out that there was no place for them to go and no hope. This was the situation in to which the Church of the Nazarene came in Albania. When Rev. Hermann Gschwandtner, at that time Eastern Europe Coordinator for the church, arrived in Albania in 1992, he immediately saw the great need for humanitarian aid, but also the spiritual hunger of the people. Miraculously, a short time later the church was able to register as a Compassionate Ministries organization and humanitarian shipments started to come in to help the desperate. In April of 1993, the first Nazarene missionaries arrived in the country. Soon thereafter, mission teams from Point Loma Nazarene University started to come to Albania. They were teaching courses in different areas of study, distributing humanitarian aid and books, teaching Vacation Bible School. In May of 1993, Les Wooten, a Nazarene pastor from Illinois, went to Albania with the organization “Every Home for Christ”. He met with the Nazarene missionaries, and told them of Lushnja, a city south of Tirana and about two hours away, where they had made many contacts. There was no church in that city and Rev. Wooten begged them to come to that city to start a church. At first, though, the missionaries started a children’s ministry, then a Bible study. Finally, on May 15, 1995, the first Albanian Church of the Nazarene was officially organized there with 21 members.
The Church Today
Today, more than 80 people worship in the 4 congregations of the Church of the Nazarene in Albania, and 51 full members constitute the church.
On the field, the Church of the Nazarene is ministering in the following countries: Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Kosovo, Macedonia, Romania and Slovenia