Testimonies of stations on the uphill course of the blessed Hierarch of Orthodoxy, Anastasios, includes the posting of Ilir Meta, former Albanian president, a former prime minister and two times foreign minister from the prison cell.

The post is republished by the Radio Revolution of the Orthodox Archdiocese in Albania, on its online page.

Ilir Meta, as he writes, shares publicly, “some pieces of memories, firmly engraved in my memory.”

For 25 years Albania did not give citizenship to the hierarch

“Every time I met Blessed in various duties, before I became President of the Republic, he always raised this issue, with great humility and sadness,” says the Albanian politician, and recalls that on the occasion of his election as the President of the Republic, Archbishop Anastasios, Anastasios He was one of the first to meet him to congratulate him.

After all the procedures carried out, it was clear that there was no problem granting the right given to him by the law, as he says, while typically stressed:

“Not only had it been 5 years, but 25 years resident in Albania and above all, he was the leader of a very large and important community of our country. In addition, his contribution was rare, and so did his age and nobility, they deserved the utmost respect.

There was no better opportunity than the day of 2017 Christmas To perform this act accompanied by public appreciation along with wishes. “

Ilir Meta also remembers that when he was elected Prime Minister, His Beatitude asked for a meeting to find a space for the construction of the new Cathedral in Tirana, as the old – Hoxha regime – was destroyed and a large hotel in the central square was built in the place. of Tirana.

“I’m here to ask you to resolve the issue of the cathedral,” he told me, while also having a ready -made proposal for the space, on a point on the opposite side of the square.

“Our property is where the hotel was built, so we don’t insist on it, because we want to build a beautiful and decent cathedral and not destroy something.”

Mr. Matrics comments:

“The inauguration was world news because leading, world and European leaders attended and this was an excellent promotion of Albania as a country with religious freedom.”

According to Ilir Meta, Archbishop Anastasios had sent him a diary of the Orthodox Church in Albania to prison last Christmas.