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The Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and all of Albania Anastas Janullatos wished a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all believers.
Archbishop Anastasios says “Let the Word of God guide our thoughts and actions, so that we can face the small and big problems and the period of the pandemic, with peaceful endurance”.
Archbishop Anastasios: Two of the many rays of the Sun of Righteousness, which shine these days, become especially relevant for our time: the power of the peaceful resistance of the leading persons of the East and the essence of its meaning; that the Son of God came to stay with us.
Let the word of God guide our thoughts and actions so that we can face small and big problems and the pandemic period with peaceful endurance.
May Christmas and New Year be full of joy, with unwavering health and constant perception of his presence.
The message of the Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania
During these festive days, different thoughts, messages and comments about peace, love, joy and hope are usually repeated. Of course, there are those who prefer to detach their meaning from the essence of Christmas, calling them in an abstract way “congratulations on the occasion of the end of the year holidays”. However, the enlightenment brought about by the liberating event of the Savior’s Coming among men extends to our suffering earth.
Of the many rays of the Sun of Righteousness, two are particularly relevant to our day: the peaceful endurance of key figures in the biblical account of the East and the essence of the meaning of Christmas.
The specific conditions under which the Son and Word of God came into our world were not comfortable. A few days before His birth, His Mother made a arduous journey from Nazareth of Galilee to Bethlehem, Judea. When they got there, no hostel was found for them. The indifference of the inhabitants was icy. Even in the inn, “there was no place for them where they had fallen.” They found refuge in a stable, “and she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger” (Luke 2: 7). From the first moment, Jesus Christ denied the pleasure and luxury of this world. It was not long before Herod’s manic outburst, which caused him to flee to a foreign land, appeared in Egypt. But all these unforeseen difficulties and unfavorable conditions were faced with peaceful endurance, full of patience, generosity and calmness.
The Savior partook of the harsh truth of human life, facing, still an infant, poverty, persecution, life in a foreign land. The message is decisive for all of us who want to walk in the footsteps of Jesus: Peaceful endurance in the various afflictions that come our way, in deprivation, in suffering, in sorrow. Peaceful resistance when faced with hostility we do not expect, with slander, with persecution. Peaceful endurance in the harsh ways of life as a foreigner. This does not mean passivity. In fulfilling His saving mission, Jesus “gentle and humble” opposed injustice and ritualism. He strongly condemned hypocrisy and evil, always with peaceful endurance, even in the most extreme situations, in the dreadful sufferings.
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The bright Christmas celebration lays the foundation for this endurance. It strengthens the confidence that with the coming of the Savior we are not alone, that the Son and the Word of God came to stay with us. “Emmanuel” is one of His main names, “God with us”. Traces from the search for the Transcendent, the Supreme Power of the Universe, are also found in other civilizations. But what makes the Christian message unique is that the pre-eternal God Himself became man.
The meaning of the feast is given by summarizing two basic sayings of the Fathers: “For he became man, that we might be deified,” emphasizes St. Athanasius the Great, while St. Basil the Great emphasizes that the Son of God came to earth, to bring all humanity back to Himself ”. Infinite God took human nature to lead us to the highest point of development and perfection, to deification by grace. The union in Christ of the divine and the human nature, gave mankind a new dynamic and exalted him in the light of the uncreated divine energies, by means of which His love radiates.
In this festive and exhilarating fair, the Church invites us not only to praise Him who is coming, but also to strengthen our faith in His continual presence, within the history of the world – as well as within our history – with prayer and participation with all. heart in the life-giving Divine Eucharist.
Many believe only in the historical Jesus Christ, a person of the past, but do not believe in the eternally present God. The Christian faith embodies the fact that Christ is always with us, not only in the hours of overwhelming repentance and peace, but also in the days of sorrow, doubt, fear, anxiety, and trial that the unprecedented pandemic has spread everywhere. in our time.
Awareness of the presence of the Lord Jesus inspires, comforts, strengthens the confidence that God will undoubtedly intervene at the right moment, when He judges.
But for all of us who believe, it is not enough to feel that we are not alone, we must also take care that the divine presence is tangible in our environment, with the word, deeds and testimony of our lives.
Brothers and sisters, the most beautiful Christmas gift to us and to others around us is to strengthen our faith that the God of truth, love, and power is with us. May the Son and the Incarnate Word of God guide our thoughts and actions so that we can face the small and big problems of our lives with peaceful endurance.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, with unwavering health and the unceasing feeling of His presence.
With heartfelt love in Christ Jesus,
† Αnastasi
Archbishop of Tirana, Durrës and All Albania
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