One of these days I will get around to the interesting things of our daily life in Albania, but other things have been happening that are not part of what will be the usual daily routine, and I will share these first.
During the communist era Albania became the first and only nation in history to officially declare its religion to be atheism. The regime in power opposed, outlawed, and persecuted all religious expressions. The dominant faith at that time was Islam, which was natural given Albania’s hundreds of years as part of the Ottoman Empire. Muslims and the minority who were Christians (primarily Orthodox) faced very difficult times. Evangelical Christianity was basically unheard of, and missionary activity was illegal. It was a very dark time in the life of Albania.

After the fall of communism things changed. Religion was no longer illegal and missionaries of all kinds began to work in the country. Islam, because of its historical dominance, resumed its status as the leading religion, but it did not come as the culturally dominant force it exists as in some Islamic countries. It is rare to see a woman dressed in Islamic garb or with her head covered, and most of the Muslims do not regularly attend services at the mosque. The first two photos on this page are of the main mosque, which is in the central square, and the call to prayer can be heard in Nancy’s classroom every noon, but the call does not stop the regular goings on in the city, and few appear for the prayer.
Last week in the class Professor Morin, a professor at Bucknell University who is the leader of the class, led a very interesting discussion on religion in America. While the majority of students professed their Islamic allegiance, none of them were in the least bit intolerant sounding about other faiths, and all agreed that their own, and most Albanians’, religious affiliation was loose. The discussion was honest, thoughtful and intelligent.


As a result of that obvious interest, Professor Morin asked me to lead an extended session on the role of religion in America. Of course I agreed, and I marveled. The recent openness to mission work which I mentioned above has resulted in a flurry of missionary activity. I have come to know the Stevens Center, a gathering place for mission workers and other English speaking people. The Center has a café in it and during the several lunches I have had there, I have overheard the conversation at several of the tables and the topic has been the missionary activity of those gathered. The Center itself is sponsored by a Christian ministry. In other words the sense I get is that there is a lot of effort being spent by a lot of groups here in Albania. And each of these groups is obviously looking for ways to make contact with locals, in order to share the gospel. And here I was, not coming as a traditional missionary but as the spouse of an honored guest in the country, and I was being asked to talk about faith to a group of 39 young, intelligent, and future leaders of the country… I think this fits a new paradigm of missions—coming with a skill to offer the people and seeking opportunities to share the faith. If it does, I am thankful to God for being part of it! Maybe you have a skill that could be used abroad, and by offering it could be part of this new missionary strategy as well… Have you ever thought or prayed about it???
So, yesterday I gave my presentation. I talked about the history of religion in America, the current state of religion, church-state relations, and the individual and faith. Of course Calvin was featured in stories I had to tell. The class had many intelligent and interesting questions and the presentation went on for about two hours. In the end only God knows what impact I had, but I thank him for the opportunity that he gave me.

In addition to this event yesterday, another event took place that altered the usual for the entire city of Tirana. Last week we had learned that a special visitor was coming to town, and yesterday we learned that it was Donald Rumsfeld. All last week there was a buzz of activity around the embassy, and yesterday when we took our usual walk to Nancy’s class there were armed soldiers on the streets and large men in sport coats standing at the street corners between the embassy and the Sheraton. Traffic was being redirected and streets were being closed. And suddenly it became clear to me why, after what I understand had been months of inaction on a paving project in front of the parliament building, during the previous week work had been going on non-stop… I had a need to go to the Sheraton to get a fax sent, and the place was like a fortress. I could get in easily by telling guards I was going to Reception, since the hotel was still operating as a hotel and the assumption would be I was a staying there, but it was an experience. Today some of the same is happening, as our Secretary of Defense continues his “thank you for your participation in Iraq” visit. Interesting to observe. And some of the large men in sport coats are still in place at the same corners—either trying to be inconspicuous and to blend in, and failing in that attempt, or maybe not trying…
Enough for today…
The third photo is a night view of some of the Italianate buildings on the central square. The last one is The Professors --Morin, Ackles and Ackles.