Albania, September 2012. Mr Anthony Bailey visited a number of prominent Albanian places of worship in Tirana. These included the newly opened Church of the Holy Evangelist, which is Europe’s third largest Orthodox Church as well as the eleven year old St Paul’s Roman Catholic Cathedral, and the historic Et’hem Bey Mosque built in 1823.
In 1967, religious practices were officially banned in Albania by the then brutal communist state of Enver Hoxha who declared the country the first and only constitutionally atheist state to ever exist. Hundreds of churches, mosques and other places of worship were destroyed and both clergy and the faithful imprisoned and murdered.
After the fall of communist regime in 1991, religious activities resumed and since that time Albanians are free to practice their faith.
According to 2008 statistics in Albania there are 1119 churches and 638 mosques in the country. The Roman Catholic Church declared 694 churches, the Orthodox community 425 churches, Muslim community 568 mosques and 70 Bektashi tekkies.
