As part of his visit to Albania, Fr. Arturo Sosa SJ inaugurated the new cultural centre of the “Sacred Heart” parish in Tirana.

“A project that has been anticipated for years and is finally coming to fruition, born out of the need to have spaces next to the church to better carry out pastoral and social activities,” the Superior, Fr. Zef Bisha, said. In 1939, when the church was built, the Jesuits had already planned a centre for cultural and social activities, but this was never realised due to the outbreak of war.

“The church is located in the heart of Tirana,” he says, “a rapidly expanding city that has grown from 350,000 inhabitants in 1991 to more than a million today. It represents more than a quarter of Tirana’s population, 15% of whom are Catholic. The church is also frequented by people of other denominations.

Many were present. The presence and unity of the religious leaders was significant: the Imam of Albania, the world representative of the Bektashi, some Orthodox and Evangelical Christians, together with several ambassadors and representatives of the community. There was a private meeting with the Archbishop of Tirana, Archbishop Arjan Dodaj, and then the ceremony took place.

“Today is a great celebration,” Fr. Zef, highlighted “not only for us, but also for the whole city, because it will have a new centre for social, cultural and spiritual formation, and a new architectural work, I would say a work of art, which will beautify and enhance the street of Kavajës. We thank God and the sensitivity of so many benefactors and supporters”.

The centre, named after Fr. Giuseppe Valentini, one of the foremost experts of the Albanian language and culture, aims to be a place where people can meet “to promote dialogue between secular thought and the values of the Christian tradition, to educate university students with an open and critical spirit, to create a more cohesive parish community, and to listen to those who need material or psychological assistance or who seek protection from various forms of abuse”.

It is built on two floors in an L-shape form with an internal courtyard next to the church and with a similar architectural design of the church.