The Huffington Ecumenical Institute (HEI) and Missions Institute of Orthodox Christianity at Hellenic College Holy Cross were pleased to host an international gathering of hierarchs, theologians, ecumenical representatives, and missionaries in honor of Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana, Durres, and All Albania (+2025). Under the banner “ANASTASIOS: Missionary, Theologian, and Archbishop,” the conference ran from March 2nd-4th at the Maliotis Cultural Center of Hellenic College Holy Cross in Brookline, MA. Personal reflections, scholarly papers, and never-before-seen presentations were offered by those who knew and admired the archbishop as a forward-thinking teacher, selfless spiritual guide, and exemplary servant of the Church—a modern apostle and father of the present age.
Opening remarks on the evening of March 2nd were delivered by HEI Executive Director, Rev. Dr. John Chryssavgis, and Missions Institute Director, Fr. Luke Veronis. They were followed by His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, who offered his warm welcome and pastoral blessing to a tightly packed auditorium. The “blessed” Anastasios, he underscored, perfectly understood our Lord when He explained to His disciples after washing their feet that “one who is sent” (an apostolos) never outshines the Sender; the messenger always serves a Message (Jn 13:17-18).
The much-awaited keynote address then came from His Beatitude Archbishop Joani of Tirana, Durres, and All Albania—the spiritual son and successor of Archbishop Anastasios as primate of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania. Archbishop Joani recounted a pivotal conversation he had with Anastasios during his time as a student at Holy Cross. When many of his fellow countrymen looked to the West for a new lease on life, Joani placed his future in the hands of Anastasios, who “greatly rejoiced” that a faithful servant would soon return home to help him shepherd the “resurrected” Orthodox Church of Albania.
Over the days that followed, several panels addressed key dimensions of Anastasios’ legacy as a hierarch, theologian, and missionary. His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, who knew and worked closely alongside Anastasios for nearly eighty years, offered his heartfelt reflections on a dearly beloved friend. From Kenya, His Eminence Metropolitan Neophytos shared a firsthand perspective on Anastasios’ enduring impact on the vital and vibrant character of Orthodoxy in East Africa today. And many others—representing the Volos Academy of Greece, the Boston Theological Inter-Consortium (BTI), and the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC)—contributed their memories, impressions, and insights from the luminous life of the late archbishop.
An especially moving moment occurred during the first public screening of an interview Anastasios gave to Ms. Xanthi Morfi of the World Council of Churches in 2019. Both lucid and illuminating, Anastasios radiated the Light of Christ (cf. Jn 1:9) as he candidly discussed the problems and possibilities of faith in the modern world. Encapsulating the ethos of his lifelong apostolic mission, he simply said: “A forest is not more beautiful when it has only one kind of tree. There are different trees, and all are free to develop under the rays of the Sun of Righteousness.”
Author: Benjamin Malian, Second Year Master of Theological Studies (MTS), Hellenic College Holy Cross School of Theology