Dielli | The Sun

Albanian American Newspaper Devoted to the Intellectual and Cultural Advancement of the Albanians in America | Since 1909

Dy aktivitete me rendesi ku diskutohet komunizmi shqiptar

by

Merita McCormack/

Datat 29 dhe 30 Nentor 2022 patën dy gjëra me rëndësi që duhen arkivuar e perdorur për referenca studimi.

Më datën 29 Nëntor 2022 Vatrani veteran , i nderuari Z. Lek Mirakaj dhe Vatrani tjetër i nderuar Z. Ervin Dine u intervistuan nga gazetari Adi Krasta në A Show “ në Shqipëri.( SyriTv)

Ju mund të ndiqni këtu intervistën e tyre:

Dëshmitë e tyre, bujaria e tyre përmes disponimit për dialog, tolerancë e mendjehapësi, dashuria për kombin e për të mirën e përbashkët, shkëlqeu në çdo moment të bisedës.

Natyrisht , nuk mund të anashkalohet dhimbja e madhe e shkaktuar nga dëmi i diktaturës komuniste. Nderim dhe respekt për këta zotërinj, familjet e gjithë bashkëvuajtësve nën rregjimin komunist shqiptar.

Ndërsa më 30 Nentor është mbajtur një aktivitet shumë i rëndësishëm , me përmasa historike për nga përmbajtja dhe tejet profesional për nga formati.

Frank Shkreli, Ervin Dine, Matilda Mirakaj dhe Enriketa Pandelejmoni (profesoreshë dhe historiane për memorjen e komunizmit nga Tirana) kanë bashkepiseduar e prezantuar në panelin:

“Shqipëria, Ai vendi “tjetër” komunist”.

Ky panel, i pari i këtij lloji, u ideua nga Vatrani Çezar Ndreu dhe Gazetari Brent Hamacheck në një aktivitet të VOC në pranverën e 2022. Gjate atij takimi ne perurim te Muzeut te Viktimave te Komunizmit ne Washington DC, Cezar Ndreu ishte nje prej te ftuareve te Fondacionit dhe nebisede e siper, kur iu propozua te jepte nje interviste per median amerikane, ai tha , intervista me e mire do t eishte nje aktivitet per rastin e komunizmit ne Shqiperi. Dhe kjo shenoi fillimin e pergatitjve dhe zgjedhjen e panelisteve.

Pastaj procesi dhe puna u bashkërendua me inkurajimin e disa shqiptaro amerikanëve, nga dy organizatat më të njohura e më të fuqishme antikomuniste Amerikane , siç janë Fondacioni për Viktimat e Komunizmit, mandatuar nga Kongresi Amerikan dhe Portali mediatik Amerikan “Human Events”.

Paneli u hap nga drejtoresha e Programeve të Koalicioneve dhe Fellowshipit në VOC dhe u drejtua nga Brent Hamachek.

Panelistet ne fillim treguan dicka per veten e tyre dhe se si u integruan ne kete process.

Pastaj sipas eksperiencave dhe fushave perkatese ata kane folur me elokuence, vertetesi dhe profesionalizem per komunizmin ne Shqiperi.

Matilda Mirakaj, panelistja e pare, e cila u ka mbijetuar kampeve te internimit tok me familjen e saj, tregoi per jeten e perditshme ne kampet e internimit, si jetonin, dhe solli disa deshmi dritheronjese per miq e familjare . Ajo , ne emer te shume te ish internuarve dhe te persekutuarve ne mosha te reja, prindrit e te cileve ishin burgosur dhe atyre ju privua privilegji te riteshin me Eterit prane gjirit familjar pyeti: “Si mund tjua marresh femijeve prindrit ashtu si na I morren ne”?

Matilda tregoi per varferine ekonomike , per persekutimet lidhur me shfaqjet e huaja e per pamundesine e marteses me ate qe doje per shkak te biografise.

Matilda foli per luften e klasave,se si komunistet e keqperdorin dhe abuzojne me “drejtesine sociale” si per shembull barazia dhe e mira e perbashket. Matilda tha se nese ti ke marre lirine e nje personi, atehere ti ke marre lirine e te gjitheve. Ajo tha se e mira e perbashket fillon me individin, me nje person pra. Matilda inkuarojoi degjuesit dhe te rinjte t eedukohen me te verteten e komunizmit.

Frank Shkreli, ish drejtor i Divizionit European tek “Zeri i Amerikes”, beri nje analize te pergjithshme te Historise se Shqiperise qe prej mbarimit te Luftes se Pare Boterore , politika e fuqive te medha ndaj Shqiperise. Ai foli se si Shqiperia gjithmone ka luftuar per mbijetese se sa per jetese normale. Shkreli tha se rregjimi komunist ne Shqiperi ka qene me i keqi nga cka hasur ai . Ai tregoi se si te huajt nuk e gjenin dot Shqiperine ne harte. Foli per veshtiresite gjate izolimit te plote te Shqiperise, per maredheniet me shtete te ndryshme komuniste dhe prishjet e maredhenieve, dhe se si Zeri I Amerikse ishte e vetmja menyre per Shqiptaret te degjonin dicka nga Bota perendimore. Shkreli permendi renien e komunizmit ne Shqiperi dhe se shpresat per sherim jane te vaketa. Ai foli edhe per polarizimin politik qe egziston sot dhe kritikoi kryeministrin e sotem si dhe parlamentin shqiptar qe ka te pakten 30 anetare qe ne nje menyre ose tjeter kane lidhje me aparatin e Sigurimit. Ai gjithashtu tregoi se ne Shqiperi nuk ka nje monument kombetar per viktimat e komunizmit dhe se ende ka persona qe nuk ju dihet varri ne gjithe shqiperine per ata qe u pushkatuan nga regjimi komunist. Frank tha se nese harrojme te kaluaren, fatkeqesisht jemi te destinuar ta perseritim ate.

Ervin Dine, ish Nen Kryetar I Vatres dhe anetar i kryesise se sotme , ish Marins Amerikan, I aresimuar ne Universitetin Columbia, tregoi per eksperiencat e tij si femije ne kampe, foli per familjaret e tij, tregoi histori shume te dhimbshme qe ai I ka perjetuar vete ose I ka degjuar nga anetare te familjeve te mirenjohura si Mrnacaj , Mirakaj e Ndreu. Ai tregoi per moemnte ku femija e morri vesh arrestimin e babait duke pritur tek dera e salles se gjygjit pa avokat mbrojtes. Ai tregoi se si njerezit transferoheshin nga nje kamp ne nje tjeter e liheshin te pangrene , ne mes te rruges. Ai ngriti ceshtje te rendesishme si Liria e Besimit dhe Liria e shprehjes ne Shqiperine komuniste. Ervini tha se nuk ka vullnet politik nga qeverite per ta trajtuar ceshtjen e komunizmit ne Shqiperi. Ervini ashtu si edhe Franku adresuan lirine e shtypit dhe lirine e shprehjes edhe sot e kesaj dite. Ervini foli githashtu edhe per rolin e komunitetit shqiptar ne Amerike ne kuadrin e trendeve amerikane drejt totalitarianizmit dhe se si funskionon komuniteti shqiptar ne drejtim te mbrojtjes se vlerave me t emira amerikane. Ervini foli per procesin e ritjes si njeri, duke gjetur mundesine e deshiren per te luftuar veset ne vetvete dhe per te pranuar mendimin ndryshe. Ervini lavderoi panelin si hap i drejte dhe i pare ne rrugen e shqyrtimit te komunizmit ne Shqiperi.

Enriketa Pandeljemoni, historiane dhe specialiste e kujteses se komunizmit tregoi per punen institucionale ne Shqiperi. Ajo foli per publikimet e studimet qe jane bere qe prej vitit 2010 dhe se keto sudime jane bere ne gjuhen shqipe vetem. Nuk mund te studjosh dicka por nuk e dite gjuhen dhe se internacionalizimi I komunizmit ne Shqiperi eshte e rendesishme.

Ajo foli per kurikulumet, librat shkolllore dhe edukimi ne pergjithsi ka nevoje per reformim e permiresim, sepse per momentin ajo tha komunizmi shqiptar eshte I panjohur. Ajo foli per atrocitetet, gjenocidin politik, shtypjen, mungesen e lirese se fjales, shtypit, besimit, per mijra te burgosur e te internuar dhe se trashegimnia komuniste eshte ende e gjalle dhe se procesi I lustracionit, ekzaminimi i se kaluares dhe sherimi nuk ka ndodhur. Ajo tregoi se rinia shqiptare nuk e njeh historine e komunizmit. Si eksperte e kujteses, ajo foli per metodat e studimit dhe se duhet studjuar me thellesi. kujtAjo iu referua studimeve per kujtesen e nazizmit, fashizmit e komunizmit.

Ata te gjithe dhane mendime se komunizmi nuk mund te mbijetoje dhe se komunizmi nuk ka vend ne shoqerite ku ne jetojme(USA dhe Shqiperia)

Pas diskutimeve , pjesemarresit permes aplikacionit ZOOM , bene pyetje dhe morren pergjigje nfa panelistet.

Ka kaq shumë material në këto prezantime ne ket Panel saqë do duhej shumë kohë për transkriptim. Por ju lutem dëgjoheni, ndajeni me miqtë tuaj dhe le të shërbejë si një hap i parë i sinqertë drejt parjes së të vërtetës në sy e drejt shërimit kombëtar.

Vatra gjithnjë i ka paraprirë kauzave të drejta dhe nuk është aspak rastësi që në këtë panel Vatranët e miqtë e Vatrës dhanë kontribut tejet të

Çmuar.

Ju faleminderit organizatoreve dhe panelisteve!

Ja me poshte linku i videos së panelit:

https://fb.watch/h8tqnY5Lgf/

A Weekend Celebrating Mother Teresa’s Life and Legacy in Washington DC

by

By Merita B. McCormack*

The weekend of September 10th was dedicated to our beloved sister in blood and saint of the world, Mother Teresa here in Washington DC.

It was named as her  “Anniversary Weekend”, commemorating the 25th Anniversary of Mother’s Entrance into Eternal Life and her 76th anniversary of her call to serve the poorest of the poor.

On these occasions there was a daylong symposium and a movie screening the next day. All scholarly and artistic events were preceded and closed by prayers, namely Mass at the start of the day, vespers in the evening and Holy Hour and benediction as well.

 The Opening Mass on Saturday morning was held at the Crypt Church in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception the largest US Catholic Church and one of the fifth ‘s largest Basilicas of the World.

Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore was the Principal Celebrant and Homilist. Some concelebrants had travelled from afar. Among them were Most Reverend Robert Harris, Bishop Emeritus of St.John, New Brunswick, NJ, Fr. Brian Kolodiejchuk, Director of Mother Teresa Centre and the postulator for Mother Teresa’s canonization, Fr. Pasquale M.C, Fr. Mark Morozowich,S.E.O.D dean of CUA’s TRS Department etc. In his homily Archbishop Lori spoke very fondly and kindly of Mother Teresa and especially of her holiness. He mentioned that her upbringing in a faithful family   prepared her for her missionary work as he recalled meeting her and giving her a glass of water, which, he jokingly said “that would probably bring him to Heaven”. He also commented on Mother Teresa’s call to serve the poorest of the poor and commented on her  “dogged determination” to live out her vocation, found the Missionaries of Charity order, which these days has about 5000 sisters and religious around the world, responding to God’s call to her exactly 76 years ago, on September 10th 1946.

Archbishop Lori said  “Like Mary, (mother of Jesus), Mother Teresa embraced God’s will with loving trust and surrender, with “dogged” determination and courage. …Whether here, in DC or China…. she was small in stature but powerful…it was God’s power in her and through her”

Elaborating on fulfilling God’s work through corporeal works of mercy, Archbishop commented on the Gospel of Matthew 25 and mentioned the famous expression that Mother Teresa has said “ seeing the poor as Jesus in his distressing disguise”.

He added that she was not a social worker, but a woman who through Faith, Hope, and Love served others for God’s glory. He said that “mother spoke lovely, lovingly and directly and he mentioned how she touched the many hearts of politicians at the prayer breakfast in Washington DC. She taught us Archbishop said to “abandon all complications of our lives and say yes to Jesus”. He urged us all to ask Mother Teresa to smile on us (as in intercessory prayer), to deepen our prayer life and to practice charity. He concluded with “St.Teresa of Calcutta pray for us.”

One of the key events of Saturday was Mother Teresa Institute Inaugural Conference

It was held at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.  

According to the brochure distributed to the participants during that day,

“The Institute is an outgrowth of the work and activities of the Mother Teresa centre, a non for profit organization established and directed by the religious family founded by Mother Teresa, the MoC. The aim of the MTI is to preserve, protect, promote and develop the authentic legacy of Saint Teresa to the Church and to the world. The MTI will provide resources to the students, scholars and researchers who are interested in Mother Teresa, her life, charism and message, giving them the opportunity to study in depth one of her greatest saints of modern times and a humanitarian figure who made and enormous difference to the welfare of the poorest of the poor and had broad influence in the Church and the world. The Institute will also endeavour to promote greater knowledge of the holiness, teaching and legacy of St. Teresa of Calcutta”

The keynote speaker was George Weigel, a theologian, leading public intellectual in USA, and a Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Centre. He spoke on the tangencies of St. John Paul the Great (Pope John Paul II known as Karol Voytila) and saint Teresa of Calcutta, noting that both were great leaders of the 20th and 21st century were greatly admired and loved by peoples and nations around the world, because of their witness to the truth. This witness manifested itself in different ways amongst the two great leaders, with Mother Teresa bearing full witness to her calling by unwavering self- giving and self-sacrifice for her fellow man dedicated to a life of service. St John Paul the Great bore witness in a different manner, both garnished a worldwide following and respect due to their witness and both were instrumental in bringing about a changed world in the case of St. John Paul the Great in his pivotal role in awakening the pitfalls and evils of communism and promoting the dignity of the human being and life over a culture of death.

Weigel emphasised the prayerful and Eucharistic centred nature of the two saints and he shared how JPII wrote all his important documents in front of the Blessed Sacrament.  While Mother Teresa started the day with prayer and made sure her order has daily prayers and meditation and frequent Holy Hours besides daily Mass

He spoke of both Saints Dark Nights of the soul and also shared that the two saints loved sweet treats!

Fr. Brian Kolodiejchuk spoke in details about Mother Teresa’s spiritual life. He is the postulator of her case for canonization and has access to a myriad of documents and letters. He has authored books and papers on mother and he spoke fondly of his memories.

Mother Teresa: Icon of the New Evangelization was the panel discussion of the afternoon with participants being:

Rev. Darren Dentino, MC; James Towey; Dr. Janice Breidenbach; Fr. Steven Payne, OCD.Father Dentino   participated remotely from Nairobi, Kenya

 Mr. James Towey also spoke with Voice Of America, Albanian section and he recalled meeting the saint and having a friendship for the last 12 years of her life. He recalled how she looked as a young schoolgirl with such a small stature but so strong and determined. He recalled memories of Mother Teresa’s family stories and he attributed her Albanian origin and upbringing to her outstanding missionary work.

During the symposium there were many questions for the speakers and panellists. In an exchange with one, the author of this article asked about a story about Mother Teresa and St.John Paul II, which relates to her very first private visit in Albania in the late 90s. The story is that mother Teresa could not be without the Eucharist and apparently the pope (John Paul II) had permitted her to carry the Consecrated Host with her for her short trip to Albania. She could then be receiving our Lord daily while they’re without a priest to say mass. While the speakers/panellists had no knowledge of this particular encounter, they agreed that this could very well have been the case. This encounter sparked a longer discussion then about Albania, the culture and its role (as a cross cultural country as quoted by Weigel) in preparing mother Teresa to be the “powerful but non threatening Christian witness”(as stated by Weigel) in India. 

Following up in those comments there was Fr.Pasquale of Spain who recalled how Mother Teresa had called him and he arrived within 24 hours in Albania from new York, to serve her missionaries upon the permission of opening the homes in Albania. He spoke fondly of Albanian and Albania and even blessed us in Albanian by saying “ Zoti ju bekofte”(God bless you)

The day concluded with vespers and the next day the activities continued. The movie “ No greater Love” premiered at the St.John Paul II Shrine and will be shown in the AMC theaters in the USA on October 3-4 2022.

The movie is sponsored by Knights of Columbus.

The activities were attended by many Albanian Americans in the Diocese of Arlington and in greater DC Metro area as part of the Mother Teresa’s Month, an annual tradition that involves spiritual and corporeal works of Mercy.  Voice of America, Albanian section covered the Saturday’s events and Artan Harraqija, a VOA journalist prepared an in depth chronicle broadcast on Sunday Sept 11.

Reflecting on the weekend, one cannot help but think that while, even today, the world faces considerable challenges, it should not be lost on the world that such great leaders as these two individuals saw their rise from backgrounds of suppression and sacrifice. Both at community and national level in their respective countries and this rise to worldwide leadership, surely is no accident when placed in the light of the battle between good and evil, at all levels, notably at national and international levels, where leaders are brought to the forefront. They are leaders who understand this battle and the forces involved at critical times in history.

In a similar light one might ask the question with the recent passing of British Queen Elizabeth the 2nd, why she too, garnered so much worldwide respect? The common theme seems to be that of service, service to something greater and bigger than self, service to fellow man, service to God, service to long standing traditions and constant values even at the expense of personal sacrifice. Clearly these leaders have demonstrated such service and it is this service at different levels that attracts and brings out the best in human nature and can explain the worldwide popularity of such leaders.

It was no surprise that during the Q&A sessions on the weekend, several people    asked the question as we witness the ongoing war in Ukraine with Russia, as to what might the two saints might think and do regarding the politicians or clergy there.

Is this a coincidence or is indeed part of the wider battle between dignity of the human being and those who would see humans only as utilitarian entities? 

And as expected the answer and the theme, remains personal holiness, self-giving, prayer and sacrifice.

In such times of great difficulty and challenge we will continue to see leaders and saints rise to the fore, who may one day go down in history as leaders who stood up for the dignity of the human being, for life over a culture of death, for freedom over oppression and suppression, for good over evil.  

Mother Teresa, pray for us!

 * The author lives and works in the Washington DC Greater area and is a member of VATRA. She works for a private University and is an active member of the Albanian American Diaspora.

Një prej atij brezi…

by

Merita B. Mccormack/


Keshtu e quajtëm Gjon Buçaj-n, ish kryetarin e VATRES qe nderroi jete me 14 Maj 2022 ne Virxhinia, SHBA. Gjon Lekë Buçaj shumekush e ka njohur e thirrur me emrin Doktor. Ai ishte ai djali i ri nga Arsi i Pukes, qe emigroi ne Itali e me pas i martuar arriti ne SHBA dhe krijoi familjen duke u trasheguar nga dy djem e dy vajza. E kam njohur Doktorin para shume vitesh, kur jetoja ne Nju Jork dhe kur me ftoi i ndjeri Agim Karagjozi te integrohesha ne VATER.Mbaj mend Agim (Karagjozin) syperlotur per “Diellin” fleteverdhe, dhe Gjonin më optimist e më me shprese. Gjoni ne çdo feste vinte veshur me kostumin e papijonin e zi mbi kemishen e bardhe . Kur mblidheshin benin biseda koke me koke mes tyre e me Z. Agim Rexha, Kryetarin e Nderit te Vatres sot, e te tjere krere ne VATER e pastaj mblidhnin Kryesine, krijonin komisione e vendosnin per gjera madhore ne VATER.Kishin stil te kohes e shkolles se tyre, ishin kolegjiale mes vetesh dhe mua ngahere me pelqente shume qe te gjithe keta burra, kolosa ne VATER, asnjehere nuk i nxitonin punet. Me teknologjine moderne gjithshka ishte e mundur te pershpejtohej , por jo per ta.Agimi (Karagjozi) punonte vetem me takime ne person , e kur donte dicka te shkruar, e shkruante dhe ta dergonte me postë. Kam shume letra prej tij . Me nje shkrim me gërma si ruaza! Agimi favorizonte edhe faks-in por jo te gjithe kishim makina faksi!. Keshtu qe shpesh here ne qeshnim thonim, do te flasesh me Agimin (K), rri zgjuar gje nga mesnata(per ti telefonuar kur ai punonte) ose dergo nje email tek doktori-e dhe e ke te zgjidhur!
Gjoni , u integrua ne bashkekomunikimin elektronik dhe nese nje dite do hap arkivat e komunikimit me te ndoshta ka material qe mund te mbushe faqe te tera libri. Ai te pergjigjej ne kohe, e njihte mire emailin dhe e perdorte shume efektivisht. Shqipen e perdorte rallë ne emaile, por ne komunikimet ne person fliste me shume shqip se Anglisht.
Punët e mira për Vattën , bisedat me te kane qene te shumta, kujtimet nga me te ndryshmet, dhembshuria e madhe. E kam thene edhe privatisht edhe publikisht qe e kam dashur si nje babe te dyte. Edhe ai me ka dashur e respektuar si vajze te tijen, me ka ndihmuar ne aktivitetin si VATRANE ne DC dhe asnjehere nuk kemi pasur perplasje personale.
Doktori kishte familjaret e tij ne lagjen ku une jetoja deri ne vitin 2017 dhe shiheshim dendur. Ai ishte i kujdesshem ne menyren se si percohej mesazhi, kujt i shkonte mesazhi dhe ishte i vemendshem qe mos linte asnje detaj te rendesishme jashte komunikimit. Ishte i mireorganizuar e mirefokusuar.
Pershembull ne 100 vjetorin e VATRES ai u perkujdes qe cdo figure kombetare jashte e brenda vendit te njoftohej e te vinte ne feste. Mbaj mend se si me thoshte mos harro ti dërgosh ftese ketij apo atij personi ne DC. Dhe i mblodhem! E ndoqi punen deri ne fund megjithese mosha bente te veten. Ajo feste do mbahet mend nder vite dhe kujdesi personal i Doktorit nuk do harrohet.
Doktori ishte edhe poet. Shpesh kur udhetonim per te bere vizita te perbashketa ne Institucionet Amerikane në DC , ai me tregonte se si kishte shkruar poezi qe kur ishte i vogel, para se te largohej nga Shqiperia si adoleshent. Dhe i mbante mend te gjitha vargjet. I recitonte me pathos. Pastaj kur hynim ne zyrat e mbledhjeve, rikthehej ne Doktorin patriot e Vatranin e devotshem. Ai ishte unapologjetik kur vinte puna per ceshtje kombetare, ishte demokrat i vendosur , antikomunist dhe sypatrembur.
E kishte shume te qarte cka kerkonte, si e kerkonte dhe ishte patriot i shquar.
Vdekja e tij ka shkaktuar trishtim nder familjaret dhe te afermit , por edhe nder Vatranet dhe ju shpreh ngushellimet e mia te gjithe te afermeve te tij dhe kolegeve ne VATER. Me Doktorin nuk isha takuar prej problemeve qe shkaktoi Virusi Kovid se fundi , por mbaj mend që takimi i fundit ka qene në festën e ditlindjes së mbeses se tij , Gjozefineku ai personalisjt më ftoi.Do ta mbaj mend ashtu te qeshur , të gezuar e te lumtur per trashegimtaret e tij familjarë.
Lutjet e mia jane per paqe shpirterore per doktorin në mbreterine e Hyjit, Zoti i dhente ngushellim gruas dhe femijeve te tij, ngushellime dhe Vatraneve kudo ku jane. Vatra ka trasheguar shumë prej doktorit dhe sot e nderojme e respektojme vepren e tij sa ishte si anetar, nenkryetar e Kryetar. Pushofsh në paqe Doktor!

Monsignor Lush Gjergji  in Washington DC

by

By Merita B. McCormack*/

On Saturday, May 7th, on the Eve of Mother’s Day, Albanian Community in the Diocese Of Arlington, Virginia, welcomed Monsignor Lush Gjergji of Kosova, the Albanian Biographer of Saint Mother Teresa. The Mass and reception were hosted by Divine Mercy University in Sterling, Virginia and the Mass was concelebrated by Fr. Charles Sikorsky, LC , President of the University.  During his homily Dom Lushi spoke about the teachings of  the church , commenting on the passages read  from Holy Scripture and also spoke  about the  virtue of love and the message of mother Teresa in our times.

He emphasized the role and values of family, particularly the role of the mother, which was poignant due to the fact that Mother’s Day Feast fell on Sunday, May 8th. He said among many other things, that a complete traditional Albanian family is that of three generations, with parents, grandparents and children. Dom Lushi blessed the mothers present at the end of Mass and then after Mass he blessed the congregation with the relics of Albanian martyrs. The mass servers and gift bearers were from the Crnkovich family and the cantor was from the McCormack family. Denis Guma and Nela Crnkovich helped with the readings in Albanian.

After mass, we moved to a reception hall, where coffee, soft drinks and desserts were served. The desserts were provided as a donation by Ira Mehani, owner of “Sweet Treats by Irene”. During the reception Denis Guma recalled the history of the community and thanked the rest of the core members of this group.  The author of this note summarized Dom Lushi’s homily for English speakers present and provided translations onwards. 

Dom Lushi had a conversation with the community and many questions were asked  during a reception. During that Q&A session  Dom Lushi touched again upon the revered Albanian traditions as that of love, compassion , multifamily generations and harmony in the family. He called to our attention the dangers of today’s 5 dictatorships which are: 1. materialism, 2. consumerism, 3. hedonism, 4.relativism and 5.practical atheism.

 There was a question  regarding divisions among the faith communities, and Dom Lushi elaborated on the nature of  common good, true love and the unity through diversity by respecting each other’s freedom and loving each other truly as God does love us. In the post Mass reception he answered several questions and shared his vocation story. He said he was 13 years old when he saw his parish priest being arrested by the communist  government and felt filled  with sorrow. At that time he said he asked  God :” If you will, please make me your priest” And his brother too became a priest.

He shared the story of Mother Teresa’s Grandfather , Lazer Bojaxhiu from Prizren, Kosovo in the mid 1800 and  how he escaped the massacre and moved to Skopje, Macedonia, where he established the business ( Trade and Real Estate). His son Nikolle Bojaxhiu, mother Teresa’s father, continued his charitable work with the poor and owned ten homes, nine of which were used for the homeless. 

Dom Lushi shared that he met Mother when he was 18  years old and at a Seminary in Rome and that she was so happy to meet an Albanian seminarian that she would  not let go of him and checking his health and asking about all Albanian related issues. He said at that moment he knew she was a saint and began writing about her.

When Dom Lushi was asked about his books, he mentioned that one book with selected writings on Mother Teresa is soon becoming available in English. It is published by “Illyria” Newspaper owner, Mr. Vehbi Bajrami. 

Also he mentioned the newly printed book about St. Jerome, the Illyrian(Dalmat), which is available in Kosova.

Preservation of Albanian Culture and Tradition in Washington DC (PACT DC), an artistic youth dance group welcomed Dom Lushi, performed a few dances and invited everyone to join the dances (valle).

After the event, several families went to a local restaurant and treated the guests to dinner. 

Dom Lushi was accompanied for the whole duration of stay in Virginia by Mr. Marash Nucullaj of Michigan, an activist in the Albanian community. 

On Sunday May 8th, Dom Lushi concelebrated Mass at St.John the Beloved Catholic church and visited the first class relic of Mother Teresa. He then was met by Sabri Tahiri, an Albanian of Kosova in DC who, together with other friends, treated the guest to lunch and did some sightseeing around DC. Dom Lushi returned to Detroit, where he has been staying since Easter.

The events were well attended by Albanians and Americans. Among the notable community personalities there were Ms. Buta Biberaj, the Loudoun County Commonwealth Attorney, who is of Albanian origin, former VOA journalists and authors Shaqir Salihu and Laura Konda. Mrs. Gabriela O’Connell, a German- American, attended as a friend of the community. We are grateful to all.*The author is the co-founder of the community and the current coordinator.

Preserving and promoting the good here in America

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By Merita Bajraktari *

Throughout the years, we Albanian Americans praise and appreciate our Albanian culture, traditions, customs, food and while we make significant efforts at that, we are also very much interested into adapting ourselves to the new country, this great USA.

We often cherish and celebrate our important days and bring together our families to share, celebrate and these are always great and good things to do.  

We do not   get into the explanation of the “why’s” or the “what’s” but we know that it is good, it is beautiful and it is rewarding to do such things as mentioned above. 

Most common celebrations are those days of Independence (Both Albania and Republic of Kosova), Albanian language school year endings, Mother’s Day but also other important days, according to the groups, regions and faith traditions. 

We do make a genuine effort to get together and celebrate. We put our best costumes, we make sure our spouses and our children are available too and we bring our best cooking and dancing skills to work. We have personal, family and community fun! 

We make a great effort to have a good time and when we have non Albanians among us, who likewise have a good time, we find ourselves saying or  emphasizing things that sound like: “This is the Albanian way”, “this is how Albanians do it”, “it is an Albanian thing”…or whatever other  phrase that indicates “this is good because it is  Albanian,  or  this is Albanian, therefore it is good”. 

I think, during these events, we associate the good fun with that of “Albanian way” and with what had made us feel good in the past, when we were in Albanian land. I am not a psychologist, so am just taking the guess here. Nevertheless, I wish to say that every time we have such a good event we rightfully take pride and enjoy it.  

But what do we do to help more with it. 

I do not know about the reader, each one has his or her own experience, but I have found many times that a lot of people get together and invite speakers that teach common sense to them.  Recently I attended such a talk on “the economy of household”. 

Everything that the great speaker said, was great, true and beautiful.

Yet, I felt there was nothing new to me personally as I felt he was describing the Albanian traditional family (at least the one I grew up and those of my cousins and neighbors). 

He was emphasizing the great role of the family’s togetherness- I reflected I was so much with my family that at times I wanted to be alone at times 😊. 

He pointed to the need of parents and children doing things together, so the children can learn but also appreciate the work. Not only that but the parents really get to know their children- I reflected on that and recalled the daily work we did together, whether was cleaning the house, doing the dishes, cooking together, digging the fields, harvesting fruits, harvesting honey, making winter food, making mud bricks and attending weddings and funerals. All together. I was yearning to be a bit alone those days 😊 

The speaker spoke of how we (America and the West) have   lost the traditional family of pre-industrial and sexual revolution, meaning those of pre-1950. 

He was talking about outsourcing of care and “love” for the children. That is sad indeed. 

As Thanksgiving is approaching here in the USA and as the families are rushing to prepare for this great feast, traveling for thousands of miles so they can cherish the family and thank God for all the abundant blessings, I can say that for us Albanians, the family togetherness has been a steady feature turned into a virtue. It is a great quality. A wonderful lesson for the world to appreciate and learn from. And we should preserve it and promote it. 

I like to invite all to continue to be proud of our heritage, to cherish our traditional family and the values while we integrate in this great country. We can be giving what we have as best and receiving what is offered as best. 

We have so much good to share about Albanian way of family life. And not just one day, but as a way of living in such a community which since in times of Aristotle was defined and loved as the basic unit of the society. Today is very much on the focus of dark forces to be destroyed. In another article I would share about those attacks on the family. For now: 

Happy and a Blessed thanksgiving to all! 

Happy Albanian Flag Day too!!

  • This article reflects Author’s views and not necessarily those of the newspaper. The Author is an Albanian Immigrant, citizen of the USA. She is a wife, mother and Higher Education professional. Her free time she dedicates to her family, parish and community. She is an author and speaker on “Life under Communism in Albania”. Her twitter handle is @emershqip