History

First Christian movement

On his mission journeys, apostle Paul traveled through the province of Illyria. Albania was in that time part of this province. Paul and his co-workers planted the first Christian churches in the area, which belongs to Albania today.

"For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Holy Spirit, so that from Jerusalem and as far round as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ." (Romans 15:18,19)

In the beginning of the 19th century the British Bible Society (BBS) started to translate parts of the Bible in some "dialects" spoken in the southern part of Albania and in Greece.
Different foreign colporteurs traveled through the country and sold the scriptures. Every year they sold several hundred copies during their journeys.
Alexander Thompson, a colporteur stationed in Constantinople had a special passion for the Albanian population.

In 1864 the British Bible Society wanted to produce a new publication of the Bible in Albanian. They found a good translator called Kristoforidhi. He chose two Albanian dialects, one was spoken in the north and the other in the south of Albania. Kristoforidhi did his work very carefully. It had also a remarkable effect on the development of the written Albanian language. Between 1866 an 1879 different parts of the scripture were translated and published.

In 1873 an American missionary came to Manastir. He worked mostly with Macedonian families. Qiriazi was out of an Albanian family. He first went to the Christian meetings just to disturb it. But by the time God opened his heart and he accepted the Gospel of Jesus Christ for his life. Because of his new faith, he suffered severe persecution from his parents.
As young men he studied theology in Sofia. After his studies he worked as pastor in Manastir. His services were well visited. The peoples' interest grew.

In 1884 Alexander Thompson asked Qiriazi to superintend the colporteurs in Macedonia and Albania. On one of the following journeys Quiriazi visited Korça. When he preached there, the rooms were crowded. A deep interest in Gods word was awakened in the town.
In this time, the desire of the Albanian population, to get autonomy and to live in freedom became stronger. Qiriazi knew this yearning. He saw the need to cultivate his own language and to preach the Gospel in the peoples' own language. Qiriazi had the very strong passion to reach the Albanian people with the Gospel.

"If ever Albania is to rise from her degradation .... it must be through the agency and power of the Word of God, written and preached. The sooner, then, this sovereign means of restoration, under the blessing of God, is brought into contact with the people, and pressed on their attention, the better."
(Qiriazi; Captured by Brigands)

In 1890 Qiriazi was ordained by the BBS as evangelist to his own people to Korça.
He actually was the first evangelical pastor in the country. In Korça he started the first Evangelical church

Also in Korça he opened one year later the first Albanian girls' school. Every subject was taught in Albanian. His sisters and his friends supported him. The girls did not only learn reading, writing and counting. For Qiriazi it was important, that they learned everything about the Christian faith.

Further Qiriazi founded the Evangelical Brotherhood in 1892, which actually was the very beginning of the national evangelical work in Albania (today VUSH – Vëllazëria Ungjillore Shqiperise). The foundation produced a newspaper, where Qiriazi published his visions. It was another possibility to spread the Gospel over the country.
Qiriazi was not accepted by the Orthodox Church and was cursed officially, but nevertheless he went on working and teaching.

To early in 1894 at the age of only 35 he died. The first years after, his friends and his family continued Qiriazis projects. But they were not able to do it in the longer term.

In 1908 the first western missionaries (Kennedy's) came to preach the Gospel. In 1932 Edwin and Dorothy Jacques joined them. It was not allowed to preach in the streets, but through private conversations many people heard the Gospel.

From 1937 until 1940 a revival took place in Korça. Many children, young people and adults joined the various meetings and received Christ. Korça remained the only town where an evangelical church was established.

In 1940 the last missionary (Edwin Jacques) had to leave the country because of the war.

During the Second World War and the Communist area, many Christian believers were imprisoned or executed. Most of the people burnt their Bibles for fear of the Communists.

Third Christian movement

Only 1991, when the country opened the borders again, it was possible to bring the Gospel back to Albania.

Foreign missionaries came. It was almost nothing left of the Christian movement in Qiriazi's time. The missionaries began to plant churches and they also re-established the Evangelical Brotherhood foundation.
Today about 160 churches are registered with VUSH.

Sources:Edwin Jacques, David Young
Battle for Albania, Albanian Evangelical Mission