From a young migrant,
educated as an atheist, to bishop in Albania
 |
| father Arjan Dodej celebrates Mass in Tirane, Albania |
He arrived in Italy by boat in 1993, became a welder,
discovered the faith that his grandmother had transmitted to him by singing,
and became a priest. Three years ago, he returned to Albania. The Pope has
appointed him an auxiliary bishop of Tiranë.
By Andrea Tornielli
I could still detect in his voice, on the phone from Tiranë,
the surprise of what has just happened to him. It’s not long since he received
the announcement of the appointment he has received. His is one of the many
small, but great stories, of which the daily life of the Church is interwoven.
43-year-old Arjan Dodaj was born in Laç-Kurbin on the coast
of Albania. He arrived in Italy as a migrant after crossing the Adriatic Sea on
a boat. At the age of 16, he fled his country on a hot and starry night in
September 1993, seeking a future and a way to help his poor family. He would
work more than ten hours a day as a welder and gardener. Eventually, he came
across a community that made him feel at home. There, he discovered the
Christian faith, of which there was already a trace in his DNA thanks to the
songs his grandmother used to sing. Pope St John Paul II ordained him ten years
later as a member of the Priestly Fraternity of the Sons of the Cross, House of
Mary Community, based in Rome. In 2017, he returned to his country as a Fidei
Donum priest. This past 9 April, Pope Francis appointed him auxiliary
bishop of the Archdiocese of Tiranë-Durrës.
Childhood
Arjan was born and raised in a communist, Albanian family.
His education was atheistic. "I was born in a context where,
unfortunately, every sign that recalled the faith was banned. In the first
years of my life, I never heard of God's existence. My parents unfortunately
endured, in a terrible way, the effect of communism. But my grandparents prayed
to the Lord".
It was Arjan's maternal grandmother who instilled in him the
first words of faith. "My first encounter with the things of God is like a
refrain inside my head, inside my soul. Despite the threats, my grandmother was
totally free in living a life of prayer. In their day, not knowing how to
write, they learned their prayers by singing. And so, by learning prayers that
rhymed, they knew doctrine. Only when I arrived in Italy did I discover that
many things, about the sacraments for example, she had told me about them while
singing at home, while working, while cleaning. She sang. That's how I learned
too. I learned the second part of the Hail Mary. She always made me say the
second part. That's how God worked with me."
Fr Arjan Dodaj, Bishop-elect, Auxiliary of the Archdiocese of
Tiranë-Durrës
Migrant
"I arrived in Italy right after the fall of Communism”,
says the newly elected Bishop. “At that moment it was not possible to obtain
regular visas. The only way was by motorboat. Unfortunately, there were some
boats that left, which, alas, did not arrive".
Shortly after the fall of communism, Arjan tried to leave
the country. "Like many other boys, I had made many attempts. One of the
first times, the boat was damaged…. Today, I thank the Lord that it didn't
depart, because I don't know what would have happened to us – we were all crushed
together, crowded together. Indescribable adventures, a real exodus. Then in
the following attempts, I was able to get on one of those boats that left from
the coast of my city, from this very beautiful lagoon, where I had gone many
times as a child. We left the night of 15 September 1993. Thank God, the sea
was very calm. The Lord preserved us. I remember very well that at that moment,
it was my whole existence that was migrating. My story, as it were, was leaving
that coast, with that night sky full of stars. I felt a tear inside me of those
bonds, with my life, with my family".
Reflecting on that experience the new Auxiliary Bishop of
Tiranë points out: "Today, many people are seen arriving on the boats. I
think one should think of their tears, their sacrifices, the very painful
vicissitudes they are living. They wouldn’t be coming if their lives were not
painful".
Some of Arjan’s friends had emigrated to Italy shortly
before him. Thanks to them, Arjan found refuge in Dronero, in the northern
Italian province of Cuneo, near Turin. There he became an apprentice to a
welder. "We used to weld bicycle frames. Then I also did many other jobs,
in construction and gardening. This way, I could help support my family because
we were really very poor". Other friends invited him to a meeting in the
parish. "I worked a lot, sometimes even more than ten hours a day. So, in
the evening I would arrive home tired. I didn't have many friends. They told me
that there was a nice group of young people in the parish, led by Father
Massimo, who was a member of the House of Mary Community. I had a really good
time! I found the support I needed in that very delicate phase of my youth”.
Believer and priest
Arjan was baptized in 1997. Later, he asked to be welcomed
into the Priestly Fraternity of the Sons of the Cross, House of Mary Community,
in Rome. There, he studied to become a priest. This decision was difficult for
his parents to accept. Ten years after he landed in Italy, it was Pope John
Paul II who laid his hands on his head in St. Peter's Basilica.
"In 1993, the year I arrived in Italy, St. John Paul II
visited Albania. The country had just come out of dictatorship. It seemed like
an open trench. There was a lot of misery and poverty, but at the same time a
thirst for novelty. I too, like many children and many other people, remember
all the people who accompanied the Pope's car along the side of the roads from
Tiranë to Shkodër. He has always accompanied me, and so has our holy Mother
Teresa. As we were leaving the dictatorship, she poured out on us that balm of
tenderness, of love, of goodness, of hope that she knew how to give to so many
poor people in various parts of the world".
Father Dodaj worked in various parishes and became chaplain
of the Albanian Community in Rome. In 2017, the Archbishop of Tiranë, George
Anthony Frendo, asked Father Arjan to serve in the archdiocese. Both the
superior of the House of Mary Community, Father Giacomo Martinelli, and the
Cardinal Vicar of Rome, Angelo De Donatis, agreed. The priest returned to his
country as a Fidei Donum, priest, that is, as a priest temporarily
providing service in a diocese other than the one in which he is officially
incardinated.
Bishop
About his appointment as auxiliary bishop, Father Dodaj
said, "Honestly, I never, ever thought about it or desired such a thing. I
was very happy to live in a parish context, the daily family context that I
have always lived, with my community, with the parishioners with the people
entrusted to us. Now I have received this further call, this appointment of the
Holy Father Pope Francis. I have welcomed it with trust in the Lord, in Our
Lady, and with obedience to the Church".
Albania was the first European country visited by Pope
Francis. It has always been a symbol of successful coexistence among peoples
professing different religions. Christians of other confessions and Muslim
believers are also rejoicing with the Pope's choice. Father Dodaj clarifies the
type of “coexistence” that his country enjoys: "It is not religious tolerance.
It is very important to change words and understand that for us it is harmony,
familiarity, a spirit of great collaboration and mutual support".
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