Friday, 6 October 2017
Address of the President Xhaferi at the Opening of the “Balkan Conference on the Occasion of the 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, 1517-2017”
Distinguished representatives of the Science institutions,
Distinguished Representatives of the Protestant Church and Representatives of other religious communities,
Excellences,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Esteemed audience,
Welcome to the legislative house of the Republic of Macedonia, the home of all citizens. At the very beginning of my mandate I have expressed my intention to open this temple of democracy for all initiatives, needs and positive steps in building a better, healthier and more democratic society, where all the citizens will be equal and equitable in their rights and obligations. This conference, which marks the 500th anniversary since the Protestant Reformation is a proof of my intention.
Five hundred years ago, namely on 31 October 1571, the young theology professor Martin Luther pinned a piece of paper containing 95 thesis on the door of the Wittenberg Cathedral, calling the public to an open debate. These 95 theses had above all a theological character, but in the same time refer to many questions that envelop the social area and the individual, one’s rights and freedoms, but also the personal accountability towards oneself and to the community. Let us not forget that we refer to the 16 century, when with the appearance f the Protestantism the political, religious, cultural, educational and artistic reformations in Europe and beyond begins. For example, one of the great followers of Martin Luther, Czech pedagogue Jan Amos Komenski stood for education for everyone regardless of gender and social status, in ones mother tongue, beside the fact that in that time the education was a privilege for particular social layers, while the Latin language dominated the education the education in Europe. These are civilization values at the moment, and unfortunately they are disputed in some areas, especially when we refer to education in ones’ mother tongs. I shall mention the Slovenian Primorz Trubar, Protestant Pastor who published the first Bible in Slovenian language, and his print shop published Cyrillic books as well.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
Martin Luther’s lectures, in other words the protestant Reformation arrives in the Region intensively in the 19th century, through the American Missionaries and the famous “British Foreign Biblical Association”. We all know the story of the kidnapping of the American Missionary Miss Stone, i.e. Ellen Stone and her fellow missionary Katerina Tsilka, by the squad of Jane Sandanski, We know less that Jane Sandanski, later Dobri Daskalov and many other revolutionaries accepted the protestant learning.
The spreading of the protestant Learning, in other words the Reformation among the Albanians also happened during the 19th century and is closely connected with the members and activities of the Kirijazi family, in particular Gerasim Kirijazi and his two sisters. His family, Orthodox Albanians origin from Southern Albania and at the beginning of the 18th century moves to Bitola, where young Kirijazi meets a group of American Missionaries. Seeing his intellectual capacities, since Gerasim, though young, in addition to the Albanian language was fluent in Macedonian, Greek, Turkish and Vlach language, send him to Samokov, Bulgaria to the American School of Theology, and were he learns to be a pastor. Upon finalization of Theology Studies, he was sent to Skopje, where he preaches in Macedonian Languages and shortly afterwards he was sent to Korcha. There, in addition to preaching, he translated church literature in Albanian language and paid great attention to the education of youth, above all the women. Together with his spouse in, they open the first girls’ school in Korcha, which schools 400 students.
Together with his fellows he established the association Evangelic Brotherhood (Vëllazëria Ungjillore), which in addition to dissemination of faith, develops publishing activities in many areas and targets the development of the education system in Albania and among Albanians in general. His two sisters, Parashqevi and Sevasti Kirijazi particularly work on the development of the education system, after graduating from the American College in Istanbul. Certainly, the overall role of the Kirijazi family in the preparation of the Bitola Congress, where the Albanian alphabet was codified, must not be neglected.
Dear friends,
I am neither theologist nor historian, and it will not be modest if I speak of the Protestant Reformation in general or the presence and the influence there on this Region. Still, as a human, I would underline the fact that the learning of Martin Luther and his followers left an inerasable mark in the European civilization, and that many of the mentioned 95 thesis pinned at the door of the cathedral 500 years ago are art of the principles united Europe is founded on. Not to be misunderstood, I do not underestimate other religions and direction of the Christianity and their contribution in the European and world civilization. In the contrary, I underline their complementarily. In regard with the Protestantism and the Reformation in this Region, regardless f the ethic belonging and religious differences, the new beginnings are closely connected with the tendencies and the fight for freedom of each nation regardless if we speak of the Macedonian, Albanians and other Balkan nations. I believe that your Conference, through your more solid science and experts research will confirm all this and on the basis of these facts, ideas will be offered for building more tolerant society with greater welfare, but also greater personal accountability of each individual,
Thank you.