The Archbishop of Tirana, Durres and All Albania, His Beatitude Anastasios, remained in high spirits on Wednesday, after being transported from Tirana to a hospital in central Athens after testing positive for the Covid-19 virus.
In a brief interview with an Athens-based television station, and shortly before departing from Tirana aboard a Greek military aircraft, the Primate of the Albanian Orthodox Church was reassuring, stating “…Do not worry, we will get through the difficulties… I have been accustomed to ‘climbing down steep hills’ for 39 years now.”
The Archbishop added that his symptoms are minor, while reminding that he has faced respiratory problems in the past, while adding “…so, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. These things are a great consolation to us.”
Messages of support and best wishes poured in from around the world.
On his part, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, His All Holiness Bartholomew I, expressed his best wishes for a speedy recovery in a message to Archbishop Anastasios, noting that “… We hope that your hospitalization will not last long and that it will be successful because we love you and the Church needs you. We wish you to continue your creative and beneficial work by contributing to Christianity, to humanity and to the glory of God for many years.”
Greek political leaders, including FM Nikos Dendias, also sent their best wishes, while Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis first ordered the military plane to be dispatched to Tirana to safely transport the ailing hierarch.
The ominous report of the Archbishop being tested positive for Covid-19 coincided with an announcement that a stricter 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew will be applied throughout Greece during the current three-week lockdown.
