38 Christian martyrs were killed by the Enver Hoxha regime. This government attempted to banish God from Albania. For this reason, the beatification of these Christians took place on November 5 at the Shkodra Cathedral. Ten thousand believers attended the liturgy that was presided over by Cardinal Angelo Amato, who is the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. He claimed that "even in the hell of arbitrary and unjust persecution, the Albanian martyrs showed toward their enemies the same feelings and attitudes of Christ: forgiveness, loyalty, fortitude, fraternity, and mercy. They are the witnesses of that new humanity, which leads to a history that is not based on wars, divisions, and killing of innocent beings, but it is based on peace, joy, and fraternity".
From 2002 to 2010, evidence was collected to support the beatification. These 38 martyrs are 2 bishops, 21 diocesan priests, 7 Franciscans, 3 Jesuits (including the Italian Giovanni Fausti), a seminarian, 4 lay people, and the aspiring Stigmata nun Maria Tuci. Cardinal Amato emphasized how the martyrs forgave their persecutors, after recalling the sufferings they were subjected to. For instance, the tortures were cruel, especially the ones that were endured by Msgr. Frano Gjin, who was killed in 1948: "He was arrested, accused of anti-communist propaganda, tortured, reduced to hunger and thirst until exhaustion. Hung from a tree in the courtyard of the Security Agency, he was clubbed and dropped into the sewer. He was finally executed along with 18 other priests and laymen".
Moreover, Fr. Ernest Simoni, who is a priest that was imprisoned and sentenced to hard labor during the regime, laid the urn containing the relics at the foot of the tapestry that represents the martyrs in St. Stephen's Cathedral. This place was transformed into a sports palace during the regime.
The liturgy was also attended by a delegation from the Community of Sant'Egidio, who then met Fr. Ernest Simoni. He is a longtime friend whose appointment as cardinal has been announced by Pope Francis for November 19.
