Albania has a complicated religious history. First touched by Christianity in the early days of the church through the ministry of Paul and his companions, it later fell to the Ottoman Turks, a forcible Islamic empire. After a short period of freedom in the early 20th century, Albania was once again under physical and spiritual oppression by the communists, being declared an atheist state by dictator Enver Hoxha.

Since the fall of communism in the 1990’s, Albania has enjoyed religious freedom. Around 60% of Albanians identify as Muslim, and 16% identify with either the Catholic or Orthodox church. Less than 0.7% of the population is involved in an Evangelical Christian community. 

Albania's history as a conquered and suppresed nation has an interesting effect: it has divorced God from real life. Albanians remain very “righteous”, believing that there is a God and that one should be a good person, but almost across the board they are without knowledge or relationship with God. In a recent survey 75% of people said that religion played no part in their daily lives. The majority of people do not attend mosque or church, have never read the Koran or the Bible, and prescribe to a very universal philosophy of “we are all God’s children”. Since Albanians do not look to God as their source, the next available option is wealth and education. As one of the poorest European countries, Albania sees the wealth of the countries around them and believes that it will fix many of their problems. Because of this, there is an exodus of young people seeking a more successful life in other countries. God is moving however, and gospel centered churches are growing deep roots around Albania, bringing real relationship with God that touches every area of life. As a church, we are introducing people for the first time to a God who came to be near them, that they can talk to, that they submit to in daily life. We are growing in reading the Word together, worshiping and praying, not only for daily bread but for God's kingdom to come in our neighborhood.