Albanian Orthodox Diocese of America

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Albanian Orthodox Diocese of America
Jurisdiction Constantinople
Diocese type Diocese
Founded 1967
Current bishop Bp. Ilia
See(s) Philomelion
Headquarters Las Vegas, Nevada
Territory United States
Liturgical language(s) English, Albanian
Musical tradition Byzantine Chant
Calendar Revised Julian
Population estimate unknown
Official website

The Albanian Orthodox Diocese of America is a jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in the United States. Its current leader is Bishop Ilia (Katre) of Philomelion, (Vicar General since 1982 and Bishop since 2002) who lives in Boston, Chicago, and Las Vegas.

In the first half of the 20th century, the Orthodox Albanian communities in America were loosely affiliated with one another, with six of fifteen communities claiming "independent" status and the others not incorporated as dioceses until after the Second World War. The return of Bp. Theofan (Noli) from exile in Germany in 1932 had reopened the discussion of the need for a canonical Albanian diocese in North America. [Metropolitan Theofan had been consecrated in 1922 as Bishop of Durres by the Church of Albania, which did not claim any jurisdiction in North America, and thus could not gain recognition as head of a diocese in the Americas.]



External links