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[[Image:Fan Noli.jpg|right|thumb|300px|A portrait of Metr. Theophan at the Albanian parish in Worcester, Massachusetts]][[Metropolitan]] '''Theophan (Fan) S. Noli''' is a unique Orthodox [[hierarch]] of the twentieth century. He established an Albanian-speaking church Orthodoxy in the United States of America, then and in 1923 founded the Orthodox [[Church of Albania]] after Albania gained its independence following the end of World War I. His life was multi-faceted: not only noted He additionally served as a church man, he was a leader in the world prime minister of Albanian politics and nationalism as well in its literary worldAlbania.
==Life==
At that time the Greek community controlled the church that the Albanians attended, and as time passed tensions grew. Then, in 1907 these tensions came to a head when the Greek Orthodox priest refused to officiate at the burial of an Albanian nationalist. The priest did so with the position that as a nationalist the deceased had [[excommunication|excommunicated]] himself. At this time, Fan recognized his calling and convoked meeting of Albanian Orthodox throughout New England. At the meeting the delegates resolved to establish a separate, [[autonomous]], Albanian Orthodox Church. Fan Noli was selected to be its first clergyman.
In New York, Fan Noli met with Abp. [[Platon (Rozhdestvensky) of New York|Platon]] of New York and Fr. [[Alexander Hotovitzky]] who conducted an investigation of the Albanian community. After being satisfied, Abp. Platon agreed to [[ordination|ordain]] Fan Noli. Thus, on [[February 9]], 1908, Abp. Platon ordained Fan as [[deacon]], and followed this with his ordination as an Orthodox priest on [[March 18]], 1908, at St. Nicholas Cathedral in New York. He was twenty-six years old. Then, on [[March 22]], 1908, the young Fr. Noli celebrated the ''first'' liturgy in Albanian in the Knights of Honor Hall in Boston, using translations he had prepared. For the next several years he built his community. Then, for four months beginning in August 1911, Fr. Fan toured the Albanian communities throughout Europe, holding church services in Albanian in Kishinev, Odessa, Bucharest, and Sofia.
Paralleling his career in the Orthodox Church, Fr. Fan was active in Albanian politics. From February 1909 until July 1911 he edited the newspaper ''Dielli'' (The Sun) in the Boston Albanian community. On [[April 28]], 1912, he founded the Pan-Albanian Vatra (The Hearth) Federation of America with Faik bey Konitza. He had become the recognized leader of the Albanian Orthodox community, as well as having established himself as the writer and journalist of the nationalist movement. Graduating from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Fr. Noli hurried to Europe to attend the Albanian Congress of Trieste in March 1913, as Albania had been declared independent by Ismail Qemal bey Vlora in November 1912. Then, in July 1913 he visited Albania for the first time.
While in Albania, Fr. Noli served the first Orthodox church service in the Albanian language. For a time in August 1914 he was in Vienna, but as World War I opened and intensified he returned to the United States in May 1915. He again assumed the editorship of the Boston ''Dielli'', now a daily paper. Then, as the war generated conditions in Albania became more chaotic with an attendant political vacuum, the Vatra Federation in the United States began considering itself as a quasi-Albanian government in exile. Fr. Noli upon his return became its president.
During the war Fr. Noli continued organizing the Albanian Orthodox community. On [[March 24]], 1918, he was appointed administrator of the Albanian Orthodox community in the United States by Bp. [[Alexander (Nemolovsky) of Brussels |Alexander (Nemolovsky)]]. On [[November 17]], 1918, he took [[monastic]] vows and was raised to the rank of [[archimandrite]]. During the year 1919, he was elected [[bishop]] of the Albanian Orthodox Church in America by the General Council of the Albanian Church. But due to the unsettled conditions in the Orthodox church at the time, he was not consecrated before he returned to Europe as the head of the Albanian delegation to the League of Nations in Geneva, seeking admission for Albania.
With the end of World War I, Fr. Noli continued deep involvement in fund-raising and campaigning for recognition of an independent Albania during the post-war conferences. On [[December 17]], 1920, the League admitted Albania to membership, thus establishing worldwide recognition of Albania's independence. This admission to League membership, Archimandrite Noli considered his greatest accomplishment. Returning to Albania from Geneva in 1921, he represented the Vatra Federation in the Albanian parliament, and in 1922 he was appointed foreign minister in Xhafer bey Ypi's government, but resigned several months later.
Now, the events of 1924 would bring Metr. Noli to his political summit. While the leader of the Orthodox Church in Albania, Metr. Noli was also the leader of a liberal political party opposing the conservative party of Ahmet Zogu who was supported by the feudal landlords and middle class. After an attempted assassination on Ahmet Zogu, the nationalist deputy Avni Rustemi was assassinated on [[April 22]], 1924, allegedly by a group of Zogists. Metr. Noli gave a fiery oration at Rustemi's funeral that provoked such a reaction by the liberal opposition that Zugo was forced to flee to Yugoslavia.
Then, on [[July 17]], 1924, Metr. Noli was proclaimed prime minister, followed shortly by being designated Regent of Albania. He presented a twenty-point program for modernization and democratization of Albania, but the country was unready for such brash and idealistic ideas. On [[December 24]], 1924, Zogist forces overthrew Noli's government, and he left Albania for the last time. After drifting through Europe for the rest of the decade, Metr. Noli returned to the United States in 1930 on a six-month visa. With the expiration of his visa he was forced to return to Europe, but in 1932 he was granted permanent resident status and returned to the United States permanently. Upon arriving in the United States he withdrew from political life and returned to his duties as head of the Albanian [[AutocephalicAutocephaly|Autocephalous]] Orthodox Church.
Ironically, in late 1933, his archenemy Ahmet Zogu gave Metr. Noli 3,000 3000 gold francs to pay for treatment of a serious illness that Metr. Noli couldn't afford. Through this gift much of the animosity between Noli and Zogu was reconciled, as well as with his old compatriot, Faik bey Konitza.
Metr. Noli's dream of an Albanian national church was fulfilled on [[April 12]], 1937, when the [[Patriarch]] of Constantinople recognized the autocephaly of the [[Church of Albania]]. In the early years after World War II Metr. Noli maintained reasonable relations with the new communist regime in Albania and tried to persuade the United States to recognize the new state. Unfortunately, his attempts only generated enmity and polarized relations among the émigré circles in America, as the communist government began destroying religions in the country. In 1953, he moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he bought a house using part of a $20,000 grant from the Vatra Federation. Here, he died at the age of 83 on [[March 13]], 1965.
==Sources==
Constance J. Tarasar, ‘‘Orthodox ''Orthodox America 1794-1976 Development of the Orthodox Church in America’’SyosettAmerica'' Syosett, New York, The Orthodox Church in America, 1975
==External Linkslinks==
*[http://www.geocities.com/spiritofalbania/noli.htm F. Noli - Spirit of Albania]
*[http://www.albanianliterature.com/html/authors/bio/noli.html Metr. Fan Noli - Biography]
*[http://www.albanianorthodox.com Noli's Liturgical Translations in Albanian and English]
[[Category: Bishops]][[Category:Bishops of Korca]][[Category:Archbishops of Albania]][[Category:20th-century bishops]]
