Mar 2, 2007 / 10:46 am

The newly appointed Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Prizren, Bishop Dodё Gjergji, told the Catholic charity, Aid to the Church in Need, that one of his chief goals is to fulfil the dream of his predecessor to build a Catholic Cathedral under the patronage of Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

“The dream of my predecessor shall come true, a Catholic Cathedral devoted to Mother Teresa.”

“For us,” the bishop said, “she is a sister, a member of the family.”  

Mother Teresa, who founded the Missionaries of Charity to care for the world’s poorest, was born in nearby Macedonia.  But, as Bishop Gjergji pointed out, her “father and mother were from Kosovo,” the Serbian province in which the Diocese of Prizen rests.

“The government has already signed a permit to construct the Cathedral,” the bishop said adding that they hope to begin work after Easter.  “It is the wish of all the people,” he said, “of the government and of the Muslims too.”

“There are Christians since the first century here. And our Muslims have a special history, some of them go back to their Catholic roots now. Each day, delegations come from the villages to us to ask for baptism. We need your prayers to sustain their conversion.”

Asked about the situation of the Catholic Church in Kosovo, Bishop Gjergji said, “Even though we are a minority of 60,000 Catholics, and many young people have left the country to look for work, which is our heart beat, we have a good communication and a normal life with all people in Kosovo.”

The Bishop said the majority of his flock remains very poor.  “Since we are a bridge for peace here, after the ruin of war, our Church in Kosovo deserves it not only to survive but to contribute to the life of people and to the society in Kosovo.”

To learn more about helping the Church in Kosovo, visit the Aid to the Church in Need website at www.kirche-in-not.org  or, in the U.S. www.aidtothechurchinneed.com.