Monument

These are pictures of when we first arrived in Albania. The pictures, except for the one that will be in the mission home, were taken at the spot where Elder Oaks dedicated the country of Albania for preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

On April 23, 1993, Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited Tirana, and on a hillside overlooking the city (near the national memorial, “The Monument of the Heroes”) dedicated the country for the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Elder Dennis Neuenschwander of the Seventy and a counselor in the Europe Area presidency and Austria Vienna Mission President Kenneth D. Reber accompanied Elder Oaks. Seventy eight people were in attendance, including 55 Albanian members and 18 missionaries. Carefully read the dedicatory prayer. It will be your privilege to help bring to pass the promised blessings!

“Oh God, our Eternal Father, as the sun steams over the mountains from the east and warms the land, we thank thee for this beautiful day. We thank thee for the light of the gospel. The light of the gospel warms the land and gives light to our hearts and minds, just as the sun lights us this morning. We thank thee for the restoration of the gospel in these latter days. We thank thee for the Prophet Joseph Smith and for the other prophets of this dispensation, including our present prophet, President Benson. We thank thee for all of the leaders of thy Church. We pray for them. We pray for the members of the Church in every land. We thank thee that thou hast seen fit to send the gospel to the nation of Albania. We thank thee that the leaders of this land have consented for the missionaries to be here. We thank thee for the missionaries who have come to proclaim the gospel. We thank thee for thy worthy sons and daughters who have accepted this message and who have gone into the water of baptism to make covenants with thee. We are reminded of the words of a modern apostle, Parley P. Pratt, who declared,

“The morning breaks, the shadows flee, lo Zion’s banner is unfurled; the dawning of a brighter day, majestic rises on the world.”

"We thank thee for this brighter day and we pray they blessings upon all who hear the message of the gospel. We pray for this land, for it's leaders, and for the citizens of this land. Wilt thou bless them with wisdom and strength, that the light of freedom be preserved in this land, that those who are hungry may be fed, that those who are suffering may be comforted. We pray that this land may produce an abundance for this people. We pray that it's industries may flourish. We pray that peace may be preserved in this land for the blessing of it's people. We pray that thou wilt forestall the forces of evil and frustrate every effort that would interrupt the peace and freedom and prosperity of this land. And now, in the authority of the holy priesthood, and in the office of an apostle which I hold, I turn the key for the preaching of the gospel in this land of Albania. I open the door for thy work in the land that the gospel may be proclaimed here, that this message in its fullness may lighten this land and bless the lives of its people. I bless the people of the scattered tribes of Albania wherever they may be in this world, in Italy, in Kosovo, in the United States of America, and in other lands that their hearts may be inclined to their native land, that the missionaries may be led to their doorsteps, that they may hear and understand the message of the gospel, that they may send aid and support to their native land."

“We bless the people of this land that they may hear and understand the message of the gospel, that they may make covenants with thee, and keep those covenants, that they may be blessed. We bless this land that the spiritual gifts may be rich here, that the gifts of communication and understanding may be felt in abundance, that the gifts of blessing and healing and translating may be here. We pray that those who translate the scriptures may be guided of thy Holy Spirit, that the message of the gospel may be given in its fullness and clarity through thy holy scriptures, and by those who preach and teach in this land. And now, Holy Father, we pray that all of these blessings may be granted to thy children, and in the office of the holy apostleship that I hold, I bless this land and its people, and open the door for the preaching of the gospel here, and all of this according to thy holy will. We testify of Jesus Christ, our Savior, and thank thee for his atonement and redemption. As we have sung, we believe in Christ, and all that we do in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, Amen.”