Archbishop Christopher of Albania ( sq, Kryepeshkopi Kristofori i Shqipërisë, el, Αρχιεπίσκοπος Αλβανίας Χριστοφόρος,

secular name A legal name is the name that identifies a person for legal, administrative and other official purposes. A person's legal birth name generally is the name of the person that was given for the purpose of Civil registry, registration of the birth an ...

Sotir Kisi, el, Σωτήριος Κίσσης; 1881,

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier. Berat is located in th ...

- 17 June 1958) was the primate of the

Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

from 1937 to 1949. In 1959 he was found dead by poison.

Biography

Kisi was born in

in 1881. In 1937 he became the primate of the

as successor of

Visarion Xhuvani Metropolitan Visarion Xhuvani (14 December 1890 – 15 December 1965) was the primate of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania from 1929 to 1936. He was a main contributor to the autocephaly, and a close collaborator of Fan Noli. Life Vis ...

, as authorized by the

Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...

, which recognized the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox C ...

of the Church of Albania in April 1937. During World War II Kisi backed up the initiative of Italy and the Vatican (subsequently aborted) to unite the Orthodox Church with the

Uniate Church The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous ('' sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...

. Kisi and the OACA high hierarchy, in contrast to the stand of many Orthodox clergy and laity, were supportive to the anti-Communist resistance movement after World War II and had previously welcomed the decision from German authorities of extending the jurisdiction of Albanian church to the Diocese of Prizren and newly created bishoprics of

Peshkopi Peshkopi ( sq-definite, Peshkopia, Latin: ''Penestae'') is a town in Dibër County, northeastern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Dibër. The population at the 2011 census was 13,251.

a and

Struga Struga ( mk, Струга , sq, Strugë) is a town and popular tourist destination situated in the south-western region of North Macedonia, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. The town of Struga is the seat of Struga Municipality. Name The nam ...

. Kisi was found dead, as a result of poisoning, in 1958. His place as a primate was taken by Communist regime faithful,

Pais Vodica Archbishop Paisi ( sq, Kryepeshkop Paisi, secular name Pashko Vodica; 1881 – 4 March 1966) was the Primate of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania from 1949 to 1966. He succeeded Archbishop Kristofor and was succeeded by Archbishop Dam ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kristofor of Albania 20th-century Albanian clergy 20th-century Eastern Orthodox bishops Albanian religious leaders Eastern Orthodox Christians from Albania Primates of the Albanian Orthodox Church People from Berat 1881 births 1958 deaths Deaths by poisoning