Orthodox Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ

The Resurrection of Christ Cathedral is the seat of the Albanian Orthodox Church and one of the largest Orthodox places of worship in the Balkans. It sits southwest of Skanderbeg Square, wedged between the Socialist Party headquarters and the Ministry of Defence. Consecrated in 2012, it replaced a predecessor cathedral destroyed in 1967 under Enver Hoxha's religion ban - Albania was then the world's only officially atheist state. Archbishop Anastasios drove the rebuilding of Orthodox structures after 1991. A central dome rises above a pale marble and glass complex, with a free-standing bell tower alongside. Inside, the space feels cool and luminous beneath the dome, lined with contemporary icons and mosaics. Sunday liturgies are open to the public; outside service hours the cathedral is quiet - a place where Albania's religious comeback is legible in marble and concrete.