In an interview with Monika Stafa on "Exclusive" on Top Channel, Edi Rama says he was baptized Catholic by his grandmother, yet he is not among those Christians who line up to enter the church door.
When asked if he believes in the final judgment, he replies, "I believe in the final judgment, but it depends on by whom."
Monika Stafa: You are a Christian and live every day with the thought that beliefs are reflected in one another. How did you reach this conclusion?
Edi Rama: Look, I was baptized Catholic by my Catholic grandmother, and that is a fact. I am a Christian by family, and that is a fact. But I am not in the line of Christians who queue to enter the church door and submit to their rituals, because I do not conceive my relationship with religion that way. This helps me to view the religions of others without any reservation and to understand that in the religions of others, the same God is actually reflected. And at the end of the day, the holy books seem to be written by the same author, who is one and only. In this regard, I have also created the idea to build the Park of Faith and to create that space where there is no Church, no Mosque, no Synagogue, and no other temples, but where through flowers, through trees, through fruits, through the stories of various holy books, you become acquainted with different religions in another way, while having the sky as a ceiling that unites everyone, not the ceiling of the Church or Mosque.
Stafa: In your speeches, you often preach following goodness and justice. In the role of Prime Minister, how achievable is this goal always?
Edi Rama: In the role of Prime Minister, it is always achievable not to choose evil or injustice intentionally. It is always achievable. But it does not force you to be intentionally evil or intentionally unjust, while it can happen and does happen to everyone that in good faith you make a decision that may not be appropriate and may not bring good and may cause harm. But in good faith.
Stafa: Elsewhere in a passage you write: "There are no wars between religions, but there are wars between the ignorant." We live in a world filled with conflicts, each of these wars has a religious basis. Yet you say, taken from Dostoevsky, that "This world will be saved by beauty." What is this beauty, Mr. Prime Minister?
Edi Rama: This is a belief, but it is not a salvation formula. But it is a belief because poetry, paintings, books, the advice of science, have not prevented man from killing man and have not stopped any war. But meanwhile, the path of man is the path of striving for perfection and the path to leave a mark, and here in perfection and leaving a mark, sometimes unfortunately, the goals and values of the marks left get mixed up. Because even one who decides to become a kamikaze sees it as a path of perfection and a way to leave a deep mark in the history of their people. So in the very end, life is a matter of choice, because if God exists and has made us all human, He has also left us the freedom to choose. And He has not resolved any dilemma for us by magic, by decree from above. The dilemmas are ours, and we must make our choices, then in the end comes the judgment that each...
Stafa: Do you believe in the final judgment?
Edi Rama: I believe in the final judgment, but it depends on by whom. I do not enter to explain or explain to myself what the highest level of judgment is, but I believe that the judgment of those who have known you, the judgment of those who have believed in you, the judgment of those who did not know you but have the opportunity to see the marks you have left, are all important. My father, may he rest in peace, used to say: "At the end of the day, nothing has value, except for good memory." And that makes a lot of sense.
Stafa: And in the end, when will we stroll in the Park of Faith?
Edi Rama: It is a construction complex of the Park of Faith, and the Park of Faith will require years to become what it should be, because the creatures will need to grow... but I very much hope we do not lose much time to start it, then we will need a few years to see it... But you are young, so you will have the opportunity to stroll in the Park of Faith.
Edi Rama: I do not have a plan, but it will come on its own.