Cardinal Ernest Simoni of Albania, 97, has sent a message of strength to persecuted Christians and has urged young people to remain faithful to Christ, the sacraments, chastity and the commandments in a society that, he warned, is drifting ever further from God.
In an interview granted to Edward Pentin for the National Catholic Register after the second consistory of Leo XIV, the cardinal stated that prayer, penance, forgiveness and hope in the Resurrection are the weapons with which the Christian can resist ideologies and regimes opposed to the Gospel.
Simoni speaks from the experience of one who was sentenced to death by the Albanian communist regime, spent 18 years in prison, endured torture and continued to celebrate Mass and administer the sacraments in secret. After his release he was forced to work in mines and sewers, while still exercising his ministry clandestinely until the regime fell. Francis described him as a “living martyr” and created him a cardinal in 2016.
“Stand firm”
Asked about Christians currently persecuted in the Middle East and other parts of the world, Simoni exhorted them to stand firm and not to separate adherence to Christ from the concrete observance of His commandments.
“Stand firm. Keeping the Ten Commandments means attending Holy Mass, sanctifying marriage and rejecting every form of immoral conduct,” he said.
The cardinal recalled St. Paul’s words about those who belong to Christ and have crucified the flesh with its passions. In his view, only union with Jesus and divine grace make it possible to overcome “all the temptations and seductions that Satan uses to ruin society and the Catholic Church.”
“Resist through prayer, penance and fasting,” he added.
Simoni insisted that the Christian response to persecution cannot be hatred, but forgiveness and prayer for one’s enemies.
“Love your enemies and pray for your enemies,” he summarized.
The cardinal explained that he never hated those who tortured him and that he even celebrated Mass for their salvation while they were still alive.
“I did not hate them; I celebrated Mass for their salvation,” he recalled.
The Resurrection and the meaning of suffering
For Simoni, the Christian’s strength springs from the certainty of the Resurrection.
“If it were not for the Resurrection, the faith would be beautiful, but it would be of no use. Jesus has destroyed death; Jesus has granted us the Resurrection,” he explained.
The cardinal noted that the body dies and decays, but the soul is immortal and appears before God according to the works done during life. Therefore, he called for perseverance, hope, prayer, personal renunciation and the recitation of the Holy Rosary.
“We are travelers, and with Jesus everything is beautiful. As He said: ‘Without Me you can do nothing,’” he stated.
He also addressed those who suffer poverty, homelessness or serious material difficulties. He recalled Christ’s invitation to come to Him and urged them to seek first justice and the glory of God.
He further stressed that prayer should not be limited to specific moments of the day.
“Sacred Scripture says: ‘Pray without ceasing.’ It does not say: ‘Pray one or two hours,’” he explained.
For Simoni, the Christian must maintain prayer while working, fulfilling obligations and carrying out daily tasks. “Prayer is the star that shines and leads us to Jesus, together with the Blessed Virgin Mary,” he noted.
The cardinal urged those who suffer persecution, imprisonment or violence not to lose hope.
“When you are persecuted, when you are made to suffer, when you are thrown into prison, rejoice,” he said. “There is hope for all who today suffer for Jesus. Suffering for Jesus is an infinite joy that awaits us all.”
When asked about the strength that enabled him to persevere during his years of imprisonment, he answered without hesitation: “Divine grace, divine help.”
Simoni then recalled the martyrdom of St. Stephen, who, while being stoned, beheld the heavens opened and Christ at the right hand of the Father.
“This is the destiny of all who are faithful to Jesus and face a true trial,” he maintained.
A message to young people
Simoni warned of the despair affecting many young people and encouraged them to represent the “living Jesus,” not a figure reduced to the past or to a myth.
“They must ask themselves, like the young man in the Gospel: ‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’” he said.
The cardinal recalled that remaining in Christ’s love requires keeping His commandments. He applied this teaching directly to marriage and sexual morality.
“Keeping the commandments means sanctifying marriage and rejecting cohabitation and all conduct contrary to morality,” he declared.
Simoni asked that Jesus occupy the first place in the lives of young people, “like the sun on the horizon, which shines and illuminates the whole world.” He also warned that nations can perish for lack of love and that, without Christ, the world remains “in the clutches of Satan.”
Young people, he added, must be “the first standard-bearers” of Christ in their homes, through prayer, self-denial, participation in Mass, love for their parents and public witness to the faith.
He also exhorted them to love and accompany everyone, including Muslims and atheists, without ceasing to proclaim the truth of Christ.
“Without chastity there is hell”
Asked about his concerns regarding the contemporary situation of the Church, Simoni recalled Christ’s words: “You are the light of the world.”
The cardinal asked how many priests and faithful are truly willing to suffer in order to proclaim the Gospel and to commit themselves to the salvation of souls.
“We priests live only to proclaim Jesus, to save souls by the grace of Jesus, to be close to all the poor and to help young people turn away from promiscuity and immorality,” he said.
Simoni expressly defended chastity as a path of Christian fidelity.
“Chastity is the mountain of victory that leads to paradise; without chastity there is hell,” he declared.
He also called for the rejection of sexual immorality, drugs and everything that separates man from God. He encouraged young people to love their parents, seek counsel and fulfill the will of the Lord.
Unity with the Pope
The cardinal also praised the recent consistory and stressed that members of the College of Cardinals must remain united with the Pope and support him in his mission.
“All cardinals must be united with Jesus through the Holy Father, helping him with their words, their works, their prayer and their justice, because he is the representative of the living Jesus in the world,” he said.
Simoni asked the cardinals to strengthen the Pontiff when he speaks in defense of the faith.
“Let us all be united through prayer, mortification, the Holy Mass, charity and chastity; then the angels will accompany us in our daily works,” he concluded.