DERVEN, Albania — The one-room, stone church of St. Nicholas has sat on the top of a hill here since the 16th century, destroyed three times and rebuilt in a testament to the Catholic presence in this region that dates to St. Paul. Its latest incarnation, however, is particularly poignant: 15 Muslim families chipped in to help rebuild it in a sign of the remarkable coexistence that exists in Albania between Christians and Muslims. Pope Francis will highlight this interfaith harmony when he makes a one-day trip to the Balkan nation on Sunday, holding it up as a model for the Middle East and other parts of the world where Christians are being targeted by Islamic militants. Albania's experience is particularly remarkable given the brutal persecution people of all faiths endured under communism, when all religious practice was banned. The cottage-like church in Derven, known as Shen Koll in Albanian, sits next to the hilltop cemetery of the Cypi family, a large Catholic one that has lived in the region for generations. ...      Read more