![]() | 1. History of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is one of the five so-called monophysite churches, characterised by their rejection of the Council of Chalcedon (451). In contrast to Chalcedon's doctrine that Christ is one person existing in two natures the Ethiopian Orthodox Church affirms that Christ's humanity cannot be separated from his divinity. After the incarnation the thoughts and actions of Jesus were those of a single unitary being. Ethiopia, the land of Judeo-Christianity, is one of the most ancient predominantly Christian countries of the world. It is marked with a fascinating history, unique civilization, culture and religious life. The Book of Genesis recounts: “And the name of the second river is Ghion: the same is it that compasses the whole land of Ethiopia” (Geneses 2:13). The Psalmist David also says: “Let Ethiopia hasten to stretch out her hands to God” (Psalms 68:31). Furthermore, historical and archaeological evidences reveal another interesting fact that Ethiopia is the only African country, which has developed its own alphabets and written language. This great land and its people were known by the ancient Greek poets and historians such as Homer, who referred to them as, “Blameless Race.” Herodotus also indicated the country’s landscape as the area south of Egypt and around the Red Sea extending as far as the Indian Ocean. He said that the Ethiopians “lived a long life” and characterized them as “the most just men.” Christianity in Ethiopia dates back to the 4th century. It was brought to the region by a Christian captive, Frumentius, who later became Ethiopia's first bishop. Frumentius was consecrated by Athanasius the Great in Alexandria, an act which placed the Ethiopian church under the jurisdiction of the Coptic Church of Egypt. Monasticism was introduced towards the end of the 5th century by nine monks from Syria who are believed to have translated the Bible into the local language, Ge'ez. From the 7th century Ethiopia was cut off from the rest of the Christian world by the Islamic conquest of North Africa. Chronic skirmishes between Christians and Muslims led to the outbreak of civil war in the 16th century and the sacking of monasteries and the burning of churches. In the 17th century the conversion of the emperor to Roman Catholicism and the attempt to impose his faith on his subjects produced fierce resistance and the martyrdom of many thousands of Christians. In 1959 the Ethiopian church became independent from Egypt when an Ethiopian patriarch was elected. The Old Testament tells the pilgrimage of the Queen of Sheba to Jerusalem to visit King Solomon (1Kgs. 10:1-13). Ethiopic tradition maintains that the relationship that followed paved the way for the introduction of Old Testament to the country. Menilik I, Queen of Sheba’s son from King Solomon, made possible the coming of the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia. Since then, Judaic belief and practice became the norm for the daily life of its people. Ethiopia is well known as the Kingdom of Aksum, established by Emperor Menilik I. Historical documents trace the beginning of an independent Ethiopian monarchy as far back as 4522 B.C. At present, in Aksum, the ancient capital and birthplace of Ethiopian civilization and Christianity, antiquity is still present along with its standing obelisk and other artistic features. Aksum has thus remained a religious center to this day. 2. The Introduction of Christianity The beginning of Ethiopian Christianity
could possibly be traced to the apostolic era. The Book of Acts gives
the account of the Ethiopian Eunuch of the Queen Candace, who was
first evangelized and then baptized by the apostle Philip (Acts
8:286-36). Eusebius, the great Church historian, refers to the
Ethiopian Eunuch as “the first fruit of Christianity in the whole
world.” In addition, Rufinus followed by Theodret, Socrates and
Sozomen also recorded this remarkable event. Nevertheless, it was not
until the 4th century that Christianity became the official religion
of the Aksumite Empire. This period also saw the inauguration of the
Bishopric see and administration of the sacraments.
The life of the Ethiopian Church was further
strengthened by the coming of the Nine Saints who came from the
Byzantine Empire (479 A.D.). They translated various sacred texts
from Greek and Syriac into G’eez, spread the Gospel and introduced
monastic life. The Ethiopian Church entered a new era during the 6th
century, which is marked with the rise of St. Yared, the founder of
the Ethiopic Hymnody. The time between the 4th and the 7th century
A.D. was a time when remarkable religious activities were undertaken.
Ethiopia is considered as the center of Christianity in the Horn of
Africa, which preserved its own Christian heritage and history, and
became the symbol of independence throughout centuries. 3. Monasticism in
Ethiopia 4. Holy Scripture The Ethiopian Orthodox Church understands
Holy Scripture as “the fruit of the Holy Spirit grown on the tree
of tradition.” The Church’s canon of Scripture comprises the all
the Septuagint Old Testament including the Books of Enoch, Jubilee,
the fourth book of Ezra, three books of Maccabees. Besides, the canon
also consists of twenty-seven books of the New Testament. 5. Doctrinal Teaching 5.2 The Mystery of the Incarnation: - is the saving entrance of God into human history. The main reason for the incarnation is because our disease needed a physician (Lk. 19:10), our darkness needed illumination (Matt 4:12-17; Jn 8:12), and our captivity needed a redeemer (Gal. 5:1). Thus, the Creedal confession reads, “For us men and for our salvation the Word of God came down from heaven, and by the power of the Holy Spirit became incarnate of the Virgin Mary and was made men.” The Ethiopian Orthodox Church upholds the “miaphysite” Christology of St. Cyril of Alexandria: “One United Incarnate Nature of God the Son.” In other words, when the two natures – humanity and divinity –united, Christ thus became one person and one nature from two natures. The union of the Word of God and humanity took place in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Therefore because of the incarnation, all the attributes of the flesh can be given to the Word of God and vice versa. Due to this perfect union, which took place without division, separation, confusion and mixture, we can no longer speak of two natures. The Johannine prologue says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” (Jn 1:14) Thus, Christ is truly human and truly divine. Theologically, this happened through communicatio idiomatum – the exchange of properties. As St. Athanasius of Alexandria notes, “The Word was made man in order that we might be made divine.” This in turn makes possible the divinization of humanity, which enables us to become partakers of the divine nature of God (2 Pet. 1:4).
5.5 The Mystery of the Resurrection: - is the mystery of the eternal life in the world to come after our bodily resurrection from dead, which happens at the glorious Second Coming of Christ. Just as every seed must decay first, and then germinate (Jn. 12:24; 1 Cor. 15:26), so also we all will die and then rise up again to enjoy the eschatological hope of the Kingdom. The Church’s belief in our resurrection is based on the triumphal resurrection of Christ, the first fruit of our resurrection (1 Cor 15:20-22). The consluding phrase of the Creed affirms, “And we believe in the resurrection of the dead.”
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