The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in the Diaspora: Expansion in the Midst of Politics, Religion, and Schism

Associate Professor and Head Division of Social Work, Behavioral and Political Sciences Prairie View A&M University

Introduction

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) has gone through a turbulent period of existence during the last threedecades and a half, especially since 1991, when the current regime took over the reins of power from a Marxist military junta that had toppled the government of the late Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974[i]. The most dramatic outcome of this tumultuous period has been the official split of the Patriarchate of the EOTC into two Holy Synods— one exiled in North America, and the other in Ethiopia. The Church encountered this unheralded turn of event immediately following the 1991 seizure of government by a coalition of rebel movements, known as the Ethiopian People Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF)[ii]. Immediately after seizing power, the Tigrean People Liberation Front (TPLF), the dominant faction in the EPRDF coalition, removed the then-incumbent Patriarch of the Church, unceremoniously, and replaced him with an Archbishop originally from Tigre and who at the time was residing in the United States[iii]. However, critics assailed the government’s action as a politically- and ethnically- inspired action intended to politicize the Church, while contending that it egregiously violated one of the cardinal tenets of the Ethiopian Orthodox faith. In their view, installment of a new Patriarch while the incumbent is still alive contravenes the dogma and practices of Orthodox Christianity. Needless to say, the action of the regime led to the unsavory split of the Patriarchate between two Holy Synods—The Holy Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in Ethiopia, and the Holy Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church-in-Exile (HSEOTCE).

This paper provides insight into how political, social and economic issues have affected the EOTC since the change of regime in 1991. Relying on the historical method of analysis, the study traces the earlier period of development of the EOTC and looks into the current crisis of legitimacy within the Church, taking the split in the Patriarchate as a point of departure. It also examines the functions of both politics and religion in church administration and services while gauging their effects on unification and expansion. The overriding goal is to critically analyze the plethora of issues affecting unity among the Diaspora EOTCs.

The paper is significant for three reasons. First and foremost, there is no known systematic analysis done on the Diaspora EOTCs, and even more so on the Holy Synod-in-Exile. This has created some confusion and lack of understanding among the faithful about the Church’s expansion beyond Ethiopia and the valuable services that it provides for the Ethiopian Diaspora Orthodox community. Secondly, a thorough investigation of the issues leading to the schism in the EOTC Holy Synod has not been made to date, and this is an effort to do just that. Most of all, the fact that this subject has been utterly neglected by Ethiopianist experts in their scholarly works makes it even more significant and timely.

The premise undergirding the study is that politics and religion can never be separated in an organized institution, such as a church, where group interests are aggregated, and values are shared by members of the group. Given that a church is an organized entity where group interests must be articulated and defended, the notion that politics and religion cannot mix in church business or activities is rather a myth than a reality.

The scope of the study is limited to those EOTCs outside Ethiopia, with a special focus on both the churches affiliated with the HSEOTCE and the non-affiliated EOTCs, both of which are mostly located in Canada and the United States. While the gist of this exploratory study is aimed mainly at the North American EOTCs, it also attempts to include all others established outside Ethiopia over the years.

A Brief Historical Overview of the EOTC

As one of the world’s ancient civilizations, Ethiopia’s historical development has been conspicuously intertwined with Christianity. In fact, “…the earliest reference to the introduction of Christianity to Ethiopia is in the New Testament (Acts 8:26:38) when Philip the Evangelist converted an Ethiopian court official in the First Century A.D. Ever since then Christianity has played a major role in shaping the culture, tradition and history of Ethiopia.”[iv]  As such, the Christian faith has been deeply rooted in Ethiopia since Biblical times. Yet the legal foundation of Ethiopia, as recorded in the Kebre Negest (The Glory of Kings), is also linked with the introduction of Judaism to this ancient land by means of two historical occurrences: “The birth of Menilek, Son of Solomon, King of Israel and the Queen of Sheba of Ethiopia (970-33 B.C.) and the Ark of the Covenant which was brought to Axum from Jerusalem by the Levites (946B.C.).”[v]