View source for Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church

{{short description|Oriental Orthodox Church branch of Ethiopia}}
{{Infobox Christian denomination
| icon               = Krest Lalibeli.png
| icon_width         = 25px
| icon_alt           =
| name               = Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
| native_name        = {{lang|am|የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን|italic=no}}<ref name="eotc"/><br/>{{lang|am|Yä-ityopp'ya ortodoks täwahədo betäkrəstyan|italic=no}}
| native_name_lang   = am
| image              = Addis abeba, chiesa della trinità, esterno 01.jpg
| image width        = 250px
| alt                = [[Holy Trinity Cathedral (Addis Ababa)|Holy Trinity Cathedral]] in [[Addis Ababa]], the seat of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
| caption            = [[Holy Trinity Cathedral (Addis Ababa)|Holy Trinity Cathedral]] in [[Addis Ababa]], the seat of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
| abbreviation       = EOTC
| type               =
| main_classification = [[Eastern Christianity]]
| orientation        = [[Oriental Orthodoxy]]
| scripture          = [[Orthodox Tewahedo biblical canon|Orthodox Tewahedo Bible]]
| theology           = [[Miaphysitism]]
| polity             = [[Episcopal polity|Episcopal]]
| governance         =
| structure          =
| leader_title       = Patriarch
| leader_name        = [[Abune Mathias|Mathias]]
| leader_title1      =
| leader_name1       =
| leader_title2      =
| leader_name2       =
| leader_title3      =
| leader_name3       =
| fellowships_type   =
| fellowships        =
| fellowships_type1  =
| fellowships1       =
| division_type      =
| division           =
| division_type1     =
| division1          =
| division_type2     =
| division2          =
| division_type3     =
| division3          =
| associations       =
| area               = [[Ethiopia]] and [[Ethiopian diaspora]]
| liturgy            = [[Alexandrian Rite|Alexandrian]]
| language           = [[Geʽez]], [[Amharic]], [[Oromo language|Oromo]], [[Tigrinya language|Tigrinya]], [[Sebat Bet Gurage language|Gurage]]
| headquarters       = [[Holy Trinity Cathedral (Addis Ababa)|Holy Trinity Cathedral]], [[Addis Ababa]], [[Ethiopia]]
| origin_link        =
| founder            = [[Frumentius]] according to Ethiopian Orthodox tradition
| founded_date       = [[Christianity in the 4th century|4th century]]
| founded_place      = [[Kingdom of Aksum]]
| separated_from     =
| parent             =
| branched_from      = [[Orthodox Tewahedo]]
| merger             =
| absorbed           =
| separations        = [[Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Exile|American synod-in-exile (1991–2018)]]<br>[[Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church]] (1991)<br>[[Tigrayan Orthodox Tewahedo Church]] (2021)
| merged_into        =
| defunct            =
| congregations_type =
| congregations      =
| members            = 36 million<ref name="Pew Polling & Analysis" /><ref name="Pew Ethiopia" />–51 million<ref name="cia2023" /> in Ethiopia
| ministers_type     =
| ministers          =
| missionaries       =
| churches           =
| hospitals          =
| nursing_homes      =
| aid                =
| primary_schools    =
| secondary_schools  =
| tax_status         =
| tertiary           =
| other_names        = ''Ethiopian Orthodox Church''
| publications       =
| website            =
| slogan             =
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| footnotes          =
}}
{{Contains special characters|Ethiopic}}
{{Oriental Orthodox sidebar}}
The '''Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church''' ({{langx|am|የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን|Yä-ityopp'ya ortodoks täwahədo betä krəstiyan}})<ref name="eotc">{{cite web|url=https://www.zeorthodox.org/|title=የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን|author=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Addis Ababa|website=ZEOrthodox.org|publisher=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|access-date=2021-06-20}}</ref> is the largest of the [[Oriental Orthodox Churches]]. One of the few Christian churches in [[sub-Saharan Africa]] originating before European colonization of the continent,<ref name=":0" /> the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church dates back to the [[Christianity|Christianization]] of the [[Kingdom of Aksum]] in [[330]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Moore |first=Dale H. |date=1936 |title=Christianity in Ethiopia |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3160789 |journal=Church History |volume=5 |issue=3 |pages=271–284 |doi=10.2307/3160789 |jstor=3160789 |s2cid=162029676 |issn=0009-6407}}</ref> and has between 36 million and 51 million adherents in [[Ethiopia]].<ref name="Pew Polling & Analysis">{{cite journal |title=Orthodox Christianity in the 21st Century |journal=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project |date=8 November 2017 |url=https://www.pewforum.org/2017/11/08/orthodox-christianity-in-the-21st-century/ |quote=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church has an estimated 36 million adherents, nearly 14% of the world's total Orthodox population.}}</ref><ref name="Pew Ethiopia">{{cite journal |title=Ethiopia: An outlier in the Orthodox Christian world |journal=Pew Research Center |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/11/28/ethiopia-is-an-outlier-in-the-orthodox-christian-world/}}</ref><ref name="cia2023">{{cite web | url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/ethiopia/#people-and-society | title=Ethiopia | work=The World Factbook| date=6 November 2023 | quote=Population 116,462,712 (2023 est.)… Ethiopian Orthodox 43.8% | access-date=2022-09-16}}</ref> It is a founding member of the [[World Council of Churches]].<ref>[http://www.oikoumene.org/en/member-churches/ethiopian-orthodox-tewahedo-church "Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church"], World Council of Churches website (accessed 2 June 2009)</ref> The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is in [[Communion (Christian)|communion]] with the other Oriental Orthodox churches (the [[Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church]], the [[Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria]], the [[Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church]], the [[Armenian Apostolic Church]], and the [[Syriac Orthodox Church]]).
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church had been administratively part of the [[Coptic Orthodox Church|Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria]] from the first half of the 4th century until 1959, when it was granted [[autocephaly]] with its own [[patriarch]] by [[Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria]], [[Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ethiopian-Orthodox-Tewahedo-Church |title=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |access-date=2022-09-16 }}</ref>
''Tewahedo'' ({{langx|gez|ተዋሕዶ}} ''täwaḥədo'') is a [[Geʽez]] word meaning "united as one". This word refers to the Oriental Orthodox belief in the [[Miaphysitism|one perfectly unified nature of Christ]]; i.e., a complete union of the divine and human natures into one nature is self-evident to accomplish the divine salvation of mankind, as opposed to the "[[Dyophysitism|two natures of Christ]]" belief commonly held by the [[Catholic Church|Latin]] and [[Eastern Catholic]], [[Eastern Orthodox]], [[Anglicanism|Anglican]], [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]], and most other [[List of the largest Protestant denominations|Protestant churches]]. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to a miaphysite Christological view followed by [[Cyril of Alexandria]], the leading protagonist in the Christological debates of the 4th and 5th centuries, who advocated "mia physis tou Theo logou sesarkōmenē", or "one (mia) nature of the Word of God incarnate" (μία φύσις τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου σεσαρκωμένη) and a [[hypostatic union]] (ἕνωσις καθ' ὑπόστασιν, ''henōsis kath hypostasis'').<ref name="Shenouda1999">{{Cite web |url=http://www.copticchurch.net/topics/theology/nature_of_christ.pdf |title=NATURE OF CHRIST |last=Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria |author-link=Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria |year=1999 |website=copticchurch.net |publisher=St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church |access-date=30 November 2014}}</ref><ref name="CyrilTransPusey">{{Cite web |url=http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/cyril_against_theodore_01_text.htm |title=From His Second Book Against the Words of Theodore |last1=Cyril of Alexandria |last2=Pusey |first2=P. E. (Trans.) |publisher=The Tertullian Project |access-date=30 November 2014}}</ref> The distinction of this stance was that the incarnate Christ has one nature, but that one nature is of the two natures, divine and human, and retains all the characteristics of both after the union.
[[Miaphysitism]] holds that in the one person of [[Jesus Christ]], divinity and humanity are united in one (μία, ''mia'') nature (φύσις - "[[physis]]") without separation, without confusion, without alteration and without mixing where Christ is [[Consubstantiality|consubstantial]] with [[God the Father]].<ref>''The Blackwell Companion to Eastern Christianity'' by Ken Parry 2009 {{ISBN|1-4443-3361-5}} page 88 [https://books.google.com/books?id=fWp9JA3aBvcC&dq=Miaphysitism&pg=PA88]</ref> Around 500 bishops within the patriarchates of [[Alexandria]], [[Antioch]], and [[Jerusalem]] refused to accept the [[dyophysitism]] (two natures) doctrine decreed by the [[Council of Chalcedon]] in 451, an incident that resulted in the second major split in the main body of the [[Christianity as the Roman state religion|Catholic-Orthodox Church in the Roman Empire]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07218b.htm |title=Catholic Encyclopedia: Henoticon |publisher=Newadvent.org |date=1910-06-01 |access-date=2013-06-30}}</ref>
==Name==
{{More citations needed section|date=July 2021}}
''Tewahedo'' ({{langx|gez|ተዋሕዶ}} ''täwaḥədo'') is a Ge'ez word meaning "being made one" or "unified". This word refers to the [[Oriental Orthodoxy|Oriental Orthodox]] belief in the one composite unified [[Christology|nature of Christ]]; i.e., a belief that a complete, natural union of the divine and human natures into one is self-evident to accomplish the divine salvation of humankind. This is in contrast to the "two natures of Christ" belief (unmixed, but unseparated divine and human natures, called the [[hypostatic union]]) which is held by the [[Catholic Church]] and the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]].
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are known as "[[Non-Chalcedonianism|non-Chalcedonian]]", and, sometimes by outsiders as "[[monophysitism|monophysite]]" (meaning "One Single Nature", in allusion to Jesus Christ). However, these churches themselves describe their Christology as [[miaphysitism|miaphysite]],{{sfn|Winkler|1997|p=33-40}}{{sfn|Brock|2016|p=45–52}} meaning "one united nature" about Jesus (the Greek equivalent of "Tewahedo").
==History==
{{See also|Timeline of Orthodox Tewahedo Christianity}}
===Origins===
[[File:Icon - FrontLeft - Small.jpg|thumb|Ethiopian Orthodox icon depicting [[Saint George]], the [[Crucifixion of Jesus|Crucifixion]], and the [[Mary, the mother of Jesus|Virgin Mary]]]]
[[John Chrysostom]] speaks of the "Ethiopians present in Jerusalem" as being able to understand the preaching of [[Saint Peter|Peter]] in [[Acts of the Apostles|Acts]], 2:38.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Possible missions of some of the [[Apostles in the New Testament|Apostles]] in the lands now called [[Ethiopia]] is also reported as early as the 4th century. [[Socrates of Constantinople]] includes Ethiopia in his list as one of the regions preached by [[Matthew the Apostle]],<ref>Socrates and Sozomenus Ecclesiastical Histories, p. 57.</ref> where a specific mention of "Ethiopia south of the Caspian Sea" can be confirmed in some traditions such as the [[Roman Catholic Church]] among others.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title = St. Matthew | encyclopedia = Catholic Encyclopedia |url = http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10056b.htm|access-date = 2015-12-04}}</ref> Ethiopian Church tradition tells that [[Bartholomew the Apostle|Bartholomew]] accompanied [[Matthew the Apostle|Matthew]] in a mission which lasted for at least three months.<ref name="ReferenceA">Meskel and the Ethiopians. EOTC Publication Committee, September 2015</ref> Paintings depicting these missions can be seen in the Church of St. Matthew found in the [[Province of Pisa]], in northern [[Italy]] portrayed by Francesco Trevisan (1650–1740) and [[Marco Benefial]] (1688–1764).<ref>Meskel and the Ethiopians. EOTC Publication Committee September 2015</ref>
The earliest account of an Ethiopian converted to the faith in the [[New Testament]] books is [[Ethiopian eunuch|a royal official]] baptized by [[Philip the Evangelist]] (distinct from [[Philip the Apostle]]), one of the [[seven deacons]] (Acts, 8:26–27):
{{Blockquote|Then the angel of the Lord said to Philip, Start out and go south to the road that leads down from Jerusalem to Gaza. So he set out and was on his way when he caught sight of an [[Ethiopian eunuch|Ethiopian]]. This man was a eunuch, a high official of the [[Kandake]] (Candace) Queen of Ethiopia in charge of all her treasure. (Acts, 8:26–27)}}
The passage continues by describing how Philip helped the Ethiopian treasurer understand a passage from the [[Book of Isaiah]] that the Ethiopian was reading. After Philip interpreted the passage as prophecy referring to [[Jesus Christ]], the Ethiopian requested that Philip baptize him, and Philip did so. The [[Ge'ez|Ethiopic]] version of this verse reads "Hendeke" (ህንደኬ); Queen Gersamot Hendeke VII was the Queen of Ethiopia from c. 42 to 52. Where the possibility of gospel missions by the [[Ethiopian eunuch]] cannot be directly inferred from the Books of the New Testament, [[Irenaeus|Irenaeus of Lyons]] around 180&nbsp;AD writes that "Simon Backos" preached the good news in his homeland outlining also the theme of his preaching as being the coming in flesh of God that "was preached to you all before."<ref>Irenaeus of Lyons, "Adversus haereses" III. 12. 8</ref> The same kind of witness is shared by 3rd and 4th century writers such as [[Eusebius|Eusebius of Caesarea]]<ref>Eusebius Pamphilius, Church History</ref> and [[Origen|Origen of Alexandria]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
[[File:Ezana.jpg|thumb|Coin of King [[Ezana of Axum|Ezana]], under whom Early Christianity became the established church of the [[Kingdom of Aksum]]]]
Early Christianity became the [[established church]] of the Ethiopian [[Kingdom of Aksum|Axumite Kingdom]] under king [[Ezana of Axum|Ezana]] in the 4th century when priesthood and the sacraments were brought for the first time through a Syrian Greek named [[Frumentius]], known by the local population in Ethiopia as "Selama, Kesaté Birhan" ("Father of Peace, Revealer of Light"). As a youth, Frumentius had been shipwrecked with his brother Aedesius on the [[Eritrea]]n coast. The brothers managed to be brought to the royal court, where they rose to positions of influence and baptized [[Ezana of Axum|Emperor Ezana]]. Frumentius is also believed to have established the first monastery in Ethiopia, named [[Degol Woyane|Dabba Selama]] after him. In 2016, archaeologists excavated a 4th-century AD basilica (radio-carbon dated) in northeastern Ethiopia at a site called [[Beta Samati]]. This is the earliest known physical evidence of a church in sub-Saharan Africa.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Harrower|first= Michael J|date=Winter 2019|title=Beta Samati: discovery and excavation of an Aksumite town|url= https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/643FA872A5B2F9B5E0E765D850C4A526/S0003598X1900084Xa.pdf/beta_samati_discovery_and_excavation_of_an_aksumite_town.pdf|journal=Antiquity |volume=93| issue = 372|pages= 1534–52 |doi=10.15184/aqy.2019.84|via=Cambridge.org|doi-access=free}}</ref>
===Middle Ages===
[[File:Giyorgis MET DP367372.jpg|thumb|Late 17th century portrait of [[Abba Giyorgis|Giyorgis]] by Baselyos]]
Union with the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria continued after the Arab conquest of [[Egypt]]. Abu Saleh records in the 12th century that the patriarch always sent letters twice a year to the kings of Abyssinia (Ethiopia) and [[Nubia]], until Al Hakim stopped the practice. [[Pope Cyril II of Alexandria|Cyril]], 67th patriarch, sent [[Abuna Sawiros|Severus]] as bishop, with orders to put down [[polygamy]] and to enforce the observance of canonical consecration for all churches. These examples show the close relations of the two churches throughout the [[Middle Ages]].{{sfn|Butler|1911|p=95}} In 1439, in the reign of [[Zara Yaqob]], a religious discussion between [[Abba Giyorgis|Giyorgis]] and a French visitor led to the dispatch of an embassy from Ethiopia to the [[Holy See|Vatican]].{{sfn|Butler|1911|p=95}}<ref>{{Cite book | url=https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=ZkzyEAAAQBAJ&pli=1 |title =Laetentur Caeli: Bulls of Union with the Greeks, Armenians, Coptic, and Ethiopian Churches |isbn = 9798869171504 |last1 = Curtin|first1 = D. P.|date = January 2007|publisher =Dalcassian Publishing Company }}</ref>
===Jesuit interim===
The period of [[Society of Jesus|Jesuit]] influence, which broke the connection with Egypt, began a new chapter in church history. The initiative in [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] missions to Ethiopia was taken not by [[Rome]], but by [[Portugal]], in the course of a conflict with the [[Muslim]] [[Ottoman Empire]] and the [[Sultanate of Adal]] for the command of the trade route to [[India]] via the [[Red Sea]].{{sfn|Butler|1911|pp=95-96}}
In 1507, [[Mateus (ambassador)|Mateus]], or Matthew, an [[Armenians|Armenian]], had been sent as an Ethiopian envoy to Portugal. In 1520, an embassy under Dom Rodrigo de Lima landed in Ethiopia. An interesting account of the Portuguese mission, which lasted for several years, was written by [[Francisco Álvares]], its chaplain.{{sfn|Butler|1911|p=96}}
Later, [[Ignatius Loyola]] wished to take up the task of conversion, but was forbidden to do so. Instead, the [[pope]] sent out João Nunes Barreto as patriarch of the East Indies, with [[Andre de Oviedo]] as bishop; and from [[Goa]] envoys went to Ethiopia, followed by Oviedo himself, to secure the king's adherence to Rome. After repeated failures some measure of success was achieved under Emperor [[Susenyos I]], but not until 1624 did the Emperor make formal submission to the [[pope]].{{sfn|Butler|1911|p= 96}} Susenyos made Roman Catholicism the official state religion but was met with heavy resistance by his subjects and by the authorities of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, and eventually had to abdicate in 1632 in favour of his son, [[Fasilides]], who promptly restored Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity as the state religion. He then in 1633 expelled the Jesuits, and in 1665 Fasilides ordered that all Jesuit books (the Books of the Franks) be burned.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}
===Influence on the Reformation===
[[File:Icon of Abuna Samuel of Waldebba.jpg|thumb|left|Icon of [[Samuel of Waldebba]], a 15th-century Ethiopian monk and ascetic of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church]]
David Daniels has suggested that the Ethiopian Church has had a stronger impact on the Reformation than most scholars acknowledge. For [[Martin Luther]], who spearheaded the [[Reformation]], Daniels says "the Ethiopian Church conferred legitimacy on Luther's emerging Protestant vision of a church outside the authority of the Roman Catholic papacy" as it was "an ancient church with direct ties to the apostles".<ref name = "Daniels2017">{{cite web|url= https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/opinion/contributors/2017/10/21/honor-reformations-african-roots/783252001/|title=Honor the Reformation's African roots|last= Daniels|first=David D.|date=21 October 2017| work =[[The Commercial Appeal]] |access-date=9 April 2018}}</ref> According to Daniels, Martin Luther saw that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church practiced elements of faith including "[[communion under both kinds]], vernacular Scriptures, and married clergy" and these practices became customary in the [[Lutheran Church|Lutheran church]]es. The Ethiopian church also rejected [[papal supremacy]], [[purgatory]] and [[indulgences]], which the Lutherans disagreed with, and thus for Luther, the Ethiopian church was the "true [[Proto-Protestantism|forerunner of Protestantism]]".<ref name="Daniels2017" /> Luther believed that the Ethiopian church kept true apostolic practices which the Lutherans would adopt through reading the scriptures.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Martin Luther and Ethiopian Christianity: Historical Traces | publisher = The University of Chicago Divinity School|url= https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/articles/martin-luther-and-ethiopian-christianity-historical-traces|access-date=2022-01-28}}</ref>
In 1534, a cleric of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, [[Michael the Deacon]], met with Martin Luther and affirmed the [[Augsburg Confession]], saying "This is a good creed, that is, faith".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/martin-luther-and-ethiopian-christianity-historical-traces|title=Martin Luther and Ethiopian Christianity: Historical Traces|last=Daniels|first=David D.|date=2 November 2017|publisher= [[University of Chicago]] |access-date=9 April 2018|quote= Luther expressed his approval of the Church of Ethiopia along with his embrace of Deacon Michael in a letter dated July 4, 1534: "For this reason we ask that good people would demonstrate Christian love also to this [Ethiopian] visitor." According to Luther, Michael responded positively to his articles of the Christian faith, proclaiming: "This is a good creed, that is, faith" (see Martin Luther, Table-Talk, November 17, 1538 [WA, TR 4:152–53, no. 4126]).}}</ref><ref name= "Daniels2017" /> In addition, Martin Luther stated that the [[Divine Service (Lutheran)|Lutheran Mass]] agreed with that used by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.<ref name= "Daniels2017" /> As a result, Luther invited the Ethiopian church and Michael to full fellowship.<ref name= "Daniels2017" /><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.christiancentury.org/blog-post/guest-post/martin-luthers-fascination-ethiopian-christianity |title=Martin Luther's fascination with Ethiopian Christianity|last= Daniels|first=David D.|date=31 October 2017|publisher=[[The Christian Century]] |access-date=9 April 2018|quote=Luther extended full fellowship to Deacon Michael and the Ethiopian Church, an invitation Luther withheld from the Bohemian Brethren (the Hussites) and Reformed Churches connected to Ulrich Zwingli.}}</ref>
===Recent history===
[[File:Salama III.jpg|thumb|Engraving of [[Abuna Salama III]], head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (1841–1867)]]
In more modern times, the Ethiopian Church has experienced a series of developments. The 19th century witnessed the publication of an Amharic translation of the Bible. Largely the work of [[Abu Rumi]] over ten years in Cairo, this version, with some changes, held sway until Emperor [[Haile Selassie]] ordered a new translation which appeared in 1960/1.<ref>[[Edward Ullendorff]], ''Ethiopia and the Bible'' (Oxford: British Academy, 1988), p. 66</ref> Haile Selassie also played a prominent role in further reforms of the church, which included encouraging the distribution of Abu Rumi's translation throughout Ethiopia,<ref>Margary Perham, ''The Government of Ethiopia'', second edition (London: Faber and Faber, 1969), pp. 121f</ref> as well as his promotion of improved education of clergy, a significant step in the Emperor's effort being the founding of the Theological College of the Holy Trinity Church in December 1944.<ref>Perham, ''Government of Ethiopia'', p. 132</ref> A third development came after Haile Selassie's restoration to Ethiopia, when he issued, on 30 November, Decree Number 2 of 1942, a new law reforming the church. The primary objectives of this decree were to put the finances of the church in order, to create a central fund for its activities, and to set forth requirements for the appointment of clergy—which had been fairly lax until then.<ref>Perham, ''Government of Ethiopia'', pp. 130</ref>
The Coptic and Ethiopian churches reached an agreement on 13 July 1948, that led to [[autocephaly]] for the Ethiopian Church. Five [[bishop]]s were immediately consecrated by the Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa, empowered to elect a new patriarch for their church, and the successor to Qerellos IV would have the power to consecrate new bishops.<ref>Discussed in fuller detail by Perham, ''Government of Ethiopia'', pp. 126–130</ref> This promotion was completed when Coptic Orthodox [[Pope Joseph II of Alexandria|Pope Joseph II]] consecrated an Ethiopian-born Archbishop, [[Abuna Basilios]], 14 January 1951. Then in 1959, [[Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria]] crowned Basilios as the first Patriarch of Ethiopia.
[[File:Display of Procesional Crosses, Church of Bet Maryam, Lalibela, Ethiopia (3230772118).jpg|thumb|left|An Ethiopian Orthodox priest displays the [[processional cross]]es.]]
Basilios died in 1970, and was succeeded that year by [[Abune Tewophilos|Tewophilos]]. With the fall of Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church was disestablished as the [[state church]]. The new Marxist government began nationalizing property (including land) owned by the church. Tewophilos was arrested in 1976 by the [[Marxism|Marxist]] [[Derg]] [[military junta]], and secretly executed in 1979. The government ordered the church to elect a new Patriarch, and [[Abune Takla Haymanot|Takla Haymanot]] was enthroned. The Coptic Orthodox Church refused to recognize the election and enthronement of Tekle Haymanot on the grounds that the [[Synod]] of the Ethiopian Church had not removed Tewophilos and that the government had not publicly acknowledged his death, and he was thus still the legitimate Patriarch of Ethiopia. Formal relations between the two churches were halted, although they remained in communion with each other. Formal relations between the two churches resumed on July 13, 2007.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.armenianorthodoxchurch.org/v04/doc/English/visitseng.htm#11|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080828004034/http://www.armenianorthodoxchurch.org/v04/doc/English/visitseng.htm#11|url-status=dead|archive-date=2008-08-28|title="Common Declaration" of Pope Shenoudah III, Catholicos Aram I, and Patriarch Paulos | work = News and Media | publisher = Armenian Orthodox Church | date = 22 July 2007}}</ref>
Tekle Haymanot proved to be much less accommodating to the Derg regime than it had expected, and so when the patriarch died in 1988, a new patriarch with closer ties to the regime was sought. The Archbishop of [[Gondar]], a member of the Derg-era Ethiopian Parliament, was elected and enthroned as [[Abuna Merkorios]]. Following the fall of the Derg regime in 1991, and the coming to power of the [[Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front|EPRDF]] government, Merkorios abdicated under public pressure. The church then elected a new Patriarch, [[Abune Paulos|Paulos]], who was recognized by the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria. The former Merkorios then fled abroad, and announced from exile that his abdication had been made under duress and thus he was still the legitimate Patriarch of Ethiopia. Several bishops also went into exile and formed a break-away alternate synod.<ref name= "nyt1992-09-22">{{Cite news | last= Goldman | first=Ari L. | title=U.S. Branch Leaves Ethiopian Orthodox Church | url= https://www.nytimes.com/1992/09/22/nyregion/us-branch-leaves-ethiopian-orthodox-church.html | newspaper= [[The New York Times]] | date=22 September 1992 | access-date=29 April 2016 }}</ref> The [[Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church]] was granted [[Autocephaly of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church|autocephaly]] from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church on 28 September 1993 following ratification by Coptic church Patriarch [[Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria|Shenouda III]]. The schism has met opposition from dissent that saw it as a disintegration of Ethiopia's spiritual heritage.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Prunier |first1=Gérard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KYmMCwAAQBAJ&dq=Shortly+after+the+Eritrean+independence+referendum+in+April+1993,+the+Eritrean+clergy+asked+the+Coptic+Patriarch+Shenouda+III+to+grant+autonomy+from+Ethiopia.&pg=PA80 |title=Understanding Contemporary Ethiopia |last2=Ficquet |first2=Éloi |date=2015 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-1-84904-261-1 |language=en}}</ref>
As of 2005, there are many Ethiopian Orthodox churches located throughout the United States and other countries to which Ethiopians have migrated (Archbishop Yesehaq 1997).
Paulos died on 16 August 2012. On 28 February 2013, a college of electors assembled in Addis Ababa and elected [[Abune Mathias|Mathias]] to be the 6th Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.<ref name= "bbc2013-03-01">{{cite web|title= Ethiopian church appoints Abune Mathias as patriarch | url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21627611 | work=BBC News | date= 2013-03-01 | access-date= 2013-03-03 }}</ref>
On 25 July 2018, delegates from the Patriarchate in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and those in the United States, declared reunification in [[Washington, D.C.]] Declaring the end of a 26-year-old schism, the church announced that it acknowledges two Patriarchs, Merkorios, Fourth Patriarch of Ethiopia and Mathias I, Sixth Patriarch and Catholicos of Ethiopia, Archbishop of Axum and Ichege of the See of Saint Taklehaimanot.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://borkena.com/2018/07/26/ethiopian-church-officially-declared-reunification-in-the-presence-of-pm/ |website= Borkena Ethiopian News |title= Ethiopian Church officially declared reunification in the presence of PM Abiy Ahmed |date= 2018-07-26 |url-status= bot: unknown |archive-date= 2021-09-23 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210923091546/https://borkena.com/2018/07/26/ethiopian-church-officially-declared-reunification-in-the-presence-of-pm/ |access-date= 2021-09-11 }}</ref>
On 22 January 2023, an attempt to overthrow Abune Mathias was failed following a secret formation of new 26-made bishop Synod led by Abune Sawiros in Oromia Region diocese, such as in Haro Beale Wold Church in [[Woliso]], and nine bishops of diocese outside the region. The Patriarchate called it an "illegal appointment", where Abune Mathias decried it as "great event that has targeted the church".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-24 |title=Analysis: Shock, controversy rocks Ethiopian Orthodox Church after Popes suspended for involving in "illegal appointment" threaten to split |url=https://addisstandard.com/analysis-shock-controversy-rocks-ethiopian-orthodox-church-after-popes-suspended-for-involving-in-illegal-appointment-threaten-to-split/ |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=Addis Standard |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | title=Breakaway bishops threaten split in Ethiopia church | url=https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/africa/2023-01-24-breakaway-bishops-threaten-split-in-ethiopia-church/ |access-date=2023-01-25 |website=The Star |language=en-KE}}</ref>
After not apologising for the illegal ordination, three Archbishops were excommunicated by the Holy Synod on 26 January.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Account |date=2023-01-27 |title=Ethiopian Orthodox Church Excommunicated three subversive Archbishops |url=https://borkena.com/2023/01/26/ethiopian-orthodox-church-excommunicated-three-subversive-archbishops/ |access-date=2023-02-04 |website=Borkena Ethiopian News |language=en-US}}</ref> On 31 January 2023, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed convened a discussion surrounding the incident where he responded he is ready to resolve the conflict. The speech led backlash from the Holy Synod and accused his government of meddling in the Church in reference to [[separation of church and state]] in the Article 11 of the [[1995 Constitution of Ethiopia|FDRE Constitution]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Account |date=2023-02-01 |title=Ethiopian Church threatens to stage a nationwide peaceful demonstration |url=https://borkena.com/2023/02/01/ethiopian-church-threatens-to-stage-a-nationwide-peaceful-demonstration/ |access-date=2023-02-04 |website=Borkena Ethiopian News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=St |first1=Addis |last2=ard |date=2023-02-02 |title=News Analysis: As schism deepens, Orthodox Synod slams PM Abiy's remarks on ongoing crisis point by point, threaten to organize worldwide protest |url=https://addisstandard.com/analysis-orthodox-synod-slams-pm-abiys-remarks-on-ongoing-crisis-point-by-point-threaten-to-organize-worldwide-protest/ |access-date=2023-02-04 |website=Addis Standard |language=en-US}}</ref>
On 4 February, three people were reportedly killed in [[Shashamane|Shashemene]] by the [[Oromia Special Forces]]. According Tewahedo Media Center (TMC), two Orthodox youth were killed and four others were injured by the Oromo Special Forces. Abune Henok, Archbishop of Addis Ababa Diocese described it as "shameful and heart-wrenching".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Three Killed in Attacks on Ethiopian Orthodox Church, According to a Report |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/three-killed-in-attacks-on-ethiopian-orthodox-church-report-/6948447.html |access-date=2023-02-05 |website=VOA |date=4 February 2023 |language=en}}</ref> In response to grievance, numerous celebrities expressed their solidarity to the Church via social media and other platforms and donned black clothing during three-days [[Fast of Nineveh]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Insight |first=Addis |date=2023-02-04 |title=Celebrities, Diplomats, and Influencers Stand United in Support of Ethiopian Orthodox Church |url=https://addisinsight.net/celebrities-diplomats-and-influencers-stand-united-in-support-of-ethiopian-orthodox-church/ |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=Addis Insight |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=St |first1=Addis |last2=ard |date=2023-02-03 |title=News: Orthodox Synod declares it faithful to wear black for the Fast of Nineveh in protest against "illegal group" |url=https://addisstandard.com/news-orthodox-synod-declares-faithful-to-wear-black-for-fast-of-nineveh-to-protest-against-illegal-group/ |access-date=2023-02-09 |website=Addis Standard |language=en-US}}</ref> On 9 February, the government imposed restrictions on social sites targeted to [[Facebook]], [[Messenger (software)|Messenger]], [[Telegram (software)|Telegram]] and [[TikTok]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-02-10 |title=Ethiopia Orthodox Church split: Social media restricted |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-64597375 |access-date=2023-02-10}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nigeria |first=News Agency of |date=2023-02-10 |title=Internet blocked in Ethiopia after church rift turns violence |url=https://gazettengr.com/internet-blocked-in-ethiopia-after-church-rift-turns-violence/ |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=Peoples Gazette |language=en-US}}</ref> On the next day, the delegation of Synod held an urgent meeting with Abiy at his office, which resulted in condemnation of the proclaimed Oromia Synod from Abiy.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=St |first1=Addis |last2=ard |date=2023-02-10 |title=NewsAlert: PM Abiy in meeting with Orthodox Patriarch |url=https://addisstandard.com/newsalert-pm-abiy-in-meeting-with-orthodox-patriarch/ |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=Addis Standard |language=en-US}}</ref> On 12 February, a nationwide protest was postponed. [[Abune Petros (21st-century bishop)|Abune Petros]], the Secretary of the Holy Synod announced that the demonstration would be postponed following peaceful talks with the Prime Minister and a government agreement to solve the problem.<ref>{{cite web |last=AfricaNews |date=2023-02-12 |title=Ethiopia Orthodox leaders postpone protest called amid hegemony claims |url=https://www.africanews.com/2023/02/12/ethiopia-orthodox-leaders-postpone-protest-called-amid-hegemony-claims/ |access-date=2023-02-12 |website=Africanews }}</ref> On 15 February, the Church reached an agreement with the illegally ordinated synod.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ethiopian Orthodox Church reaches deal with three rogue bishops |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/2/16/ethiopian-orthodox-church-reaches-deal-with-breakaway-oromo-synod |access-date=2023-02-16 |website=www.aljazeera.com |language=en}}</ref> The government lifted the internet ban after five months on 17 July.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-07-19 |title=Ethiopian Govt Lifts Internet Restrictions |url=https://allafrica.com/view/group/main/main/id/00086415.html |access-date=2023-07-20 |website=allAfrica.com |language=en}}</ref>
==Traditions==
[[File:Inside Debre Sema'it rock church.jpg|thumb|Inside [[Debre Sema'it]] village rock church]]
[[File:Ethio-orthodox-priests.jpg|thumb|Priests and deacons conducting a church liturgy service at Debre Meheret Kedus Michael Ethiopian Orthodox Cathedral, Washington, DC, US]]
The faith and practice of Orthodox Ethiopian Christians include elements from [[Miaphysitism|Miaphysite]] Christianity as it has developed in Ethiopia over the centuries. Christian beliefs include belief in God (in Ge'ez / Amharic, ''′Egziabeher'', lit. "Lord of the Universe"), [[veneration]] of the Virgin Mary, the angels, and the saints, besides others. According to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church itself, there are no non-Christian elements in the religion other than those from the [[Old Testament]], or ''Həggä 'Orät'' (ሕገ ኦሪት),{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}} to which are added those from the [[New Testament]], or ''Həggä Wongel'' (ሕገ ወንጌል).<ref>[http://www.mahiberekidusan.org/Default.aspx?tabid=82&ctl=Details&mid=371&ItemID=126 EOTC Doctrine] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727054539/http://www.mahiberekidusan.org/Default.aspx?tabid=82&ctl=Details&mid=371&ItemID=126 |date=2011-07-27 }}</ref> A hierarchy of ''K'ədusan'' ቅዱሳን{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}} (angelic messengers and saints) conveys the prayers of the faithful to God and carries out the divine will, so when an Ethiopian Christian is in difficulty, he or she appeals to them as well as to God. In more formal and regular rituals, priests communicate on behalf of the community, and only priests may enter the inner sanctum of the usually circular or octagonal church where the [[tabot]] ("ark") dedicated to the church's patron saint is housed.<ref name="worship">{{Cite web | author=Professor Sergew Hable Sellassie | author2=Belaynesh Mikael | name-list-style=amp| year=2003 | url=http://www.ethiopianorthodox.org/english/ethiopian/worship.html | title=Worship in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church | access-date=5 November 2014 | via=EthiopianOrthodox.org | work=The Church of Ethiopia – A Panorama of History and Spiritual Life | location=[[Addis Ababa]] | orig-year=1970 }}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|reason=Source is not officially affiliated to the Church; see [[Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 179#Ethiopianorthodox.org]]|date=March 2017}} On important religious holidays, the tabot is carried on the head of a priest and escorted in procession outside the church. It is the tabot, not the church, which is consecrated. At many services, most parish members remain in the outer ring, where [[debtera]]s sing hymns and dance.<ref name="cs">Turner, John W. "Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity: Faith and practices". ''[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/ettoc.html A Country Study: Ethiopia]'' (Thomas P. Ofcansky and LaVerle Berry, eds.) [[Library of Congress]] [[Federal Research Division]] (1991). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the [[public domain]].''[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/about.html].</ref>
[[File:Brooklyn Museum 2000.123.1 Processional Cross.jpg|thumb|Mid-20th century [[processional cross]] from the [[Amhara Region]], typically carried on long poles in Ethiopian Orthodox religious processions|alt=|271x271px]]
The [[Eucharist]] is given only to those who feel pure, have fasted regularly, and have, in general, properly conducted themselves.<ref name="worship" /> In practice, communion is mainly limited to young children and the elderly; those who are at a sexually active age or who have sexual desires generally do not receive the Eucharist.<ref name="worship" /><ref name="Molvaer">{{Cite book | last=Molvaer | first=Reidulf K. | title=Socialization and Social Control in Ethiopia | series=Äthiopistische Forschungen | volume=44 | year=1995 | location=Wiesbaden | publisher=Harassowitz | pages=256–257 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F6dW0EPJiVAC&pg=PA256 | isbn=9783447036627}}</ref> Worshipers receiving communion may enter the middle ring of the church to do so.<ref name="worship" />
Ethiopian Orthodox believers are strict [[Trinity|Trinitarians]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dskmariam.org/artsandlitreature/litreature/pdf/doctorinoftheethiopianorthodoxchurch.pdf|title=Doctrine of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church|access-date=2009-10-30|archive-date=2018-03-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180328181239/http://www.dskmariam.org/artsandlitreature/litreature/pdf/doctorinoftheethiopianorthodoxchurch.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> maintaining the Orthodox teaching that God is united in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This concept is known as ''səllase'' (ሥላሴ),{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}} Ge'ez for "Trinity".
Daily services constitute only a small part of an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian's religious observance. Several holy days require prolonged services, singing and dancing, and feasting.
=== Fast days ===
{{Main|Fasting and abstinence in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church}}
An important religious requirement, however, is the keeping of [[Fasting#Oriental Orthodox|fast]] days, during which adherents abstain from consuming meat and animal products, and refrain from sexual activity.<ref name="worship" /><ref name="Molvaer" /><ref name="dw2017-03-22">{{Cite news | author=James Jeffrey | title=Ethiopia: fasting for 55 days | url=http://www.dw.com/en/ethiopia-fasting-for-55-days/g-38067533 | publisher=[[Deutsche Welle]] | date=22 March 2017 | access-date=24 March 2017 }}</ref>  The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has 250 fasting days, 180 of which are obligatory for laypeople, not just monks and priests, when [[Veganism|vegan]] food is eaten by the faithful. During the 40-day Advent fast, only one vegan meal is allowed per day.<ref>{{Cite news|title=A 40-Day Vegan Fast, Then, At Last, A January Christmas Feast|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/01/01/373834051/a-40-day-vegan-fast-then-at-last-a-january-christmas-feast|access-date=2021-06-15|website=NPR.org|language=en}}</ref>
[[File:Gondar Fasiladas Bath Timket.jpg|thumb|An Ethiopian Orthodox ceremony at Fasilides' Bath in [[Gondar]], Ethiopia, celebrating ''[[Timkat]]'' ([[Epiphany (Christian)|Epiphany]])]]
#Fast for Hudadi or Abiye Tsome [ሁዳዴ/ዓብይ ጾም] (Great Lent), 55 days prior to [[Easter]] (''[[Fasika]]'').<ref name="nenewe">{{Cite web | title=Tsome Nenewe (The Fast of Nineveh) | url=http://www.debreselam.net/index/?p=789 | publisher=Debre Selam Medhanealem Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church | location=[[Minneapolis]] | date=28 January 2015 | access-date=30 March 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150405110705/http://www.debreselam.net/index?p=789 | archive-date=2015-04-05 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="arega">{{Cite web | author=Robel Arega | title=Fasting in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church | at=Why Fifty-Five Days? | publisher=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Sunday School Department – Mahibere Kidusan | url=http://eotcmk.org/site-en/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=56&Itemid=1 | access-date=30 March 2017 | archive-date=31 March 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170331025244/http://eotcmk.org/site-en/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=56&Itemid=1 | url-status=dead }}</ref> This fast is divided into three separate periods: Tsome Hirkal (ጾመ ህርቃል), eight days commemorating [[Heraclius]]; Tsome Arba (ጾመ አርባ), forty days of [[Lent]]; and Tsome Himamat (ጾመ ሕማማት), seven days commemorating [[Holy Week]].<ref name="nenewe" /><ref name="arega" /><ref name="keraneyo-medhanealem">{{Cite web | title=Great Lent - Abiy Tsom - ዐብይ ጾም First Sunday - Zewerede - ዘወረደ | url=https://www.keraneyo-medhanealem.com/post/great-lent-abiy-tsom-%E1%8B%90%E1%89%A5%E1%8B%AD-%E1%8C%BE%E1%88%9D-first-sunday-zewerede-%E1%8B%98%E1%8B%88%E1%88%A8%E1%8B%B0 | publisher=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Keraneyo Medhane Alem | location=[[Toronto]], [[Ontario|ON]] | date=3 March 2021 | access-date=27 February 2023 }}</ref>
#Fast of the Apostles, 10–40 days, which the Apostles kept after they had received the [[Holy Spirit in Christianity|Holy Spirit]]. It begins after [[Pentecost]].
#The fast Tsome Dihnet (ጾመ ድህነት), which is on Wednesdays in commemoration of the plot organized to kill [[Jesus Christ]] by [[Caiaphas]] and the members of the house of the high priest and Fridays in commemoration of the [[Crucifixion]] of [[Jesus Christ]] (starts on Wednesday after [[Pentecost]] and spans up to Easter, in other words all Wednesdays and Fridays except during 50 days after Easter).<ref name="worship" />
#The fast of [[Dormition of the Mother of God|Dormition]], 16 days.
#The fast preceding Christmas, 40 days ([[Advent]]). It begins with Sibket on 15th Hedar and ends on Christmas Eve with the feast of Gena and the 29th of Tahsas and 28th if the year is preceded by leap year.
#The [[Fast of Nineveh]], commemorating the preaching of [[Jonah]]. It comes on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of the third week before Lent.
#The ''gahad'' of [[Timkat]] ([[Epiphany (holiday)|Epiphany]]), fast on the eve of Epiphany.
In addition to standard holy days, most Christians observe many saints' days. A man might give a small feast on his personal saint's day. The local voluntary association (called the ''maheber'') connected with each church honours its patron saint with a special service and a feast two or three times a year.<ref name=cs/>
=== Monasticism ===
{{Main|Christian monasticism in Ethiopia}}
===Exorcism===
[[File:Inda Abba Hadera holy water.jpg|thumb|Inda Abba Hadera holy water in [[Inda Sillasie]]]]Priests intervene and perform [[exorcism]]s on behalf of those believed to be afflicted by demons or ''[[buda (folklore)|buda]]''. According to a 2010 [[Pew Research Center]] study, 74% of Christians in Ethiopia report having experienced or witnessed an exorcism.<ref name="bbc2010-04-15">{{cite news |title=Ten things we have learnt about Africa |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8620249.stm |work=BBC News |date=April 15, 2010 |access-date=April 15, 2010 |quote=In Ethiopia, 74% of Christians say they have experienced or witnessed the devil or evil spirits being driven out of a person}}</ref>  Demon-possessed persons are brought to a church or prayer meeting.<ref name="geleta">Geleta, Amsalu Tadesse. "[http://www.lausanne.org/all-documents/ethiopian-case-study.html Case Study: Demonization and the Practice of Exorcism in Ethiopian Churches] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100101104543/http://www.lausanne.org/all-documents/ethiopian-case-study.html |date=2010-01-01 }}".  Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, Nairobi, August 2000.</ref> Often, when an ill person has not responded to modern medical treatment, the affliction is attributed to demons.<ref name="geleta" /> Unusual or especially perverse deeds, particularly when performed in public, are symptomatic of a demoniac.<ref name="geleta" /> Superhuman strength—such as breaking one's bindings, as described in the New Testament accounts—along with [[glossolalia]] are observed in the afflicted.<ref name="geleta" />  Amsalu Geleta, in a modern case study, relates elements that are common to Ethiopian Christian exorcisms:
<blockquote>
It includes singing praise and victory songs, reading from the Scripture, prayer and confronting the spirit in the name of Jesus. Dialogue with the spirit is another important part of the exorcism ceremony. It helps the counsellor (exorcist) to know how the spirit was operating in the life of the demoniac. The signs and events mentioned by the spirit are affirmed by the victim after deliverance.<ref name="geleta" /></blockquote>
The exorcism is not always successful, and Geleta notes another instance in which the usual methods were unsuccessful, and the demons apparently left the subject at a later time. In any event, "in all cases the spirit is commanded in no other name than the name of Jesus."<ref name="geleta" />
===Biblical canon===
{{Main|Orthodox Tewahedo biblical canon}}'''The Old Testament Books:'''
{{div col}}
# Genesis
# Exodus
# Leviticus
# Numbers
# Deuteronomy
# Joshua
# Judges
# Ruth
# 1st & 2nd Samuel
# 1st & 2nd Kings
# 1st Chronicles
# 2nd Chronicles (incl. Prayer of Manasseh)
# Jubilees
# Enoch
# 1st & 2nd Esdras
# 3rd Esdras & Ezra Sutuel
# Tobit
# Judith
# Esther (with additions)
# 1st Meqabyan*
# 2nd & 3rd Meqabyan
# Josippon
# Job
# Psalms (incl. Psalm 151)
# Proverbs
# Reproof
# Ecclesiastes
# Song of Solomon
# Wisdom of Solomon
# Ecclesiasticus
# Isaiah
# Jeremiah (incl. Lamentations, 1st Baruch, Letter of Jeremiah, & 4th Baruch)
# Ezekiel
# Daniel (with additions, incl. Susanna & Bel and the Dragon)
# Hosea
# Joel
# Amos
# Obadiah
# Jonah
# Micah
# Nahum
# Habakkuk
# Zephaniah
# Haggai
# Zechariah
# Malachi
{{div col end}}
'''The New Testament Books:'''
{{div col}}
# Matthew
# Mark
# Luke
# John
# Acts
# Romans
# 1st Corinthians
# 2nd Corinthians
# Galatians
# Ephesians
# Philippians
# Colossians
# 1st Thessalonians
# 2nd Thessalonians
# 1st Timothy
# 2nd Timothy
# Titus
# Philemon
# Hebrews
# James
# 1st Peter
# 2nd Peter
# 1st John
# 2nd John
# 3rd John
# Jude
# Revelation
# 1st Sinodos
# 2nd Sinodos
# 3rd Sinodos
# 4th Sinodos
# 1st Covenant
# 2nd Covenant
# Ethiopic Clement
# Didascalia
{{div col end}}
[[File:Ethiopian Madonna.jpg|thumb|Drawing of the [[Virgin Mary]] {{'}}with her beloved son{{'}} in pencil and ink, from a manuscript copy of Weddasé Māryām, {{Circa|1875}}]]
===Language===
[[File:Meskel Celebration.jpg|thumb|Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of [[Meskel]] (Geʽez for "cross")]]
The divine services of the Ethiopian Church are celebrated in [[Geʽez]], which has been the [[liturgical language]] of the church at least since the arrival of the [[Nine Saints]] (Pantelewon, Gerima (Isaac, or Yeshaq), Aftse, Guba, Alef, Yem’ata, Liqanos, and Sehma), who are believed to have fled persecution by the [[Byzantine Empire]] after the [[Council of Chalcedon]] (451).<ref>[[Taddesse Tamrat]], ''Church and State in Ethiopia, 1270-1527'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972), p.&nbsp;23</ref> The Greek [[Septuagint]] was the version of the [[Old Testament]] originally translated into Ge'ez, but later revisions show clear evidence of the use of [[Hebrew]], [[Syriac language|Syriac]] and [[Arabic]] sources. The first translation into a modern vernacular was done in the 19th century by a man usually known as [[Abu Rumi]] (died 1819). Later, Haile Selassie sponsored [[Amharic]] translations of the Ge'ez Scriptures during his reign (1930–1974): one in 1935 before World War II and one afterwards (1960–1961).<ref>Ullendorff, ''Ethiopia and the Bible'', pp.&nbsp;31-72</ref> [[Sermons]] today are usually delivered in the local language.
===Architecture===
[[File:Bet Giyorgis church Lalibela 01.jpg|right|thumb|The [[Church of Saint George, Lalibela|Church of Saint George]], a monolithic church in Lalibela]]
There are many [[monolithic church|monolithic (rock-hewn) church]]es in Ethiopia, most famously eleven churches at [[Lalibela]]. Besides these, two main types of architecture are found—one [[basilica]]n, the other native. The [[Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion]] at Axum is an example of the basilican design, though the early basilicas are nearly all in ruin. These examples show the influence of the architects who, in the 6th century, built the basilicas at [[Sanaá|Sanʻāʼ]] and elsewhere in the [[Arabian Peninsula]]. There are two forms of native churches: one oblong, traditionally found in [[Tigray Region|Tigray]]; the other circular, traditionally found in [[Amhara Region|Amhara]] and [[Shewa]] (though either style may be found elsewhere). In both forms, the sanctuary is square and stands clear in the centre, and the arrangements are based on [[Judaism|Jewish]] tradition. Walls and ceilings are adorned with [[fresco]]es. A [[courtyard]], circular or rectangular, surrounds the body of the church. Modern Ethiopian churches may incorporate the basilican or native styles and use contemporary construction techniques and materials. In rural areas, the church and outer court are often [[Thatching|thatched]], with mud-built walls. The church buildings are typically surrounded by a [[Church forests of Ethiopia|forested area]], acting as a reservoir of biodiversity in otherwise de-forested parts of the country.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Abbott |first1=Alison |title=Biodiversity thrives in Ethiopia's church forests |url=https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-019-00275-x/index.html |access-date=31 January 2019 |work=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]}}</ref><ref name=emergence>{{Cite news|url=https://emergencemagazine.org/feature/the-church-forests-of-ethiopia/|title=The Church Forests of Ethiopia: A Mystical Geography|first=Fred|last=Bahnson|date=January 11, 2020|website=Emergence Magazine}}</ref>{{sfn|Butler|1911|p=96}}
===Ark of the Covenant===
[[File:Ark of the Covenant church in Axum Ethiopia.jpg|thumb|The Chapel of the Tablet at the [[Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion]] is said to house the original [[Ark of the Covenant]].]]
The Ethiopian Church claims that one of its churches, [[Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion|Our Lady Mary of Zion]], is host to the original [[Ark of the Covenant]] that [[Moses]] carried with the [[Israelites]] during the [[The Exodus|Exodus]]. Only one priest is allowed into the building where the Ark is located, ostensibly due to biblical warnings of danger. As a result, international scholars doubt that the original Ark is truly there.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}
Throughout Ethiopia, Orthodox churches are not considered churches until the local bishop gives them a ''[[tabot]]'', a replica of the original Ark of the Covenant.<ref name="E_Af1868-1001-21">{{Cite web | title=tabot | url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/E_Af1868-1001-21 | access-date=2024-01-31 | quote=Curator's comments… The Tabots remain in the Qeddest Qeddusan and are only brought out of the churches at festival times or in times of calamity, in order to pray for divine help. When they leave the Queddest Qeddusan they are carried on the heads of priests, veiled from public view by richly decorated cloths. Ornate silk umbrellas are held over the Tabots as a sign of respect.|website=[[British Museum]]}}</ref><ref name="lisantewahdo">{{Cite web | title=The Ark of Covenant | date=2021-12-01 | url=https://www.lisantewahdo.org/index.php/english/teachings/item/1191-the-ark-of-the-covenant | website=The Official Website of Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church | access-date=2024-02-02 }}</ref> The ''tabot'' is at least six inches (15&nbsp;cm) square, and it is made of either [[alabaster]], [[marble]], or wood (see [[acacia]]). It is always kept in ornate coverings on the altar.<ref name="E_Af1868-1001-21" /> Only priests are allowed to see or touch the ''tabot''.<ref name="lisantewahdo" /><ref name="mk-2023">{{Cite web | title=Liturgical Worship, Part Three: Unique Features of Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church | url=https://eotcmk.org/e/unique-features-of-ethiopian-orthodox-tewahedo-church/ | publisher=[[Mahibere Kidusan]] | website=Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Sunday School Department | access-date=2024-02-02 | author=Habtamu Teshome | date=2023-01-16 }}</ref> In an elaborate procession, the ''tabot'' is carried around the outside of the church amid joyful song on the feast day of that particular church's namesake.<ref name="E_Af1868-1001-21" /> On the great Feast of [[Timkat|T'imk'et]], known as [[Epiphany (holiday)|Epiphany]] or Theophany in Europe, a group of churches send their ''tabot'' to celebrate the occasion at a common location where a pool of water or a river is to be found.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/ethiopian-epiphany-01491 | title=Ethiopian epiphany | date=2019 | access-date=2024-02-07 | publisher=[[UNESCO]]}}</ref>
===Similarities to Judaism and Islam===
[[File:The Ethiopian Church.jpg|thumb| [[Kidane Mehret Church, Jerusalem|The Ethiopian Church, Jerusalem]]]]
The Ethiopian Church, places a heavier emphasis on Old Testament teachings than one might find in many [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodox]], Roman Catholic or [[Protestantism|Protestant]] churches. Women are prohibited from entering the church temple during [[menses]];<ref>{{cite web |last1=Daoud |first1=Marcos |last2=Hazen |first2=Blatta Marsie |title=The Liturgy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church |url=http://www.eotc.faithweb.com/liturgy.htm |publisher=[[Ethiopian Orthodox Church]] |access-date=24 August 2020 |language=en |date=1991}}</ref> they are also expected to [[Christian headcovering|cover their hair]] with a large scarf (or ''shash'') while in church, as described in 1&nbsp;Corinthians, chapter 11. As with Orthodox [[synagogue]]s, men and women sit separately in the Ethiopian church, with men on the left and women on the right (when facing the altar).<ref name="Hable1997">{{cite book|last= Hable Selassie|first= Sergew|title= The Church of Ethiopia – A panorama of History and Spiritual Life|year= 1997|publisher= Berhanena Selam|location= Addis Abeba, Ethiopia|page= 66}}</ref> (Women covering their heads and separation of the sexes in churches officially is common to few other Christian traditions; it is also the rule in some non-Christian religions, [[Islam]] and [[Orthodox Judaism]] among them).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Duffner |first1=Jordan Denari |title=Wait, I thought that was a Muslim thing?!|url=https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/wait-i-thought-was-muslim-thing |publisher=[[Commonweal (magazine)|Commonweal]] |access-date=26 July 2020 |language=en |date=13 February 2014}}</ref>
Before praying, the Ethiopian Orthodox [[Tradition of removing shoes in the home and houses of worship|remove their shoes]] in order to acknowledge that one is offering prayer before a holy God.<ref name="Kosloski2017">{{cite web |last1=Kosloski |first1=Philip |title=Did you know Muslims pray in a similar way to some Christians? |url=https://aleteia.org/2017/10/16/did-you-know-muslims-pray-in-a-similar-way-to-some-christians/ |publisher=[[Aleteia]] |access-date=25 July 2020 |language=en |date=16 October 2017}}</ref> Ethiopian Orthodox worshippers remove their shoes when entering a church temple,<ref name="Hable1997" /> in accordance with [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 3:5 (in which [[Moses]], while viewing the [[burning bush]], was commanded to remove his shoes while standing on holy ground). Furthermore, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is known to observe the [[Sabbath in Christianity|seventh-day Sabbath]] (Saturday, or the lesser Sabbath), in addition to the [[Lord's Day]] (Sunday, or the Christian Sabbath),<ref name="Binns2016">{{cite book|last= Binns|first= John|title= The Orthodox Church of Ethiopia: A History|date= 28 November 2016|publisher= I.B.Tauris|language= en|isbn= 9781786720375|page= 58|quote= The king presided, overruled the bishops who were committed to the more usual position that Sunday only was a holy day, and decreed that the Sabbatarian teaching of the northern monks became the position of the church.}}</ref> although more emphasis, because of the [[Resurrection]] of Christ, is laid upon Sunday. While the Ethiopian Church is known for this practice, it is neither an innovation nor unique to it,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://suscopts.org/resources/literature/1137/the-sabbath-a-hallowed-and-holy-day/|title=The Sabbath: A Hallowed and Holy Day|website=Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States|quote=Since the first century, Christians made Sunday the Christian Sabbath and kept Saturday as the Jewish Sabbath.}}</ref> deriving from the [[Apostolic Constitutions]] and the [[Apostolic Canons]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?redir_esc=y&id=X6rmAAAAMAAJ&q=sabbath#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=The Ethiopic Didascalia: Or, the Ethiopic Version of the Apostolical Constitutions, Received in the Church of Abyssinia |quote= Assemble yourselves together in the church, evening and morning; offer up praises, and sing; and read the Psalms of David, the sixty-second, and moreover the hundred and fortieth. And especially on the Jewish Sabbath, and on the first day of the week, the Christian Sabbath, which is the day of His holy resurrection, offer up praises and thanksgivings and glory to the Lord, who hath created all things by his Son Jesus Christ, whom he sent unto us, who was pleased to suffer according to his will, and was buried in the tomb, and rose again from the dead.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/07158.htm|title=Apostolic Constitutions (Book VIII)|website=New Advent|quote= XXXIII. I Peter and Paul do make the following constitutions. Let the slaves work five days; but on the Sabbath day and the Lord's day let them have leisure to go to church for instruction in piety. We have said that the Sabbath is on account of the creation, and the Lord's day of the resurrection. Let slaves rest from their work all the great week, and that which follows it — for the one in memory of the passion, and the other of the resurrection; and there is need they should be instructed who it is that suffered and rose again, and who it is permitted Him to suffer, and raised Him again. Let them have rest from their work on the Ascension, because it was the conclusion of the dispensation by Christ. Let them rest at Pentecost, because of the coming of the Holy Spirit, which was given to those that believed in Christ. Let them rest on the festival of His birth, because on it the unexpected favour was granted to men, that Jesus Christ, the Logos of God, should be born of the Virgin Mary, for the salvation of the world. Let them rest on the festival of Epiphany, because on it a manifestation took place of the divinity of Christ, for the Father bore testimony to Him at the baptism; and the Paraclete, in the form of a dove, pointed out to the bystanders Him to whom testimony was borne. Let them rest on the days of the apostles: for they were appointed your teachers to bring you to Christ, and made you worthy of the Spirit. Let them rest on the day of the first martyr Stephen, and of the other holy martyrs who preferred Christ to their own life.}}</ref> the former of which without the Apostolic Canons included is in the church's 81-book canon as the ''Didascalia''. The nature of the Sabbath only became a doctrinal dispute in the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria in the centuries leading up to the issue being rectified by [[Ewostatewos]].<ref name="Tamrat 1972">{{cite book | last=Tamrat | first=Taddesse |author-link=Taddesse Tamrat | year=1972 | title=Church and State in Ethiopia, 1270-1527 | publication-place=Oxford  | publisher=Clarendon Press | isbn=978-0-19-821671-1 | oclc=653228}}</ref> The emperor [[Gelawdewos]] in his ''Confession'', an [[apologia]] of traditional beliefs and practices explicitly says "we do not honour it as the Jews do... but we so honour it that we celebrate thereon the Eucharist and have love-feasts, even as our Fathers the Apostles have taught us in the Didascalia".<ref>{{cite book|last=Abir|first=Mordechai|title=Ethiopia and the Red Sea: The Rise and Decline of the Solomonic Dynasty and Muslim European Rivalry in the Region|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7fArBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA105|date=28 October 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-28090-0}}</ref>
The Ethiopian Church does not call for circumcision, yet it is a cultural practice,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://britishorthodox.org/glastonburyreview/issue-122-circumcision-and-the-copts/ | title=Issue 122 – Circumcision and the Copts &#124; the British Orthodox Church }}</ref> as is abstention from pork and other meats deemed unclean. It is not regarded as being necessary to salvation. The liturgy explicitly mentions, "let us not be circumcised like the Jews."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.keraneyo-medhanealem.com/post/gizret-%E1%8C%8D%E1%8B%9D%E1%88%A8%E1%89%B5-circumcision | title=Gizret - ግዝረት &#91;Circumcision&#93; | date=9 January 2022 }}</ref>
The Ethiopian Orthodox Church observes days of [[ritual purification]].<ref>{{cite book |author1=[[Ian Bradley]] |title=Water: A Spiritual History |date=2 November 2012 |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-4411-6767-5 |language=English|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last= H. Bulzacchelli|first=Richard|title=Judged by the Law of Freedom: A History of the Faith-works Controversy, and a Resolution in the Thought of St. Thomas Aquinas|publisher=[[University Press of America]]|year=2006|isbn=9780761835011|pages=19|quote=The Ethiopian and Coptic Churches distinguishes between clean and unclean meats, observes days of ritual purification, and keeps a kind of dual Sabbath on both Saturday and Sunday.}}</ref> People who are ritually unclean may approach the church but are not permitted to enter it; they instead stand near the church door and [[Christian prayer|pray]] during the liturgy.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pedersen |first1=Kristen Stoffregen |title=Is the Church of Ethiopia a Judaic Church? |journal=Warszawskie Studia Teologiczne |date=1999 |volume=XII |issue=2 |pages=205–206 |language=en}}</ref>
Rugare Rukuni and Erna Oliver identify the Nine Saints as [[Jewish Christians]], and attribute the Judaic character of Ethiopian Christianity, in part, to their influence.<ref name="RukuniOliver">{{Cite journal | first1=Rugare | last1=Rukuni | first2=Erna | last2=Oliver | title=Ethiopian Christianity: A continuum of African Early Christian polities | url=https://dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts.v75i1.5335 | journal=Hervormde Teologiese Studies | volume=75 | issue=1 | date=January 2019 | pages=1–9 | doi=10.4102/hts.v75i1.5335}}</ref>{{Rp|6, 8}}
===Debtera===
{{Main|Debtera}}
[[File:Ethiopian Painting 2005 SeanMcClean.JPG|thumb|A painting of performing [[debtera]]s]]
A debtera is an itinerant lay priest figure (not a member of the priesthood) trained by the Ethiopian Church to function principally as a [[scribe]] or [[Cantor (church)|cantor]]. But often he is also a folk healer, who may also function in roles comparable to a [[deacon]] or [[exorcist]]. Folklore and legends ascribe the role of magician to the debtera as well.<ref>{{cite book|author=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica|authorlink=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica|title=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: He-N|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l4WUdKWGcYsC&pg=PA4|year=2003|publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=978-3-447-05607-6|page=4}}</ref>
===Music===
{{Main article|Orthodox Tewahedo music}}
[[File:Timkat priests.jpg|thumb|Ethiopian Orthodox priests dancing during 2015 [[Timkat]] celebration]]
The music of Ethiopian Orthodox Church traced back to Saint [[Yared]], who composed [[Zema]] or "chant", which divided into three modes: Ge'ez (ordinary days), Ezel (fast days and Lent) and Araray (principal feasts).<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 August 2022 |title=YARED: THE COMPOSER OF HUMNS |url=https://piassabooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/e18b9ce18a93-e18aa0e189a0e18b8d.pdf}}</ref> It is important to Ethiopian liturgy and divided into fourteen Anaphoras, the normal use being of the Twelve Apostles. In ancient times, there were six Anaphoras used by many monasteries.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Salvadore |first1=Matteo |last2=Lorenzi |first2=James De |date=April 2021 |title=An Ethiopian Scholar in Tridentine Rome: Täsfa Ṣeyon and the Birth of Orientalism |journal=Itinerario |language=en |volume=45 |issue=1 |pages=17–46 |doi=10.1017/S0165115320000157 |s2cid=232422416 |issn=0165-1153|doi-access=free }}</ref>
== Patriarch-Catholicoi, archbishops and bishops ==
{{More citations needed section|date=January 2021}}
;Patriarch-Catholicos
{{Main|List of abunas of Ethiopia}}
Since 1959, when the church was granted [[autocephaly]] by [[Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria|Cyril VI]], [[Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria]], an Ethiopian Patriarch-Catholicos of Eritrea also carrying the title of Abuna is the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. The Abuna is officially known as ''Patriarch and Catholicos of Ethiopia, Archbishop of Axum and Ichege of the See of Saint Taklahaimanot''. The incumbent head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is [[Abune Mathias|Mathias]] who acceded to this position on 28 February 2013.
;Archbishops and bishops
Ethiopia:
* [[Abune Mathias|Mathias]], Patriarch and Head of all Archbishops of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
Canada:
* Demetrios, archbishop of Eastern Canada
* Abraham, archbishop of Western Canada<ref name="eotc-edmonton">{{Cite web | title=Committees | url=https://ethiopiansorthodoxchurch.org/committees/ | publisher=Debre Selam Medhanealem Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church | location=Edmonton, AB | access-date=2023-12-07 }}</ref>
[[File:Abune Abraham Archbishop of Western Canada.jpg|thumb|Abune Abraham, Archbishop of Western Canada]]
Middle East:
* Dimetros, Archbishop of the United Arab Emirates and its surrounding areas
* Kewestos, Archbishop of Jerusalem<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oikoumene.org/en/programmes/public-witness-addressing-power-affirming-peace/churches-in-the-middle-east/pief/jerusalem-inter-church-centre-jic/heads-of-churches-in-jerusalem.html|title=Jerusalem – Heads of Churches|publisher=World Council of Churches|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828124201/http://www.oikoumene.org/en/programmes/public-witness-addressing-power-affirming-peace/churches-in-the-middle-east/pief/jerusalem-inter-church-centre-jic/heads-of-churches-in-jerusalem.html|archive-date=2011-08-28}}</ref>
South America:
* Thaddaeus, archbishop of the Caribbean and Latin America
United States:
* Fanuel, archbishop of Washington, D.C.<ref>{{Cite web | title=Protest Held In Washington, DC Against Religious Attacks In Ethiopia | url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/abune-fanuel-archbishop-of-washington-dc-for-the-ethiopian-news-photo/1463273764 | publisher=Getty Images | quote=Abune Fanuel, archbishop of Washington DC for the Ethiopian Orthodox church is surrounded by young deacons and clergy as he speaks during a demonstration at the White House on February 05, 2023 in Washington, DC. | date=2023-04-05 | access-date=2023-12-07 }}</ref>
* Markos, archbishop of New York and its surrounding areas.
* Philipos, archbishop of Pennsylvania and Head of Eyesus Church in Baltimore
* Yaekob, archbishop of Georgia and its surrounding areas (Southeastern States)
* Ewesatewos, archbishop of Minnesota and its surrounding areas.
* Natnael, archbishop of Colorado and surrounding areas
* Selama, archbishop of Ohio
* Sawiros, archbishop of Texas
* Michael, archbishop of Northern California
* Barnabas, archbishop of Southern California
Western Europe:
* Yosef, Archbishop of Europe, in Rome.
Australia & New Zealand:
* Lukas, Archbishop of Australia & New Zealand
== Eparchies ==
The current [[eparchy|eparchies]] of the church include:<ref>[http://hierarchy.religare.ru/h-aincvost-ethioepar.html Eparchies of the Ethiopian Church] (Russian)</ref>
{{columns-list|colwidth=20em|
*[[Awassa]] ([[Sidama Region|Sidama]])
*[[Axum]]
*[[Ambo, Ethiopia|Ambo]]
*[[Arsi Zone|Arsi]]
*Assosa
*[[Afar Region|Afar]]
*Bale Gobe
*Wollega
*[[North Wollo Zone|North Wollo]]
*[[South Wollo Zone|South Wollo]] ([[Dessie]])
*[[Gambela Region|Gambela]]
*[[West Gojjam Zone|West Gojjam]] (Bahr Dar)
*[[Misraq Gojjam Zone|East Gojjam]] ([[Debre Marqos|Debre Markos]])
*[[Semien Gondar Zone|North Gondar]]
*[[South Gondar Zone|South Gondar]] ([[Debre Tabor]])
*Jerusalem
*[[Illubabor Zone|Illubabor]]
*[[Jigjiga]]
*[[Jimma]]
*[[Kembata Tembaro Zone|Kembata]]
*Methara
*Mizan Teferi (Kaffa)
*Negele-[[Borena Zone|Borena]]
*[[Ogaden]] ([[Somali region|Somali Region]])
*[[South Omo Zone|Omo]]
*Selalya
*[[Misraqawi Zone|East Tigray]]
*[[Mi'irabawi Zone|West Tigray]]
*[[Mehakelegnaw Zone|Central Tigray]] ([[Mekelle|Me'kele]])
*[[Debubawi Zone|South Tigray]]
*[[Khartoum]] and [[Nubia]]
*Shewa ([[Adama, Ethiopia|Adama]])
*North Shoa (Debre Berhan)
*[[Washington, D.C.]], and surrounding areas
*Eastern Canada
*Western Canada
*[[Trinidad and Tobago|Trinidad]] and Latin America
}}
==See also==
{{Portal|Christianity|Ethiopia|Africa
}}
* [[Abuna]]
* [[Biblical law in Christianity]]
* [[Christianity and Judaism]]
* [[Christian observances of Jewish holidays]]
* [[Christianity in Ethiopia]]
* [[Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church]]
* [[Ethiopian Catholic Church]]
* [[Ethiopian chant]]
* [[Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Exile]]
* [[List of abunas of Ethiopia]]
* [[List of calendar of saints in the Orthodox Tewahedo]]
* [[Oriental Orthodox Church]]
* [[Mahibere Kidusan]]
==Further reading==
*{{cite book|title=[[s:The Book of the Saints of the Ethiopian church|The Book of the Saints of the Ethiopian church]]|first=Ernest Alfred Wallis |last=Budge|year=1928|publisher=Cambridge, The University Press}}
==References==
{{More footnotes needed|date=December 2019}}
{{Reflist|30em}}
*{{EB1911|wstitle=Abyssinian Church|volume=1|pages=95-96|first=Alfred Joshua|last=Butler}}
==Bibliography==
{{refbegin|2}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Brock|first=Sebastian P.|author-link=Sebastian P. Brock|title=Miaphysite, not Monophysite!|journal=Cristianesimo Nella Storia|year=2016|volume=37|number=1|pages=45–52|isbn=9788815261687|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TwKJDAEACAAJ}}
* {{Cite book|last1=Grillmeier|first1=Aloys|author-link1=Aloys Grillmeier|last2=Hainthaler|first2=Theresia|title=Christ in Christian Tradition: The Church of Alexandria with Nubia and Ethiopia after 451|volume=2/4|year=1996|location=Louisville|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|isbn=9780664223007|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-Hw28f8aCnoC}}
*Archbishop Yesehaq. 1997. ''The Ethiopian Tewahedo Church: An Integrally African Church.'' Winston-Derek Publishers.
* {{Cite book|last=Meyendorff|first=John|author-link=John Meyendorff|year=1989|title=Imperial unity and Christian divisions: The Church 450-680 A.D.|location=Crestwood, NY|publisher=St. Vladimir's Seminary Press|isbn=9780881410563|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6J_YAAAAMAAJ}}
*Mikre-Sellassie Gebre-Amanuel. 1993. "The Bible and its canon in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church." ''The Bible Translator'' 44/1:111-123.
* {{Cite journal|last=Winkler|first=Dietmar W.|title=Miaphysitism: A New Term for Use in the History of Dogma and in Ecumenical Theology|journal=The Harp|year=1997|volume=10|number=3|pages=33–40|url=https://www.academia.edu/15344445}}
{{refend}}
==External links==
{{Commons category|Ethiopian Orthodox Church}}
*[http://ethiopianorthodox.org/biography/englishethiopianliturgy.pdf Divine Liturgy of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church]
*[http://www.ethiopiantreasures.co.uk/pages/religion.htm Ethiopian Religions – Christianity, Islam, Judaism & Paganism]
*[http://www.eotc.faithweb.com/ Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church] (Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church -the oldest site)
*[https://cnewa.org/eastern-christian-churches/toc/oriental-orthodox-churches/the-ethiopian-orthodox-tewahedo-church/ CNEWA article by Ronald Roberson: Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080704115943/http://kidane-mehret.org/liturgy.html Historical Evolution of Ethiopian Anaphoras]
*[http://www.ascleiden.nl/pdf/workingpaper52.pdf Abbink, J. ''A Bibliography on Christianity in Ethiopia''. Leiden: African Studies Centre, 2003] ([[PDF]])
{{Africa topic|Oriental Orthodoxy in}}
{{Oriental Orthodoxy}}
{{History of Christianity}}
{{Christianity footer}}{{Portal bar|Ethiopia|Christianity|Religion|History|Philosophy}}{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church]]
[[Category:Members of the World Council of Churches]]