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Ethiopian Protestantism:
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Ethiopian Protestantism
Protestantism was introduced to Ethiopia through the mission societies, which, though present in Ethiopia for much of the 19th century, did not really make inroads into Ethiopian society until the twentieth, and even then remain a tiny minority. Three main missions shaped the modern Protestant churches in Ethiopia, the Lutherans, the Sudan Interior Mission and the Mennonite Mission.
The Lutheran missions were the earliest presence in Ethiopia and developed into the Mekane Yesus (the Place of Jesus) Church, formed in 1959 as a federation of three mission churches. Mekane Yesus is strongest in the south and west of Ethiopia, which are areas which were opened to missionaries because there was not a strong Orthodox presence, and exert great influence through the Voice of the Gospel radio program, which, unfortunately was nationalized in 1977, though it now broadcasts from a station in the Seychelles.
The Sudan Interior Mission began its work in the South of Ethiopia in the 1920s. It progressed steadily but unspectacularly, baptising four converts in 1932 and perhaps a hundred by the time they were driven out of Ethiopia by the invading Italians in 1938. When SIM returned five years later, they discovered a flourishing church of a hundred congregations and 20,000 members. That number grew to 100,000 by 1960 when revival once again swept the church bringing its membership to 500,000 by 1974. The Kale Heywat (Word of Life) church, which grew out of the SIM churches has continued to flourish and grow since the restoration of religious freedom in 1991.
The Mennonite mission came to Ethiopia after World War II as a relief agency, but received permission to evangelize soon after. Two distinct churches grew out of the influence of the Mennonite mission. The Meserete Kristos (Christ is the Foundation) church has remained an important part of the wordwide Mennonite fellowship, while the Mulu Wengel Church has insisted on maintaining its independence from western ties.
The Mulu Wengel (Full Gospel) church grew out of the Heavenly Sunshine Bible study, begun by a group of high school students learning English and a Mennonite doctor, though it was also decisively influenced by the teachings of the Finnish Pentecostal Mission, and has never had formal connections with any western mission.
A large number of Mulu Wengel members joined Meserete Kristos when Mulu Wengel was outlawed by the government in 1972. Meserete Kristos followed Mulu Wengel’s lead in cultivating the charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit. As a result the Meserete Kristos church has become far more charismatic and Pentecostal than most of its sister Mennonite churches. Orthodox Christians refer to all protestants as "Pentes" or Pentecostals, a testimony to the influence of the Pentecostal movement on Ethiopian protestantism, despite the official disapproval of the Kale Heywat Church and the Mekane Yesus church. Both Meserete Kristos and Mulu Wengel churches practice faith healing, exorcism of demons, and glossolalia.
In 1982 Meserete Kristos, then a church of 5,000 members was outlawed, this time by the Marxist government, which came to power in 1974. It suffered intense persecution for nine years. When religious freedom was granted again in 1991 and the believers assembled, Meserete Kristos discovered that they now numbered 50,000, a tenfold increase during the time of persecution. MKC is now growing at a rate of approximately 20% per year.
This page was based on the following sources, which you can consult for more detailed information:
Wilfred and Eleanor Bockelman, Ethiopia: Where Lutheran is Spelled "Mekane Yesus." Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1972.
F. Peter Cotterell, Born at Midnight Chicago: Moody Press, 1973
Peter Hege, Beyond our Dreams Scottdale PA: Herald Press, 1999