New Ethiopian Patriarch elected

2. March 2013 - 11:13

Archbishop Abune Mathias of Jerusalem elected 28 February 2013 as the sixth Patriarch of the Ethiopian Church, six months after the death of the previous Patriarch Abune Paulos.

On Sunday, 3 March 2013 Abune Mathias will be enthroned in Adis Abeba, the capital of Ethiopia.  The new head of this Church served as Archbishop of the diocese of Jerusalem and lived abroad for more than 30 years.

The Ethiopian Church

The Ethiopian Tewahedo Church originates from the age of the New Testament. Until 20th century this Church was under the jurisdiction of the Coptic Orthodox Church. Since the ouster of the Mengistu regime in 1991 the church life has flourished.

Some customs of the Ethiopian church are characteristic, since they originate from Judaism.

According to the number of the faithful, The Ethiopian Church is the biggest Oriental,  Non-Chalcedonian Church. It is estimated that there are 35 million adherents of this Church, in the country of 85 million souls.

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