Ethiopia 101

Praise God! My visa for Ethiopia has been approved, and I will be heading there within a week. To everyone who has supported and prayed for me, thank you. I am very grateful.

You may be asking yourself questions about Ethiopia. Where is it? What is it like? Well, this post will answer some basic questions about the country of Ethiopia.

Where is Ethiopia?

Ethiopia (officially, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia) is a landlocked country located in the horn of Africa. Starting from due North and moving clockwise, it is bordered by Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan, and Sudan. It is about 444,000 square miles (around halfway between the size of Texas and Alaska) and is the world's 27th largest country. With a population of over 90 million people, Ethiopia is the world's most populous landlocked country and the second largest country in Africa. The country consists mainly of highlands and mountains in the West and lower lands and semi-deserts in the East.

I will be in the capital city, Addis Ababa. This thriving city is located near the center of the country in the highlands. It sits at an altitude of over 7,500 feet and has a population of around 3.5 million. Addis Ababa is often referred to as the "political capital of Africa" because it is home to the African Union, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, and other international bodies.

What is Ethiopia like?

Ethiopia is an externally diverse country with 88 languages spoken, and only seven of these languages have a complete Bible translation. The most widespread are Oromo and Amharic, the official language. Its primary export is coffee (Ethiopia exports more coffee than any other country in the world), but other exports include khat, gold, leather products, and oilseed.

What is Ethiopia's history?
Ethiopia's history goes back to the beginning of humanity. Lucy, a 3.2 million year old humanoid, was found in Ethiopia. Recorded history goes back to the Aksumite Empire which was founded in the 200's. Manichaeus in the 3rd century listed Aksum as one of the four great empires along with Rome, Persia, and China. In the 4th century the Aksumite king Ezana was converted to Christianity by Frumentius from Tyre who had come to live in Ethiopia. Frumentius was later appointed by Athanasius of Alexandria as the bishop of Ethiopia.

You can see in this photo the conversion of Ethiopia to Christianity. Both these coins feature King Ezana in the center. At the top of the left coin you can see the pre-Christian crescent moon symbol, but at the top of the right coin you can see the Christian cross.

According to the tradition found in the Kebra Nagast, the first king of Ethiopia was Menelik I who was the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Many Ethiopian rulers have claimed to be descendants of Menelik I, all the way until Haile Selassie who was deposed in 1974. At that point the Derg, a communist government, took over Ethiopia until the early 1987. Soon after, the Soviet Union pulled all support from Ethiopia which caused a massive economic collapse. In 1994 a new constitution was approved and the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front has held power since.

What about Ethiopian Food?
If you have never had Ethiopian food you should look up the Ethiopian restaurant that is closest to you. It is delicious. The national food is injera with wot. Injera is a spongy, slightly sour, bread that is the basic food and utensil. Wot is a thick stew that is often made with root vegetables or meat. You eat with your hands in Ethiopia and the injera is used to scoop up the stews.

What Religion is Practiced?
Ethiopia is about 60% Christian and 35% Muslim. The following graph (from Operation World) shows the percentage of religions and their growths over the past century.

M=Muslim, E=Ethnic Religions, O=Orthodox, P=Protestant, X=Other Christian 

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has dominated the religious and political landscape of Ethiopia since King Ezana. This Church finds their origin from the union of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba and holds that the ark of the covenant is in a small chapel in the northern city of Aksum. It is more similar to Eastern Orthodox traditions but still remains very unique due to its geographical and political isolation from the rest of the world. As a side note, Abune Paulos (1935-2012), the fifth patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church was a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary.

Do you have any other questions about Ethiopia? Post them in the comments and I'll try to answer them.

-ደቭሊን(Devlin)

Preparation for Ethiopia

Maybe I should just walk there...

My life feels like it is quickly changing. Today is my 25th birthday and the last day of my orientation at SIM (the missions agency sending me to Ethiopia). As I reflect on my quarter-century long life, it is apparent all of the many ways God has been faithful to me. God has brought me through Wheaton to Princeton Seminary and now is leading me towards Ethiopia. God has shown faithfulness to me by providing over 100% of my funds necessary for Ethiopia. And as I look forward to the next chapter, I am incredible excited about what is in store. 

At the training and orientation here at SIM USA’s campus in Charlotte I have been taught various topics that will be helpful when I reach the field such as evangelism, child safety, IT security, spiritual warfare, and others. I have heard stories of people whose grandparents were missionaries in Ethiopia. One of the most exciting pieces of information was learning that an Ethiopian Christian who was trained at the school I will be teaching at has been sent to a country that is hostile to Christianity and is their most effective evangelist there. May God use me to help train such people.

A major challenge that I am facing is the visa process. The way it has to work for me is that I have to first apply for a 30 day NGO visa that will get me into the country, and then I will get the year long “spiritual workers permit.” One of the requirements for the work permit is a degree in religion, which I have from Wheaton College. But my diploma only states that I have a Bachelor’s of Arts and it does not say what my major was. So, right now, the diploma may not fulfill the requirements for the visa. We are hoping that we can supplement the diploma with my transcript but normally the diploma is the official document and not the transcript. There is also a chance that the transcript may need to be authenticated by the US government which is another three week process. So please pray that the Ethiopia will accept my diploma and an unauthenticated transcript as the requirements for the work permit. In addition, Ethiopia has their national elections this weekend, so hopefully that will not interfere with this process.

Please pray for the following:

• That the Ethiopia will accept my diploma and an unauthenticated transcript as the requirements for my work permit.
• That the election will not hinder the visa process.
• That I will get the visa and be in Ethiopia by June 15th.
• That God will continue to prepare me and make me ready for this mission.

If you would like to be added to my email list then shoot me an email or post a comment.

The Giver or the Gifts: A Sermon from Exodus 33

You can listen to my most recent sermon, preached on April 12th at Princeton Meadow Church, below.

Click on this link to download the sermon audio file.

Seeing Creation During WIHL

Since I have been back from my Wheaton in the Holy Lands (WIHL) trip for a few weeks now I thought it would be good to do some reflecting.  Much of what has and will stick with me I have already blogged but a significant experience that I will not forget was seeing creation.  For me, like many of us, nature can be one of the clearest ways to see the glory and beauty of God.  And there was no shortage of this on my trip.  Here are some examples.  

(The Judean wilderness)

(The "Super Bowl" in the Negev)

(Looking towards the Dead Sea from Massada) 

(Mount Tabor from the Nazereth Ridge in Galilee) 

(The Sea of Galilee)

(A Headwater of the Jordan River)

(The Aegean Sea)

(Meteora in Greece)

(Sunset over Aegean Sea behind Temple of Poseidon) 

These pictures represent a glimpse of what I was able to see in these four countries.  They all speak to the power, majesty, and creativity of our God.  It always reminds me of Job 38.  He laid the earth on its foundations and marker of its deminsions; He gives orders to the morning and shows the dawn its place; He tells the waves where to halt; He brings fourth the constelations in their seasons.  He is amazing and He is God.  Amen. 

Gregory of Nazianzus

Gregory of Nazianzus, whom the Eastern Orthodox Church knows as 'The Theologian,' was one of the three famous Cappadocian Fathers.  He lived from 329 to 390 and was extremely influential on orthodox Trinitarian theology.  During a time when the Church was being lead astray by the Arian and Apollinarian heresies he was a strong voice for the correct doctrine of the Trinity.  He held that the Trinity was one God, or substance, in three persons that are equal in value, authority, eternity, and divinity.  In 379 he delivered his famous five theological orations in Constantinople espousing this doctrine and was made bishop of the city in 380.  While he was only the bishop for less than two years he was there for an extremely important part of church history because he presided over part of the Second Ecumenical Council in 381 that condemned Arianism and Apollinarianism as heresies.

He is probably my favorite theologian and I have been able to see some cool things relating to him on this trip.

This is a famous fresco of Gregory the Theologian in a church in Chora in Turkey.

This is an icon of Gregory at the Patriarchal Cathedral of St. George outside of Istanbul.  Also at that church are his relics.  While it was quite odd to see the bones of my favorite saint in a box, there was something powerful about it.  I do not believe that venerating those remains would have helped me become more godly, but I think there is something to our duty to honor those who have gone before us and have made it possible for us to have the faith we now have.

(Sorry for the bad picture.  His bones are in the box.  You can see them through the holes.)

This is one of my favorite quotes from him:

"Let us become like Christ, since Christ became like us.  Let us become God’s for His sake, since He for ours became Man.  He assumed the worse that He might give us the better; He became poor that we through His poverty might be rich; He took upon Him the form of a servant that we might receive back our liberty; He came down that we might be exalted; He was tempted that we might conquer; He was dishonoured that He might glorify us; He died that He might save us; He ascended that He might draw to Himself us, who were lying low in the Fall of sin.  Let us give all, offer all, to Him Who gave Himself a Ransom and a Reconciliation for us.  But one can give nothing like oneself, understanding the Mystery, and becoming for His sake all that He became for ours." Oration I.V.