Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) Patriarch, His Holiness Abune Mathias I, EOTC Holy Synod members, and other archbishops of the Church held a discussion with the Office of the Prime Minister of Ethiopia.
ADDIS ABABA (ENA) – Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonen and the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) Holy Synod have agreed to jointly solve the current problem EOTC is facing and maintain the Church’s unity and dignity, the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) reported.
EOTC Patriarch, His Holiness Abune Mathias I, EOTC Holy Synod members, and other archbishops of the Church appreciated the deeds of the Prime Minister to support the Church since he came to power. They also raised the damages against the Church during the course of the year.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on his part explained that his government’s desire is to see a strong and unified church that contributes its share toward building the nation.
The strength of Ethiopian religious institutions help not only the religious institutions themselves but also the unity of the country, Prime Minister Abiy stressed.
Other religious institutions have also been facing challenges during the reform, although the problems that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church faced occurred in a different context, the Prime Minister said, adding that the Ethiopian government and religious institutions have to collaborate in solving problems and standing against those who fault on such institutions.
According to a press release from the Office of Prime Minister, both sides have finally agreed to tackle the problems the Church has been facing together and solve them in keeping with the unity and dignity of the Church.
Recently, nationalists of the biggest ethnic group in the country, the Oromo, have started threatening to split the Church’s Synod.
You can read the Amharic version of the press release by clicking here.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency (ENA)