Issue No. 148.

 
On 4 February 2023, three people died in a Shashamane church 250 km south of Addis Ababa. The worshipers were reportedly shot after Oromia special forces stormed the church building. Residents reported sniper fire. This tragic incident occurred after the split of some members of the Orthodox Church in Oromia from the Ethiopian Orthodox Tawahedo Church Synod. It is alarming that the armed forces would intervene in matters of church politics. Equally alarming is how quickly the religious issue became political. It is not clear who gave the order to shoot, and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s game plan remains ambiguous. It seems that he supports the ‘rebels’—church leaders in Oromia, while he preaches unity in public. Indeed, supporting the schismatics, in effect creating an ethnically-based regional church, seemingly contradicts the Prosperity Party's platform of One Ethiopia. But the plan is much bolder.
 
Shashamene was at the heart of violence that followed the murder of Oromo singer Hachalu Hundessa on 29 June 2020.  However, if the Prime Minister is encouraging rebels in this city, it is not out of support for the Oromo cause, as he has completely abandoned Oromo aspirations since coming to power. The aim is rather to undermine the power of the Orthodox Church, and the authority of Patriarch Abuna Mathias. Earlier Abiy Ahmed had supported Abuna Merkorios, the schismatic patriarch who had established a parallel church after being ousted by the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) government in 1991. Merkorios died last year on 3 March. Even farther back, the Emperor Haile Sellassie had marginalized the Orthodox Church hierarchy to strengthen his personal power. 
 
Moreover, Shashamene is not just any city. It is the city of Rastafarians. Rastafarians, who took their name from Ras Tafari (King Tafari), the birth name of Haile Sellasie, were given land by the emperor in Shashamene to establish a community. Rastafarians, who recognize themselves as the ‘true Ethiopians,’ free black men according to Ethiopianist doctrine born in the Caribbean in the early the 20th century, profess a religion derived from Judaism. They have deified Haile Sellassie, the ‘conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah,’ supposedly descended from King Solomon. For these descendants of slaves, from the Caribbean and the United States, the return to Africa was an extraordinary accomplishment. The emperor, who didn’t share their beliefs, but still quite happy with their honors, gave the Rastafarians land south of the centre of his empire-- land that had for centuries been occupied by the Oromo. Tensions continue today between the Rastafarians and the Oromo. However, neither the Oromo nor the newcomers are to blame. The emperor thought he could do what he pleased with his empire.
 
Today, the Orthodox Tawahedo Church, despite its shortcomings, is perhaps the last bastion against caesaropapism in Ethiopia. This term has been used by historians to designate a political regime in which the ruler also exercises religious power over the church.  Until Haile Selassie, Ethiopian emperors were the protectors of the Ark of the Covenant and received their legitimacy from the Church. State and Church powers remained separate. The Negus (King) was the most powerful authority in the church, adorning himself with messianic trappings. Abiy Ahmed has re-envisioned the messianic complex, seeking to benefit from the weakening of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tawahedo Church. Haile Sellassie had the Rastafarians to anoint him. Abiy Ahmed has the Pentecostals.
 
The Orthodox and Catholic churches are built on ecclesiastical hierarchy. The priesthood and the authority to offer sacraments, is transmitted by ordination by a superior (bishop, archbishop, patriarch). On the other hand, Protestantism, and in its extreme Pentecostalism, is built on charisms-- special abilities bestowed on all Christians through the Holy Spirit, giving them the power to represent Christ and to channel God's grace. Anyone who believes they have received the gifts of God can be a priest. This is in effect the universal priesthood popularized by Martin Luther. Abiy can thereby legitimize himself as the messianic figure of One Ethiopia. 
 
Earlier this week, a photograph was circulated showing members of the Prosperity Party in front of the Cathedral of St. Mary of Zion in Aksum. This church was built by Haile Sellasie next to the chapel that shelters the Ark of the Covenant. It depicts a raised finger, meaning "One faith, One church, One patriarch," but it is well known that it is not Abuna Mathias the party was defending.  Abiy Ahmed supports the schism and the Shashamene rebels. It is the Prime Minister the party is waiting for, as the new messiah and unifying emperor.
 
The current crisis of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tawahedo Church is not just anecdotal; it could disguise actual regime change.
 
After the massacre in Aksum, violence against Muslims in Gondar, and the assault on Shashamene, Sahan wishes that no Ethiopian of any faith will lose their life in a sanctuary again. The Prime Minister would be well advised to do his job, leaving spiritual matters to the Church.