User:Ghosts of Europa/sandbox/Christianity in Ethiopia

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Christianity in Ethopia is...

History[edit]

According to church tradition, the first Ethiopian Christians were Aedisius and Frumentius, two Syrians who became shipwrecked in the Kingdom of Axum in the late third century CE. The two became enslaved to Emperor Ousanas, but were freed in his will. Around 303 CE, Frumentius visited the Patriarch of Alexandria and asked him to appoint a bishop to Axum. The Patriarch appointed Frumentius himself. As bishop, Frumentius converted Ousanas' son Ezana of Axum to Christianity.[1] In 350 CE, after Ezanas established trade routes through Meroë, he erected a stele thanking God for his protection.[2]

In 451 CE, the Council of Chalcedon rejected the doctrine of Monophysitism. According to Ethiopian tradition, in the late 5th century a group of monks known as the Nine Saints were exiled from Syria for continuing to hold Monophysite views and took refuge in Ethiopia. There, they preached a Syrian-influenced version of Christanity and established religious sites including Debre Dammo. However, scholars doubt the historicity of this story and the extent of Syrian influence on Ethiopian Christianity.[2]

The Kingdom of Axum expanded its influence to include Yemen, reaching a territorial peak in 525 CE and helping spread Christianity to Southern Arabia. However, around 570 CE, the Second Persian Empire defeated Axum in Arabia. By the middle of the 7th century, Islam had become the dominant religion in Arabia. As Islam continued to spread in the 8th century, Axum became economically and culturally isolated and focused on expanding South. By the early 9th century, Axum controlled territory to the Bashilo River, where Christian priests helped to assimilate the native Agaw people.[3][a]

The Zagwe dynasty, who considered themselves descendants of Moses, took over Axum.[b] The Zagwe emperor Gebre Meskel Lalibela (c. 1185-1225) led the creation of eleven rock churches in the capital city of Roha, now named Lalibela.[4]

In 1270 CE, Yekuno Amlak killed the Zagwe emperor as part of a Shewa rebellion and proclaimed himself the new emperor. Amlak justified the legitimacy of his rule by claiming to be restoring a Solomonic dynasty.[5][6]

Solomonic Dynasty and Kebra Nagast[edit]

The 1955 constitution of Ethiopia emphasizes that the monarchy is descended from Menelik I, the son of Makeda and Solomon.[7] The Kebra Nagast was compiled in the 14th century and explains this history in more detail. It purports to be a translation of a Coptic work, but scholars do not believe this.[7]

According to the Kebra Nagast, Makeda visited Solomon to learn statecraft. On meeting him, she converted to Judaism and the two conceived a child, whom God revealed would found a new political order. Solomon appointed their child, Menelik I, king of Ethiopia. Menelik took the Ark of the Covenant with him to Ethiopia, which became the successor state of Israel with the Ethiopians as God's new chosen people.[8]


Notes[edit]

  1. ^ This is probably excessive detail. We can cut this down; right now I'm just trying get my bearings.
  2. ^ The book and Wiki article are extremely vague on the timeline and events here. The Wiki article says this dynasty is "still shrouded in mystery".


References[edit]

  1. ^ Marcus 2006, p. 7.
  2. ^ a b Marcus 2006, p. 8.
  3. ^ Marcus 2006, p. 10–11.
  4. ^ Marcus 2006, p. 12.
  5. ^ Marcus 2006, p. 15-16.
  6. ^ Marcus 2006, p. 19.
  7. ^ a b Marcus 2006, p. 17.
  8. ^ Marcus 2006, p. 18.

Sources[edit]

Marcus, Harold G. (2006). A History of Ethiopia. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-22479-5.


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