Pray for Ethiopia

Unlike many African nations, Ethiopia has never been fully colonized, making it the oldest independent nation in Africa and one of the oldest nations in the world. Known as Abyssinia until the 20th century, the nation was ruled by a monarchy that claimed a 3,000-year history. According to national tradition, King Menelik was born to the Queen of Sheba after she married King Solomon. When Menilek came of age, he visited his father in Israel and received permission to take the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia, where it reportedly remains today. After the Ethiopian eunuch met Philip in the book of Acts, tradition says he carried the Gospel back to Ethiopia and planted the nation’s first church. Ethiopian coffee, enjoyed throughout the world, is the nation’s main export.

Agriculture has been the foundation of the Ethiopian economy for centuries, but years of unreliable weather and over-cultivation caused frequent droughts and famines. Unresolved food shortages led to the establishment of a new government in 1974 and another in 1991. Following 1991, Ethiopia experienced three decades of economic growth and relative stability. This security was shattered in 2020 when power struggles and ethnic tensions led to civil war. After a two-year struggle, the sides negotiated peace in 2022. However, independent militia groups continue to fuel violence across Ethiopia. Ethiopia’s troubled history has made it one of the world’s poorest nations. Millions struggle with food insecurity, and roughly half of the population is illiterate. Much of the economic progress made before the war has been reversed, and the government continues to seek solutions to the nation’s food shortages.

Christianity has a long history in Ethiopia. Since the Orthodox Church introduced Jesus in the fourth century, Christianity has been a part of everyday life. Persecution during the rule of a Marxist junta from 1974 to 1991 was severe, but it drove many to Christ. The number of evangelicals increased significantly, and they now worship freely under the country’s current government. Approximately 60 percent of Ethiopians consider themselves Christians. A strong Muslim presence (34 percent) lives peacefully alongside Christians, though some extremist groups threaten that relationship. Churches in Ethiopia struggle with poverty, but they continue to support each other and work together to minister to the poor.