Christian Before Rome: Ethiopia’s Early Adoption of Christianity as the State Religion

As one of the oldest Christian nations in the world, Ethiopia’s place in Christendom is unique. The Kingdom of Aksum, present-day northern Ethiopia and Eritrea, was converted to Christianity after the Kingdom of Armenia in 301 AD and before the Edict of Thessalonica, which marked the conversion of the Roman Empire, in 380 AD.

The Kingdom of Aksum was part of Ancient Abyssinia, commonly referred to as Ethiopia. And throughout the centuries, the place of religion, whether polytheistic or monotheistic, has been essential to this great land’s culture and way of life.

Religion in Pre-Christian Ethiopia

Before the arrival of Christianity, Ethiopia was essentially a polytheist land where people worshipped different forms of paganism. The gods Astar, Meder and Mahrem represented the sky, earth and war, respectively. These three gods were central to traditional and spiritual rituals. In addition to this trinity, we can add Beher, the sea god, and other deities and divinities.

Paganist Ethiopia was strongly influenced by elements of South Arabian paganism, which in turn was influenced by Babylonian and Assyrian paganism.

Historians have also established the presence of small groups of Jewish Ethiopians who lived in Northern Lake Tana. It is uncertain where they came from, but various hypotheses include Arabia, Egypt or the Meroitic Kingdom.

The Coming of Christianity

In the early fifth century, the Roman historian Rufinus of Aquileia published his book “The Church History”, which is the oldest account of the arrival of Christianity in Ethiopia. 

According to Rufinus, two Christian Phoenician brothers who were slaves at the royal court of Aksum, rose to prominent positions within the court. They established freedom of worship for themselves and for the Greek merchants who engaged in trade and commerce in the kingdom. The brothers, Frumentius and Edesius, together sowed the foundation of a Christian community.

These early Christians were under the patriarch of Egypt, and Frumentius became the first bishop of Ethiopia.

The conversion of many notables in the court circles played an essential role in the history of Christianity in Ethiopia; however, the conversion of King Ezana in 320 AD solidified Christianity as the state religion. The first significant illustration of the kingdom’s adherence to Christianity was the inscription of the cross on their currency.

There have been many speculations on the motive behind King Ezana’s conversion. One political motive could have been the desire for a closer relationship with the Byzantine Empire, which acted as the protector and defender of Christians in the East.

Early Churches in Ethiopia

Following the state’s religious conversion, the Ethiopian architectural landscape was imbued with Christianity. King Ezana and his successors built churches and monasteries to provide places of worship throughout the country.

The first Christian churches were largely inspired by the model Graeco-Roman basilicas, featuring an open forecourt out front. Inside, rows of columns divided the rectangular structures into three naves.

Other early Christian basilicas were inspired by Syrian architecture and were characterized by their oblong shape. The monastic church at Debre Damo in the Tigray region is the most impressive survival of this architectural style. Built in the sixth century, it is only accessible by climbing one of the cliffs surrounding the plateau. In February of 2021, parts of this historic monastery were destroyed during the Tigray War, inspiring outrage throughout the country.

Genesis of the Ethiopic Bible

Until the seventh century, Ethiopian literature consisted mainly of translations from Greek literature—the Ethiopic Bible included.

This holy text was a translation of the Syriac Bible. According to historian Sabatino Moscati, the first book to be translated was the Gospels, then the Psalter, followed by the rest of the books of the Bible. Moscati explains a disparity in the translations: some books, such as Joshua, Leviticus and Genesis, were well translated, while others, such as the book of Judith, have a large number of discrepancies from the Greek original.  

Ethiopian literature also included translations from the Qerillos, a collection of Christological writings derived from the works of Cyril of Alexandria. The Qerillos were moral reflections illustrated through descriptions of animals, birds, plants, stones and fantastic creatures.

The Impact of Islam

In the centuries that followed Ethiopia’s conversion to Christianity, a third monotheistic religion emerged: Islam. Between 615 and 616 AD, many Muslims fled Mecca due to persecution and arrived in Ethiopia under the reign of King Najashi. The king allowed them to practice and spread their faith throughout the empire, and Muslims came to view Ethiopia as a peaceful land.

Eventually, the Arab conquest of Egypt and North Africa meant Ethiopia was cut off from the rest of Eastern Christianity for many centuries. And, as the political and military power of Muslim states in Arabia increased, so too did their expansionist goals. In the 14th and 15th centuries, these states threatened to absorb Ethiopia into the Islamic world. The threats were averted due to the iron fist ruling of statesmen like Amda Tsion I and Zara Yaqob, and Christianity was maintained as the primary religion

Contemporary Religious Climate

According to the Global Religious Futures project, in 2020, 61.9% of the Ethiopian population was Christian, while 35.9% was Muslim and less than 1% was Jewish.

Numerous conflicts in modern-day Ethiopia have shown opposition between Christians and Muslims. The current conflict in the northern region of Tigray has both ethnic and religious dimensions; Christian and Islamic cultural heritage sites are regularly looted and destroyed.

But among the Abrahamic religions, Christianity remains steadfast in its pre-eminence. Through architecture, literature and politics, it influenced every facet of the Ethiopian identity. By transcending spirituality and religious practices in this way, Christianity moulded and shaped the religious climate, both past and present, of Ethiopia.

References:

Moscati, Sabatino. (1957). Ancient Semitic Civilizations. Elek Books Limited

 Buxton, David. (1970). The Abyssinians (Ancient Peoples & Places). Praeger Publishers

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