Bastion of faith in the Horn of
Africa
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Ethiopia
Focus
by Larry Jerden,
feelance photojourmalist
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ETHIOPIA
— A country of some 63 million people, Ethiopia
has traditionally been a Christian 'island' surrounded, for the most
part, by a sea of the followers of Mohammed. Current figures put the
proportion of Christians and Muslims at about 65 and 31 per cent respectively.
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Even in the middle of Addis Ababa, evidence abounds of Ethiopia's
rural nature. Ethiopia. Photo: UBS/LarryJerden (ETH02DJ-143) |
“The rest of the people are followers
of traditional religions or are unbelievers,” says Kebede Mamo, General
Secretary of the Bible Society of Ethiopia. “There are even a few
atheists,” he adds, “from the time of the Communists” –
a Marxist regime overthrew Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974 but collapsed
itself in 1991.
North Ethiopia’s Christianity dates back
to the fourth century, but throughout its Christian history, it has
had to withstand repeated waves of Muslim incursion.
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Literacy and
languages in Ethiopia
Ethiopia's literacy rate is about
36 per cent and, amid many local languages, the principal modern
language of Ethiopia is Amharic. Ge’ez, on the other hand,
is an ancient Semitic language which is no longer commonly spoken
but remains the liturgical language of the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church.
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Its mountainous geography, its strong Christian
tradition, and a special dispensation from Mohammed himself spared Ethiopia
from the initial sweep of Muslim armies in the sixth century. Help from
Portugal fought off a Muslim invasion a thousand years later – and
brought the first Roman Catholics to the land. With a vocal and confident
Muslim minority, Christians have no reason to be complacent about their
efforts on behalf of their faith. (WR 373/21 - 12.02/01.03) [PHOTOS]
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