- The Ethiopian Catholic Church
Christianity arrived in Ethiopia in the 4th century thanks to two young Syrians, Frumence and Edesi, who were held captive at the court of Axum and converted the king. Frumence, once freed, was ordained a bishop by St. Athanasius of Alexandria and sent back to Ethiopia. Ethiopia, like the Copts of Egypt, rejected the Council of Chalcedon in 451.
At the end of the 5th century, Ethiopia underwent a profound evangelization by a group of Syrian Monophysite monks—the Nine Saints—who introduced monasticism and helped translate religious texts into Ge'ez. Long under the authority of the Coptic Church, the Ethiopian Church began its journey toward independence in 1929.
The Ethiopian Catholic Church was founded in 1839 with the establishment of a prefecture in Abyssinia led by Bishop Justin de Jacobis, an Italian Lazarist. He worked to promote inculturation and, at the cost of many hardships, established an Ethiopian Catholic Church that celebrates Mass according to the Alexandrian rite in the Ge'ez language.
This Church currently has 900,000 members. Its head is His Beatitude Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel, who was created a cardinal in 2015 and resides in Addis Ababa. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has more than 35 million members and is led by Patriarch Abune Mattias in Addis Ababa.
- The Eritrean Catholic Church
Until the 20th century, the history of the Eritrean Church was intertwined with that of the Ethiopian Church.
On January 19, 2015, Pope Francis established the Eritrean Metropolitan Church (or Eritrean Catholic Church) by separating it from the Ethiopian Metropolitan Church. On that occasion, the Eparchy of Asmara was elevated to a metropolitan archeparchy, and the Archeparch of Asmara, Abune Menghesteab Tesfamariam, became the metropolitan of this Church. The Church thus created covers the entire territory of Eritrea. It is the first Eastern Church sui iuris to be established since the beginning of the 21st century.
Against a backdrop of extreme poverty and the country’s complete isolation, it faces major social challenges. The number of believers is estimated to be between 150,000 and 190,000.
The Eritrean Orthodox Church has 2 million members. The Synod of Asmara elected Abune Qerlos, who became patriarch in 2021.
