Title: The%20Church%20as%20a%20victim%20of%20religion-based%20violence%20and%20a%20mediator%20in%20conflict%20resolution:%20The%20case%20of%20the%20Ethiopian%20Evangelical%20Church%20Mekane%20Yesus
1The Church as a victim of religion-based violence
and a mediator in conflict resolution The case
of the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus
- Presented on EED Alumni Conference,
Stellenbosch, SA - By Sebilu Bodja
2Facts about Ethiopia
- Population- 74 million
- Size- 1.12 mill. Sq. Kms (three times the size of
Germany) - More than 80 ethnic groups and languages
- Federal form of government (9 regions, 2
chartered Federal cities) - Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy and
employs about 85 of the population - More than 50 of the population living below
poverty line (1/day/person)
3Introduction
- Three major faith groups dominate the
religious landscape of Ethiopia. - Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOC) 44
- Muslims 33.9
- Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians 18.2
- Historical records show that Christianity was
introduced to Ethiopia in the early 4th century.
EOC has the majority of its adherents in the
Northern and North central part of the country - Ethiopia is said to have been first exposed to
Islam when Muslims persecuted in Saudi Arabia
crossed the Red Sea and sought a refuge in the
North Eastern part of the country and were
favorably accepted by the Habesha King, Nejashi,
who was not a Muslim himself.
4Introduction -2
- Protestantism was brought to Ethiopia principally
through missionary activities of Germans, Swedes
and Norwegians in late 19th century - Ethiopia prouds itself for religious tolerance
and no major cases of religion-based violence
have been witnessed in recent history - Violent clashes have been observed in recent
years in some pockets of the country
5The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus
(EECMY)
- It is a Lutheran Church founded by Hermannesburg
Mission of Germany and the Church of Sweden
before 110 years. - It became a national, indigenous Church
officially registered by the government in 1959. - It had 20,000 members in 1959
- Today the Church has presence in all regions of
the country and has more than 5 million members - It is the fastest growing Lutheran Church in
Africa
6 7Problem statement
- Inter-religious relations are affected by a
number of factors. Among others, the following
are few to mention - a. Legacy of past relations
- b. Numerical proportion of faith groups
- c. Legal frameworks governing religious groups
- d. Global and national religious developments
related to local relationships - Despite a good history of tolerance and
co-existence, violent forms of religious
conflicts have been observed involving Muslims
and Christians.
8Problem statement -2
- The EECMY suffered losses in the recent violence
that took place in the South western part of the
country in 2006. - It was a major actor in the mediation process in
the aftermath of the conflict. The study tried to
see to these roles of the Church and sought to
answer of the following questions - How did the church handle these conflicting
roles? - What were the outcomes?
- And how did it affect current inter-religious
relations?
9Methodology
- Both primary and secondary sources were used
- Primary- Interview with individuals with
first-hand accounts of the conflict - Secondary reports by national and international
bodies working on religious issues
10Conflict areas covered by the study
- Two areas in the South Western part of the
country Jimma and Illuababora zones of the
Oromia National Regional State. - These are predominantly Muslim areas with a
sizable EOC believers in urban areas. Evangelical
protestants are a growing minority. - The EECMY has a large presence in the area
through its diverse social, development and
spiritual progams
11Religious freedom in retrospect
- The EOC remained a privileged faith group in many
respects in the past. Ethiopian kings made it a
state religion and in some instances received
direct budgetary support - Muslims were not given as much space as the EOC
but were not discriminated against. - As relatively new entrants to in the religious
landscape, protestants were largely marginalized
and suffered serious human rights abuses - After the overthrow of the communist regime, the
new Ethiopian constitution clearly stipulated
freedom of religion
12Religious freedom in retrospect -2
- The constitution clearly separated state and
religion and presented the Ethiopian state as a
secular one - All religious groups were treated before the law
equally - However, the legacy of the past has tremendous
influence in the way different religious groups
exercise their constitutional right
13Inter-faith relations in the study areas
- A number of factors come into play to affect
inter-faith relations. - No single factor is solely responsible for
shaping religious relations - For the purpose of this study, the following
factors are considered - Global factors
- - War on terror- and invasion of Afghanistan
and - Iraq
- - Perception in local communities that war on
- terror is a covert war on Islam
- - Middle east conflict
14Inter-faith relations in the study areas -2
- b. National and local factors
- - changes in the religious demography
- - Diminishing influence of the EOCs legacy
- -Religious freedom and competition for converts
15Circumstances leading up to the conflict
- Sectarianism among Muslims
- - The proliferation of Muslim missionaries from
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, etc. and the
divide long sects - Wahhabi movement the teaching is rooted in Saudi
Arabia and imposes strict laws on dressing,
appearance and other forms of lifestyles. - Kawarija movement it is an ultra-fundamental
teaching originated from Pakistan. The adherents
of the sect seek to work underground, committed
to studying the Quoran, envision the entire
Islamization of Ethiopia, consider all
non-Muslims as infidel and forbid the payment of
taxes to a secular government.
16Circumstances leading up to the conflict -2
- 2. Weakening legacy of the EOCs influence
- - As thee areas are predominantly Muslim, the
new religious freedom and autonomy brought with
it a big challenge for minority religious groups
to maintain their historical advantages.
17Causes and dimensions of the conflict
- The conflict started as a simple fight between
individuals on the eve of a Christian Holiday.
The local Muslims demanded that the ceremony
place should be changed because it is near the
Mosque. - The fight began in a village and in a short
period of time covered many villages across
districts.
18Causes and dimensions of the conflict
- The violence involved
- a. burning down Church buildings and properties
and immediately converting them into mosques. - b. forcing Christians to immediately renounce
their faith and convert to Islam - c. beheading of Christians who refused to convert
to Islam - d. burning down houses and properties belonging
to Christians a case that occasionally involved
Muslims who were targeted by Christians also. - e. retaliating Muslims who converted to
Christianity
19The role of the Church during after the conflict
- Emergency assistance
- Urging the government to intervene
- Organizing peace conferences
- Training of trainers
20Outcomes of the Churchs efforts
- EECMYs relationship with the EOC and mainstream
Muslim leaders improved. - Government-Church relations have improved.
- As a result of the successive peace conferences
and trainings, tolerance and co-existence are
taking roots. - Faith groups have developed a shared interest to
cooperate in the area of poverty reduction and
sustainable development.
21Conclusions
- The Church deliberately avoided to capitalize on
its loss. It presented itself as a mediator - Its holistic interventions positioned it to have
a leverage that would be impossible given the
numerical disadvantage - It is premature to say that the approach the
church used can be modeled and replicated - Bringing fundamental elements of the Islamic
sects on board remains the big task.