Teens Released ''In Good Health''

World Watch Monitor 09 February 2017

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An Ethiopian woman with her Bible.
Photo: World Watch Monitor

Subsequent to their initial court hearing last September, four Ethiopian teenagers are reported to be in good health following their release from prison on December 22nd. Despite the fact that three of the girls were minors, all four were pronounced guilty in November of "inciting religious violence" for merely distributing Christian literature.

Gifti, (14), Mihiret (14), Eden (15) and Deborah (18) served their one-month sentence at a large prison in Gelemiso alongside criminals. The Christian girls were distributing books in the eastern Ethiopian town of Babile, not far from Harar -- a city recognized by the community as the fourth holy city of Islam -- when they were arrested.

Local militant Muslims considered the book the girls were distributing an insult to Islam. Angered over their distribution efforts, the militants led an attack upon the Protestant Meserete Kristos Church in Babile on September 19th, and instigated the arrest and conviction of the four teens. A previous report on the girls' arrest may be reviewed here.

Current Ministry Project
VOMC has partnered with a ministry to strengthen the witness of the local church by equipping evangelists with the means to build sustainability through the development of a small business in a tentmaker project.

Project Fund: Relief and Development
Country Information
Population
116,462,712 (2023 est.)

Ethnicity (%)
Oromo (35.8), Amara (24.1), Somali (7.2), Tigray (5.7), Sidama (4.1), Guragie (2.6), Welaita (2.3), Afar (2.2), Silte (1.3), Kefficho (1,2), Other (13.5) (2022 est.)

Religion (%)
Ethiopian Orthodox (43.8), Muslim (31.3), Protestant (22.8), Catholic (0.7), traditional (0.6), other (0.8)

Leader
President Taye Atske Selassie (2024)

Government type
Federal parliamentary republic

Legal system
Civil law system

Source: CIA World Factbook
Pray for Ethiopia
Ask the Lord to direct Ethiopia's governmental leaders as they continue to work toward solutions to the ongoing religious tensions in the country. While this is taking place, pray that His people will not become weary in doing what is right. Rather, may they be further strengthened and encouraged to boldly proclaim the Gospel, overcoming hatred with the powerful love of Christ.

Ethiopia News

Christian Workers Attacked While Constructing Church

This man was attacked while building a church.
Photo: VOM International

On April 7th, a group of Christians were working to construct a church building when they were violently attacked by a mob of Muslim militants. Armed with machetes, the attackers attempted to stop the construction, wounding several of the workers who were present.

Read more...
Open-Air Evangelists Attacked

These Christian evangelists were attacked
while preaching the Gospel.

On February 9th, two Christian evangelists were attacked by Muslim militants while preaching within an open-air market in central Ethiopia. As a result of the incident, both men suffered severe head injuries and thereby had to be transported to a local hospital. Details surrounding their current conditions have not yet been released at the time of publishing this report.

Read more...
Attacked Church Seeks New Meeting Location

The remains of the church building.
Photo: VOMC Ministry Partner

On July 29th, a small congregation in Ethiopia was attacked by hostile community members who were opposed to the church's presence in their village. During the incident, the attackers dismantled the simple shelter where the Christians had been meeting, and then they proceeded to steal its structural materials. (For more details about this incident, see this report.)

Read more...
Church Attack Forces Pastor and Wife into Hiding

The remains of the church building.
Photo: VOMC Ministry Partner

The Voice of the Martyrs Canada has partnered with Steadfast Global to provide small loans to pastors and other Christian workers so they can establish sustainable businesses in support of their ministries. Among the recipients of this project is Pastor Paul, along with his wife Mary. (Their given names were changed for the purpose of this report due to security concerns.) This couple has been faithfully ministering within a Muslim-majority community in southern Ethiopia. As part of their ministry outreach, Pastor Paul and Mary leased space in a compound where they set up a shelter composed of poles and zinc sheets so they could hold worship services with local converts.

Read more...