Mission History

Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY)

The Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY) has its origins from mission work of Lutheran and Presbyterian churches of Europe and North America, working together with Ethiopian evangelical pioneers. In the 19th century, missionaries came first from Sweden and Germany, followed by other Nordic countries in the 20th century. In 1957, the American Lutheran Church, a predecessor of the ELCA, also joined into the mission outreach. The ALC sent many missionaries during the late 1950s and 60s, working in medical, educational and agricultural work, as well as outreach to the northern Afar peoples and neighboring lowlanders. Some worked with the Radio Voice of the Gospel, a radio station which broadcast Christian programs to most of Africa.

The EECMY was established as a national church in January 1959, with about 20,000 members, and became a member of the Lutheran World Federation in 1963. Presbyterian congregations in the southwest of Ethiopia (who had formed the Bethel Church in 1947) joined the EECMY in 1973. By 1991, the EECMY had grown to over a million members. In 2009, with 4.9 million, it is the second largest church body in the Lutheran communion, after the Church of Sweden. (The ELCA is number three.)