Meserete Kristos Church, Ethiopia
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 Ethiopia: World Factbook, 2009[1] | |
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The Meserete Kristos Church (MKC) is the primary Anabaptist-related group in Ethiopia. In 2009 MKC had 172,299 members in 484 congregations.[2] As of 2009, Meserete Kristos Church is the largest national Anabaptist conference in the world.[3]
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History
Origins
The Meserete Kristos Church grew out of work in 1948 by Mennonite Central Committee and Eastern Mennonite Mission. [4] In 1982, the Marxist government confiscated all of Meserete Kristos' offices, worship buildings, bank accounts and physical property. While the church leaders were arrested, church members took it upon themselves to hold church services in private. There was always the constant risk of police raids so members communicated by word of mouth and the number of people per service was limited.[5] The Meserete Kristos Church officially ceased to exist; however, the democratization process in 1992 initiated by the new government allowed the church to reemerge and obtain some of their lost property.[4] This ten year period of underground activity didn't serve its intended purpose of decreasing church attendance, but rather signified a boom in church membership as numbers rose from 5,000 to 34,000 people.[4]
Growth
Contemporary Trends
Important Individuals
Electronic Resources
Annotated Bibliography
- Muktar, Bedru H. "Non-formal Theological Education: The Meserete Kristos Church Experience." Mission Focus 5 (1997): 23-46.
- This article seeks to illustrate the incredible growth rates Meserete Kristos Church has experienced throughout the last few decades and how they have implemented a non-formal theological education program in order to accommodate this growth and expansion. Not only are their education programs constantly reevaluated, but administrative structures are also reorganized to meet the growing needs of the church.
- Shenk, Wilbert. "New Wineskins for New Wine: Toward a Post-Christendom Ecclesiology." International Bulletin of Missionary Research 29, no.2 (2005): 23-46.
- This article argues that Christians should follow the gospels but should not follow a pre-prescribed form of church. Churches should be created with the understanding that local culture should shape the structure and form of the church.
Archives and Libraries
External Links
Citations
- ↑ "Ethiopia," CIA World Factbook. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html (accessed 7 June 2009).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "2009 Mennonite and Brethren in Christ World Membership: Africa Summary," Mennonite World Conference. http://www.mwc-cmm.org/en15/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13&Itemid=16 (accessed 7 June 2010).
- ↑ Sandra Joireman, Church, State and Citizen (Oxford:Oxford University Press, 2009), 86.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Bedru H. Muktar, "Non-formal Theological Education: The Meserete Kristos Church Experience," Mission Focus. http://ambs.edu/files/documents/news-and-publications/publications/mf/Mission_Focus_Vol_5.pdf#page=24.
- ↑ Wilbert Shenk, "New Wineskins for New Wine: Toward a Post-Christendom Ecclesiology," International Bulletin of Missionary Research. http://prodigal.typepad.com/files/wilbert-shenk---new-wineskins-for-new-wine---toward-a-post-christendom-ecclesiology.pdf.
