Tradition · 330

Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo

The church of Ethiopia, one of the Oriental Orthodox churches. Tewahedo means “made one”, referring to the union of divinity and humanity in Christ.

Christianity became the faith of the Aksumite kingdom under King Ezana in the 4th century (c. 330s), after Frumentius was consecrated its first bishop by Athanasius of Alexandria. For centuries its head was an Egyptian bishop appointed by the Coptic Orthodox patriarch. It became self-governing with its own patriarch in 1959. It holds Miaphysitism and has a distinctive biblical canon.