The church of Abyssinia, better known presently as the Ethiopian & Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo church, is historically known to be the oldest church outside of Israel dating back to 34 A.D. Predating all denominations in the christian world, the Church adheres to the confession of the councils ending with the non-acceptance of the council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D. dubbing the Church with the name Miaphysitism or non-Chalcedonian ( not to be confused with monophysitism/Nestorianism). Both churches share approximately 3000 years of history trace their roots to the ancient jewish faith of Israel, brought by the Queen of Sheba over 2,800 years ago, although there is skepticism, evidence for the claims can be found in the Amhara and Tigray regions of present day Ethiopia and the highlands of central Eritrea. The last remnants of this culture and direct jewish religious practise can be seen throughout the highlands of present day Ethiopia and Eritrea but are highly concentrated in practise by the people known as Bete Isra'el. Although rich with history, the Church suffers from outside threats that attack the church especially due to the communist era and lack of modernization which caused some of the faithful to go astray and follow western European/American based faiths such as Protestantism and evangelical Pentecostalism.
For as long as I can remember the church has been the second most spoken topic in my household, being a highlight of Ethiopian and Eritrean history allowed it to have a big impact on my life, as I got older it made me wonder "what is it about that Church in East africa", until having went there for myself. Upon my return to the church with open arms I quickly noticed the spiritual tone of awe in the sanctuary where the adults would worship, unique with humbleness and respect, unlike most Protestant churches where you would see more of an emotional drive, attracted me to spend a range of 10-20 minutes each Sunday listening to the chants of the Bishop, priest, and deacons even though I was not able to understand the languages they were in. After a few months I had begun some study on the teachings and beliefs of the Church with some of the clergy unknowingly starting my journey in Christos!
