Abstract
Ethiopia is characterized not only by a long defended independence, but also by being the only country of sub-Saharan Africa having ancient Christian roots that were not imported from Europe. In this essay, based on study of unedited material contained in Italian, British and Ethiopian diplomatic and religious archives, we analyse the parabola of the Ethiopian Church and its relationship with the imperial power during the last, lengthy reign of Hailé Sélassié, in highlighting the contradictions of a denominational conception in collision with the social and political transformations of the 20th c. Attempts at reforming the Ethiopian Church set in motion in the 20s by the Negus suffered a violent interruption with the fascist occupation of 1935-41 and the dramatic elimination of religious authorities, resuming after World War Two with a process of emancipation from the Egyptian Coptic Church, formally achieved in 1948, and the Ethiopian Church’s overture to extra-national horizons and the establishment of relations with other Churches (Catholic, orthodox). The end of the last “Christian empire” with the 1974 revolution, opened a tragic new season for the Ethiopian Church, characterized by oppression, fragility and closure.
Published Version
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