The Origins of the New Churches Movement in Southern Ethiopia, 1927-1944

This study describes the beginnings of a movement which has created another face for Ethiopian Christianity. The expatriate missionary-evangelists, who in 1927 were encouraged by Emperor Haile Selassie to work in southern Ethiopia, intentionally by-passed the Orthodox model and made a fresh start. Three of the many facets of the movement comprise the body of the book. There is the religious backdrop of Orthodox Christianity and the expatriates' fundamentalist traditions; then the praxis and polity of their work; finally the post-Occupation outcome which confirmed their choices. Since its beginning in 1932 the New Churches Movement has impacted every part of Ethiopian society: religious, political and socio-economic. It demonstrates that a fresh start can be complementary rather than competitive. The movement's success encourages missionary-evangelists to continue making new beginnings.

Brian L. Fargher, Ph.D. (1988) in Mission History, University of Aberdeen, is Executive Director of the Leadership Training Centre with Campus Crusade for Christ, Edmonton, Canada.