Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Influence on the Reformation=== [[File:Icon of Abuna Samuel of Waldebba.jpg|thumb|left|Icon of [[Samuel of Waldebba]], a 15th-century Ethiopian monk and ascetic of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.]] David Daniels has suggested that the Ethiopian Church has had a stronger impact on the Reformation than most scholars acknowledge. For [[Martin Luther]], who spearheaded the [[Reformation]], Daniels says "the Ethiopian Church conferred legitimacy on Luther's emerging Protestant vision of a church outside the authority of the Roman Catholic papacy" as it was "an ancient church with direct ties to the apostles".<ref name = "Daniels2017">{{cite web|url= https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/opinion/contributors/2017/10/21/honor-reformations-african-roots/783252001/|title=Honor the Reformation's African roots|last= Daniels|first=David D.|date=21 October 2017| work =[[The Commercial Appeal]] |access-date=9 April 2018}}</ref> According to Daniels, Martin Luther saw that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church practiced elements of faith including "[[communion under both kinds]], vernacular Scriptures, and married clergy" and these practices became customary in the [[Lutheran Church|Lutheran church]]es. The Ethiopian church also rejected [[papal supremacy]], [[purgatory]] and [[indulgences]], which the Lutherans disagreed with, and thus for Luther, the Ethiopian church was the "true [[Proto-Protestantism|forerunner of Protestantism]]".<ref name="Daniels2017" /> Luther believed that the Ethiopian church kept true apostolic practices which the Lutherans would adopt through reading the scriptures.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Martin Luther and Ethiopian Christianity: Historical Traces | publisher = The University of Chicago Divinity School|url= https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/articles/martin-luther-and-ethiopian-christianity-historical-traces|access-date=2022-01-28}}</ref> In 1534, a cleric of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, [[Michael the Deacon]], met with Martin Luther and affirmed the [[Augsburg Confession]], saying "This is a good creed, that is, faith".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/martin-luther-and-ethiopian-christianity-historical-traces|title=Martin Luther and Ethiopian Christianity: Historical Traces|last=Daniels|first=David D.|date=2 November 2017|publisher= [[University of Chicago]] |access-date=9 April 2018|quote= Luther expressed his approval of the Church of Ethiopia along with his embrace of Deacon Michael in a letter dated July 4, 1534: "For this reason we ask that good people would demonstrate Christian love also to this [Ethiopian] visitor." According to Luther, Michael responded positively to his articles of the Christian faith, proclaiming: "This is a good creed, that is, faith" (see Martin Luther, Table-Talk, November 17, 1538 [WA, TR 4:152β53, no. 4126]).}}</ref><ref name= "Daniels2017" /> In addition, Martin Luther stated that the [[Divine Service (Lutheran)|Lutheran Mass]] agreed with that used by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.<ref name= "Daniels2017" /> As a result, Luther invited the Ethiopian church and Michael to full fellowship.<ref name= "Daniels2017" /><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.christiancentury.org/blog-post/guest-post/martin-luthers-fascination-ethiopian-christianity |title=Martin Luther's fascination with Ethiopian Christianity|last= Daniels|first=David D.|date=31 October 2017|publisher=[[The Christian Century]] |access-date=9 April 2018|quote=Luther extended full fellowship to Deacon Michael and the Ethiopian Church, an invitation Luther withheld from the Bohemian Brethren (the Hussites) and Reformed Churches connected to Ulrich Zwingli.}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page