Christianity in Eritrea

Christianity in Eritrea: The State of Eritrea is located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares border with Ethiopia to the South, Sudan to the West, and Djibouti to the Southeast. The Northeastern and Eastern parts of the country have extensive coastline along the Red Sea. Eritrea’s capital and largest city is Asmara. There is no official language, as the country’s 1997 Constitution guarantees equality of all Eritrean languages.

However, Tigrinya and Arabic are the main working languages, while English is used for secondary and university education and in various technical fields. The country has a human population of about 6,400,000, spread across several ethnic groupings. These are, Tigrinya, 50%; Tigre, 30%; Saho, 4%; Afar, 4%; Kunama, 4%; Bilen, 3%; Beja, 2%; Nara, 2%; and Rashaida, 1%. The two main religions in Eritrea are Christianity (63%) and Islam (37%).

Brief History

 Eritrea was a province of Ethiopia for several decades. Militant opposition to the incorporation of Eritrea into Ethiopia started in 1958 with the founding of Eritrean Liberation Movement (ELM). The group, under the leadership of Hamid Idris Awate, engaged in clandestine political activities intended to cultivate resistance to the centralizing policies of the imperial Ethiopian state. By 1962, however, the ELM was dismantled the Ethiopian authorities.

Same year, Emperor Haile Selassie unilaterally dissolved the Eritrean parliament and illegally annexed the enclave. This triggered armed conflict, which continued until the Emperor was ousted in a military coup in 1974. The Derg, the new Ethiopian government, was a Marxist military junta led by Mengistu Haile Mariam.

 In 1960, Eritrean exiles in Cairo founded the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF), which led the Eritrean independence struggle, with the support of Syria and Iraq. It is noteworthy that was led by Muslims. The group initiated military operations in 1961 against the Ethiopian government, and this escalated into civil unrest that saw the massacre of many Eritreans by the Ethiopian government in Ethiopia. Respite came in 1974 when Mengistu-led Marxists ousted the Emperor.

In 1972, a more inclusive group, Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (ELPF) emerged under the leadership of Isaias Afewerki, current President of Eritrea. It succeeded in galvanising support for its cause from many fronts, including Ethiopian rebels. Though Eritrea declared its independence in 1991, the United Nations officially endorsed this in 1993. Tensions between the two countries dominated the first decades after independence, sometimes in the form of armed conflict.

God’s Canvass

Eritrea has three ecoregions: a hot arid coastal plain in the West that widens toward the East, the cooler, more fertile highlands reaching up to 3,000 metres, and the Sahelian Acacia Savanah in the Western part of the country, which extends across Africa south of the Sahara from Eritrea to Senegal. These ecoregions determine the nature of flora and fauna found in the country.

Fauna

       The fauna includes critically endangered species like the Abyssinian wild ass and a small population of African elephants, alongside a diverse range of mammals such as leopards, kudus, gazelles, dolphins, dugongs and sea turtles. Some of the animals are shown below.

Flora

 A variety of trees like acacia, baobabs, and doum palms are native to Eritrea, along with shrubs, grasses and aloe camperi. Other notable plants include the national flower, the Gerbera daisy, and economically valuable plants like Sisal and Salicornia. The following pictures capture the essence of the country’s flora.

Beaches

Culture

Eritrean culture is a diverse mix of nine ethnic groups, unified by a shared history and strong national identity. Key elements include a deep sense of patriotism, a dual religious landscape of Christianity and Islam that coexists peacefully, and traditions like the communal coffee ceremony. Food like ‘Injera’ with stews is central to social gatherings, and extended family is a cornerstone of community life.

Traditional Attire

Both male and female clothing can be very colourful and elaborate for special events. The traditional wear for men consists of the ‘Ethiopian suit,’ a long-sleeved shirt and matching pants, or a draped cloth wrap called an ‘izar.’ For women, the traditional attire includes the ankle-length ‘Habesha kemis (or zuria), a dress often made of cotton and featuring intricate embroidery, sometimes accompanied by a shawl called ‘netela.’

Cuisine

 Eritrean cuisine is a blend of stews (tsebhi/wat) served with injera (a sour, spongy flatbread) often-featuring spiced meats like beef, chicken or lamb. It shares similarities with Ethiopian food but has unique Italian influences, such as pasta dishes, due to Eritrean colonial history. Some of them are shown in the pictures below.

Status of Christianity

 While the majority of the country’s Christian population belong to the orthodox faith, roughly 10% of these identify with Roman Catholicism, which was favoured by Italian overlords. In 2002, the President, Isaias Afewerki declared all independent Protestant churches enemies of the state. In subsequent years, Eritrea became notorious for jailing thousands of persecuted Christians in metal containers parked in the jungle, where they would boil by day, and freeze by night.

Currently, there are between 400 and 1000 prisoners of faith in the country. The government also makes it impossible for independent churches to establish their presence by denying them registration. It only recognises the Eritrean Orthodox Church (EOC), Roman Catholic, Lutheran Church and Islam.

Obviously, believers in the country are not enjoying the freedom for which Christ has set us free (Galatians 5:1). Wherever the government exercises authority to dictate the faith of its subject, the spirit at work is from satan’s kingdom. God created humans with a free will and does not infringe on it even though He has the power to do so. Therefore, let us intercede not just for the persecuted believers in Eritrea, but also for unsaved souls using the prayer points below or as the Holy Spirit leads us.

Prayer Points

1. Pray that the Father would judge the demonic principalities and powers using the government to undermine the propagation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
2. Ask Him to destroy their influence in government and uproot whatever seed they have planted in the country through obnoxious policies and laws.
3. Pray that God would destroy every platform and infrastructure serving the purposes of the kingdom of darkness in the country, especially those in the religious spheres.
4. Pray that He would remove the covering cast of darkness from the heart, eyes and minds of the President, his cabinet and other unsaved souls in the country, to enable them receive and embrace the true Gospel.
5. Ask the Father to destroy all faulty foundations laid in the lives of Christians through errors and demonic doctrines.
6. Pray that He would lay new foundation in them that is in Christ Jesus His Son.
7. Ask the Father to reveal Himself to Eritreans who doubt His existence.
8.  Pray that He would expose the pollutions in Christendom and sanctify all believers with His word, which is the only TRUTH.
9. Ask the Father to send labourers to His harvest in Eritrea, especially in Muslim dominated areas.
10.  Pray that He would protect missionaries operating in such areas from attacks by Islamic militants.

Intercession Checklist

From the political map of the country presented in the text, choose a town, city or region for focused prayer. Present the selected geographical space to God and tell Him that you are claiming its people for Christ as His ambassador (2 Corinthians 5:20). Remind the Father that He had instructed the Messiah to ask for the nations as His inheritance (Psalm 2:8).

*****Some materials sourced from Christian Persecution in Eritrea, https://www.globalchristianrelief.org; Eritrea: Serving Persecuted Christians Worldwide, https://www.opendoors.org; Eritrea, https://en.wikipedia.org; Artificial Intelligence (AI) Overview on Google.com.