Eritrea – Eritrean Orthodox Church

CUL

Justification:
Eritrea’s religious make-up constitutes approximately 45% Christians and 55% Muslims. A significant majority of Christians are Coptic Orthodox and large portions of the Diaspora are Orthodox as well. Furthermore, those who are Coptic Orthodox represent a significant portion of government. Dating back thousands of years, the Coptic Orthodox church has an extremely long history in Eritrea – most probably the longest of any entity and as such carries considerable weight with its followers and others within the country.

Stakeholder size: Approximately 1.7 million people follow the Eritrean Coptic Orthodox faith. There are estimated to be 1,500 churches, 22 monasteries and 15,000 priests. The majority of churches, monasteries and priests reside in Eritrea and the rest in areas highly concentrated by Eritrean Diaspora (such as North America and Europe).

Area of influence:
a.) Geographic area – Throughout Eritrea, especially in the highlands
b.) Population subsets – Tigrinya majority ethnic group, some within the Tigre and Bilen ethnic groups as well. Islam is the predominant religion for Tigre, Bilen and the remaining ethnicities in Eritrea. The Tigrinya ethnic group is the most dominant and represents 50% of all Eritreans.

Description of Organization
a.) Who are the leaders?
Pope Shenouda III – Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria (head of Egyptian Orthodox Church)
Abune Antonios – Patriarch of the Eritrean Coptic Orthodox Church (dethroned)
Abune Dioskoros – De facto Patriarch of Eritrean Coptic Orthodox Church
HG Bishop Markos – Head bishop for Coptic Eritreans in Europe
HG Bishop Macarius – Head bishop for Coptic Eritreans in the USA and Canada

b.) How does one gain influence in the group?
The head of the Eritrean Coptic Orthodox church is chosen by two delegations representing the Pope of Alexandria (of the Egyptian Orthodox Church) and his council as well as senior members of Eritrea’s Orthodox Church. Both the Egyptian Orthodox Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Church maintain tight relations and are mentioned throughout liturgy.

c.) What issues do they care about?
The Eritrean Coptic Orthodox Church is rooted in purely religious matters related to the following of religious doctrines, liturgy and tradition. Currently, the Church has exhibited some turmoil since Abune Antonios, the recognized leader of the Church, is considered under house arrest. In August 2005, Abune Antonios was confined to a purely ceremonial role, which amounted to his dethronement a year later by the head council of the Eritrean Church. Abune Antonios rejected the legitimacy of his dismissal in an open letter to the Church and Pope Shenouda III. Following Abune Antonios’ letter, he was placed under house arrest. The Eritrean government is viewed by many as being the driving force behind Abune Antonios’ dismissal and the election of Abune Dioskoros as patriarch is not recognized by some churches. For instance, there are a few churches in Washington DC, Oakland (CA), Atlanta (GA) and other areas that do not recognize Abune Dioskoros’ appointment. Also, it is unsure whether Pope Shenouda III will recognize Abune Dioskoros’ appointment since it was done in an untraditional and irregular manner. These happenings have caused some friction within the Church and growing concern among followers regarding the role of government in the Church.

d.) What does organizational structure look like?
The patriarch of the Eritrean Church is placed at the head of the Church and there are a number of bishops and priests under him who adhere to the doctrine and teachings of the Church. *Pending more info**

*Financial Resources (if applicable)
**Pending**