Ethiopian ecclesiastical titles
Ethiopian ecclesiastical titles refers to the offices of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, a hierarchical organization. Some of the more important offices are unique to it.
Titles
Ethiopian ecclesiastical titles include:
Patriarch we Re'ese Liqane Papasat — Patriarch and First of the Archbishop, meaning Catholicos. Since 1959, the title of the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is Patriarch Catholicos of Ethiopia. The first Patriarch, Abuna Basilios was enthroned by the Coptic Orthodox Pope Cyril VI in 1959, and so the Patriarchs of Ethiopia are part of the Apostolic succession of the Holy See of St. Mark. The Ethiopian Patriarchate combined the old offices of Abuna and Ichege (see below). In 2001, the title of Archbishop of Axum was added to the titles of the Patriarch after Axum was elevated to the rank of an Archdiocese by the Holy Synod.
Abuna — Metropolitan Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. From the 4th century until the middle of the 20th century he was a Coptic Metropolitan appointed by the Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa to serve as its leader. However, as time passed, the authority of the Abuna was reduced to little more than a figurehead largely because the incumbents spoke little Ge'ez or Amharic. In 1948, the Coptic Orthodox Pope Joseph II under request from Emperor Haile Selassie I, appointed the then Ichege (see below) as the first Ethiopian born Archbishop, Abuna Basilios, and granted the Ethiopian church autocephaly. His successor as Coptic Orthodox Pope, Cyril VI, elevated Abune Basilios to the exalted rank of Patriarch in 1959. The title of Abuna is now held by all the numerous Archbishops and Bishops of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
