Pastor Training in Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the largest nations of the African continent,and African Leadership has been training Pastors and Church Leaders there since 2001. As of March 2008, we have 891 students attending 55 classes at 43 training centers, with more than 2000 total graduates. The hunger to grow in knowledge and truth is in many Pastors’ hearts, even though they must often travel many difficult miles to attend training.

As African Leadership equips National Directors like Asrat Birhanu to make a lasting impact in churches and communities throughout Ethiopia, we are grateful for the support of our donors who make this national transformation possible. As we travel to visit our Directors and attend graduation ceremonies in Africa, we are amazed at the dedication of these pastors. They usually work full time jobs in addition to their pastoral workload, and go to school 2-4 days a week. Their desire to be better teachers and preachers is reflected in their joyful completion of the 2-year program, which provides comprehensive training in all phases of church leadership equivalent to a foundational-level seminary or Bible College degree, utilizing a 10-course, 2,500-page Bible centered curriculum, developed by Dr. Dennis Mock and translated into a nine African language by African Leadership.

Please pray for Asrat and his family and staff, as they labor to bring hope to the communities of Ethiopia, by increasing the impact of the Gospel through training of pastors and church leaders.

African Leadership-Ethiopia is graduating about 400 students each year, and when their training is finished, they may periodically attend alumni training for HIV/AIDS issues, Islam apologetics, and financial management. Many new classes are often established with networking of alumni and teachers, and we often see that these alumni conferences also seem to spread the word about our Training Program, resulting in more and more Pastor registrations and expanded educational outreach to even more cities. African Leadership is thankful to have a presence in Ethiopia. In bringing the Gospel to Ethiopia though, the presence of the Rastafarian faith, Islam, Bahai, and traditional regional religions, can create cross-cultural challenges. Many people groups in Ethiopia are involved in some of these traditional practices, often resulting in compromised health conditions, and causing the spread of disease, including HIV/AIDS, with an average of only 2-3 physicians per 100,00 people..

Ethiopia is a nation of 75 million people, and is located at the eastern tip of Africa near the Read Sea, and is the world's 27th-largest country, about two-thirds the size of Alaska. Ethiopia is still considered one of the poorest countries in the world. Consequently, the vast majority of Ethiopians are poor, with more than 60% of the population Christians. There are very few resources for the average Pastor or Church Elder to go to school or seminary. Responding to a church leadership or Pastoral calling, they often draw from what little they learned from their prior church experience. This was usually untrained leadership, as a majority of church leaders have no formal training, and often little education beyond primary or middle school.

With such immeasurable need for training of Pastors and church leaders, African Leadership is working to bring accessible, affordable training to Ethiopia, for the vitality and health of the Church. Please consider how you might lend support, as you pray for Asrat Birhanu and his family and staff, as they labor to bring hope to the communities of Ethiopia, by increasing the impact of the Gospel through training of Pastors and church leaders.