About

The Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church was founded in 1927 in southern Ethiopia by the evangelical missionary organization Sudan Interior Mission and Dr. Thomas Alexander Lambie.[1] The first missionaries had initially planned a trip into the western part of Ethiopia, but after prayer they felt that they were being led to the South Central area.[2] The early missionary work was concentrated among the Welayta, Hadiya, Kambaata and Sidama people areas, which are the four most densely populated regions in Ethiopia.

The few missionaries who entered Ethiopia had to leave the country during the Italian invasion. They left a handful of believers with the translation of portions of scriptures and the Gospel of Mark. When the missionaries returned after the five-year occupation of the country, the handful of believers had become thousands and the fledgling congregation was very strong.

Returning missionaries, beside church planting in unreached areas, provided biblical and theological teachings to the growing church. Since 1974, the Ethiopian Kale Heywot Church Development Commission, which is a church-related humanitarian aid organization, had supported schools in the south and west of the country by providing teachers’ salaries, books, tables and chairs.[3]

The Sudan Interior Mission (SIM), presently called, SIM International (Serving In Mission), began serving in Ethiopia on 25 December 1927. Their work resulted in a great evangelistic ministry impact that brought many souls to the kingdom of God through teaching and preaching of the gospel. In comparison to the 19th Century mission efforts, SIM’s success in the 20th century was a miraculous outcome and a great work of the Holy Spirit that transformed many people groups in the country. The Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church (EKHC), with thousands of congregations, was born from the ministry of SIM. As the result, the EKHC has become the largest evangelical church in Ethiopia.

The SIM arrived in the Hosanna area in 1928 and planted the seeds of the Gospel which eventually resulted in the establishing of the first SIM-Related Church in Ethiopia. In those early years many people turned to the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. However, the work of SIM was interrupted by the Italian invaders of Ethiopia (1935-400).  From the SIM’s perspective, this was the most importune time to have to leave because the work was not well established. However, as God would have it, during this time, although the missionaries had to leave, the work grew phenomenally.

When the missionaries were forced out, there were believers, but not established churches. When the missionaries returned they found over one hundred organized congregations in this area alone. The earliest ministry training was informal, yet effective, discipline of new believers. It was not until after the Italian invaders were forced to leave, and the missionaries returned, and the number of churches multiplied even more, that the need for more formal Bible school education became apparent. It was then that the first Amharic Bible schools were opened in 1950. These schools played vital role in preparing women and men for ministry over the last 65 years.

SIM’s work among the Hadiya people was full of challenges but successful. Recurring persecution, ostracism, and expulsion from the community was the fate of new converts. Interestingly, the Lord blessed this work with highly committed believers who were determined to suffer for their faith and spread the Gospel at any cost. Consequently, the Gospel was spread to the neighboring people groups (Kambatta, Mareko, Halaba, Gedeo and others), in southern Ethiopia and many churches were planted. This effort played vital role in the formation and development of the Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church.

Despite the suppression and persecution of Christianity, the work of God grew and the Hosanna Amharic Bible schools of the Hadiya zone were able continue throughout those troubled years. The church for the most part, during the Marxist regime, was underground church. While it was a spiritually growing church, theological education was hampered and could not train all the leaders that a growing church required. However, following the fall of communism, the church even grew faster. The need of additional theological institutions quickly became apparent to the leaders of SIM-daughter church and the leaders of Hadiya KHC. The Hadiya zonal church leaders raised the question of starting an English language diploma level ministry training centre and this was discussed with the EKHC and SIM leaders resulting in approving the establishing of the EKMTC-Hosanna. This approval was granted in 1992 and the EKMTC-Hosanna classes began in 1993. During this year the first batch diploma class was started with 20 students. Then the second batch enrolled in 1996 with 24 students.

EKMTC-Hosanna emerged in a very essential time of EKHC’s history. This is a time when thousands of people are giving their lives to the Lord using the relative religious freedom Ethiopia has been experiencing over the last 24 years. The church observed the fast growth of members and thousands of churches have been planted using this opportunity. This left the growing church with a huge demand for trained ministers. EKMTC-Hosanna emerged within this context to address the need for raising committed, called, gifted and qualified leaders, pastors, teachers, and cross-cultural missionaries.

[1] Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christianity in the Global South, Vol., Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2018, p. 268

[2] “Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church”. Archived from the original on 3 March 2013. Retrieved 19 March 201

⁴Aklilu Dalelo, Till Stellmacher, Faith-based Organizations in Ethiopia: The Contribution of the Kale Heywet Church to Rural Schooling, Ecological Balance and Food Security, V&R unipress, Germany, 2012, p. 64-65