Say Anything Blog

Christianity-The Ethiopian Orthodox Union church, an autonomous Christian Church headed by a patriarch and closely related to the Coptic Church of Egypt, was the state church of Ethiopia until 1974. About 40 percent of the people of Ethiopia are Christians, and Christianity is predominant in the north.

The south contains considerable numbers of animists. Most of the Christian, belonging to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, whose 4th Century beginnings came long before Europe accepted Christianity.

Ethiopia has a rich history that predates the Old Testament. According to the Old Testament, The Queen of Sheba was born in Axum, but travelled to Israel to meet King Solomon. They had a son named Menelik, who later became the first emperor of Ethiopia and adopted Christianity in Ethiopia at the beginning of the 4th Century.

Menelik brought the original Ark of the Covenant back to Ethiopia from Israel. Today, the Arc, which once housed the Ten Commandments, remains well hidden in Axum. It is guarded by a select group of monks, whose sole commitment is to protect the sacred vessel.

Ethiopia’s religious tradition is reflected in the day-to-day lifestyle of the people, and nowhere does this spiritual energy echo more than in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

A further small percentage of the population adheres to traditional and other beliefs, including Judaism. A sect known as Beta Israel or Falashas, who practice a type of Judaism that probably dates back to contact with early Arabian Jews, were airlifted to Israel in 1991 during Ethiopia’s civil war.

Islam-Technically the first Isalmic Hijra (migration from Mecca) occurred in 615, when a band of Muslims were counseled by the Prophet Muhammad to escape persecution in Mecca (Saudi Arabia) and travel to the Kingdom of Axum, which was ruled by a pious Christian king .

In that year, his followers were fleeing from Mecca’s new leading tribe, the reactionary Quraysh, who sent emissaries to bring them back to Arabia, but the (Christian) King of Axum protected the Prophet and his followers. Since then, the Prophet himself instructed his followers who came to Axum, to respect and protect Axum as well as live in peace with its Christians.

Initially relations between the Ethiopians and the Muslims were cordial, with mutual trade and mutual religious toleration, some of which grew out of real religious similarities.

Eventually, however, relations deteriorated and Ethiopia slid into its dark ages, retreating into the securitity of the mountains to defend themselves against the Muslims.

They did, however, maintain their independence, their culture, their identity and their faith.

During these years in the seventh century, the Muslim imperialistic conquests cut the Ethiopians off from the rest of the Christian world, except for the Ethiopian monastary in Jerusalem, which continued to be a pilgrimage site for pious Ethiopian monks, and the continuing thread of contact with Egypt maintained because the Coptic Patriarch of Alexandria supplied the Ethiopian Church with its Church leaders.

Mogadishu, Somalia-On October 3 1993, Task Force Ranger, a U.S. Special Operations Forces composed mainly of Rangers, Delta Force (1st SFOD-D) operators, and aviation support from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (the Night Stalkers), attempted to capture(Muslim Somalia Jihadist) Aidid's foreign minister, Omar Salad, and his top political advisor, Mohamed Hassan Awale.

The plan was to fast rope from hovering MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, capture the targets, and load them onto a ground convoy for transport back to the U.S. compound. Four Ranger chalks, also inserted by helicopter, were to provide a secure square perimeter on the four corners of the operation's target building.

A U.S. Army Ranger was seriously injured during the insertion. PFC Todd Blackburn fell while fast roping from a helicopter hovering 70 feet above the streets. Minutes later, a MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, Super Six One piloted by CWO3 Cliff Wolcott, was shot down by a rocket propelled grenade.

At the second crash site, two Delta Force snipers, SFC Randy Shughart and MSG Gary Gordon, were inserted by helicopter (at their own request, permission was denied twice by Command but granted when they persisted and made a third request) to protect the injured crew from the approaching mob. Both snipers and three of the Black Hawk crewmen were later killed when the site was overrun by Somali militiamen.

Their bodies mutilated and dragged through the streets. Shocking video from a French camera crew was shown around the world within hours of the debacle. Both Delta snipers received the Congressional Medal of Honor. Somali casualties will never be determined as the nation was in a complete state of anarchy. However, Red Crescent reports state that as many as 3000 were killed and somewhere between 5000 and 10,000 were wounded.
18 Americans were killed and eighty-four Americans were wounded.