There are two Oneness Pentecostal Churches in Ethiopia worth mentioning:
- Apostolic Church of Ethiopia
- United Pentecostal Church of Ethiopia.
(1) Apostolic Church of Ethiopia
(የኢትዮጵያ ሐዋርያዊት ቤተክርስቲያን)
The founder and first leader of the Apostolic Church of Ethiopia (ACE) was Teklemariam Gezahegne (1937–2022). After him, Degu Kebede became the General Superintendent of the ACE. The General Secretary is Getahun Lambebo (who also serves as Bishop of the Hadiyya area).
Citing Acts 2:38 (Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”), Oneness Pentecostals claim the Oneness Pentecostals claim that they are the ones who hold to the apostles’ teaching in word and deed, while those who proclaim a Trinitarian God have embraced pagan ideas. Oneness Pentecostals in Ethiopia have their own songs, as there is little interaction between them and Trinitarian Christians.
The Apostolic Church of Ethiopia conducts annual conferences in Wara (Sidama Region), which are attended by very many people. Mass choirs also appear in congregations with high membership numbers.
Soloists and choirs
» See overview of Oneness Pentecostal soloists
» See overview of Oneness Pentecostal groups
Music distribution
» Visit AddisPraise.com
(ACE Media Department’s official channel to release [Amharic] albums)
» See overview of YouTube channels
» Download Android App with lyrics of Apostolic Songs
(2) United Pentecostal Church of Ethiopia
Teklemariam Gezahegne was baptized in the name of Jesus by a missionary affiliated with the United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI), Kenneth Wendell, in 1969. The Apostolic Church of Ethiopia severed its ties with the UPCI around 2004 after influential UPCI theologians refuted the doctrine of Jesus’ “heavenly flesh” expounded in Teklemariam Gezahegne’s book, Bible Writer’s Theology (first edition published in 1999).
Several members of the Apostolic Church of Ethiopia joined the United Pentecostal Church of Ethiopia which the UPCI had founded after the split. In 2024, the new church comprised fewer than 20 congregations (AfricaForward.Net).
It seems that there is only one gospel singer belonging to the United Pentecostal Church of Ethiopia who releases music videos:
- Ayalew Wondimu (Pastor)
(3) Audio
» Listen to select Hibret albums with ACE church songs:
(4) Videos
4.1 Videos published by Oneness Pentecostals
Documentary produced for ACE’s 40th anniversary in 2009 A.D.:
4.2 Videos published by other people
» For an introduction to Oneness Pentecostalism, watch
“Oneness Pentecostals Explained in 2 1/2 minutes” or
“United Pentecostal Church International”
(“Ready to Harvest” YouTube channel)
» For a critical view of the Apostolic Church of Ethiopia from a mainline Protestant perspective (Tesfaye Robele et al.), visit the YouTube channel “ኦንሊ ጂሰስ Exposing Only Jesus“.
(5) Further reading
5.1 Primary Sources
Teklemariam Gezahagne. Bible Writers’ Theology. Rev. edition. Hazelwood, MO: Apostolic Experience Publishing, 2007. [1st ed. 1999]
—. Acts of God in Ethiopia. Hazelwood, MO: Apostolic Experience Publishing, 2007.
» For Amharic publications, visit the ACE website.
5.2 Secondary literature
Gill, Kenneth G. Toward a Contextualized Theology for the Third World: The Emergence and Development of Jesus’ Name Pentecostalism in Mexico. Frankfurt/M.: Peter Lang, 1994.
- Does not mention Ethiopia, but interesting as the ACE maintains good relations with Spanish-speaking Pentecostal ministers.
Haustein, Jörg. “The New Prime Minister’s [Hailemariam Desalegn] Faith: A Look at Oneness Pentecostalism in Ethiopia”, PentecoStudies 12/2 (2013): 183–204. [Academia.edu]
Reed, David A. “In Jesus’ Name”: The History and Beliefs of Oneness Pentecostals. Dorset (UK): Deo Publishing, 2008. [Google Books]
—. “Then and Now: The Many Faces of Global Oneness Pentecostalism”, in The Cambridge Companion to Pentecostalism, ed. C.M. Robeck Jr., A. Yong, p. 52-70. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2014.
Invitation
There is little information available in English language on the gospel music of this community. If you can help fill our knowledge gaps, please contact us via the form at the bottom of this page.