In collaboration with UNFPA and Population Council, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOC) created the "Developmental Bible" to compliment the Metsihafe Gitsawie ("daily teachings" or "lexicon"), a calendar of spiritual and secular messages used by the church since the fourth century A.D. was recently reviewed at a two-day workshop in Addis Ababa. Participants at a recent two-day workshop in Addis Ababa reviewed and and refined the Developmental Bible draft, which currently stands at an impressive, and comprehensive, 786 pages. The manual is the first of its kind in Ethiopia.

Religion is a powerful force in Ethiopia -- for many remote, rural Ethiopian communities, religious structures may be the only sustained institutional contact, especially where there are few roads, schools or medical facilities.

The Developmental Bible Project was proposed by UNFPA and other development partners, particularly Population Council,  to incorporate developmental issues into the daily teachings of the EOC, to train the highest echelon of Church priests and deacons, to integrate the Developmental Bible manual in the curricula of Church training institutions, and to organize patriarchal and archbishop events to spread key messages to Church followers.

His Holiness Abuna Daniel, Archbishop for East, West and North Africa noted at the workshop opening that past attempts to prepare such a manual were poorly organized. "This manual which was prepared on the basis of the religious teachings of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is a very organized initiative which will become useful to the clerics."

"Through this innovative approach  the church can pass on information on HIV preven­tion, reproductive health, harmful traditional practices, such as early marriage, during daily prayers and teachings, public gatherings and religious holidays to encourage people to adopt healthy lifestyles," remarked Dr. Monique Rakotomalala, UNFPA Representative to Ethiopia.

The Developmental Bible project has duration of five years with a two-year pilot phase involving seven dioceses in the Amhara and Tigray Regions and Addis Ababa. Eight Church training institutions including theology colleges were selected to participate in the pilot phase. In the second phase the project will be expanded to another 20 training institutions of the Church.

This project is part of the UNFPA/UNICEF Joint Programme being supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is to be recalled that UNFPA signed a two-year agreement with the EOC in April 2008 on the implementation of the project.

 The "Developmental Bible," a new manual created for a special Ethiopian Orthodox Church education programme, will soon help clerics and key religious leaders in the Ethiopian Orthodox church to incorporate messages about reproductive health, gender equality, harmful traditional practices (HTPs), HIV prevention and population issues in their sermons. 

In collaboration with UNFPA and Population Council, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOC) created the "Developmental Bible" to compliment the Metsihafe Gitsawie ("daily teachings" or "lexicon"), a calendar of spiritual and secular messages used by the church since the fourth century A.D. was recently reviewed at a two-day workshop in Addis Ababa. Participants at a recent two-day workshop in Addis Ababa reviewed and and refined the Developmental Bible draft, which currently stands at an impressive, and comprehensive, 786 pages. The manual is the first of its kind in Ethiopia.

Religion is a powerful force in Ethiopia -- for many remote, rural Ethiopian communities, religious structures may be the only sustained institutional contact, especially where there are few roads, schools or medical facilities.

The Developmental Bible Project was proposed by UNFPA and other development partners, particularly Population Council,  to incorporate developmental issues into the daily teachings of the EOC, to train the highest echelon of Church priests and deacons, to integrate the Developmental Bible manual in the curricula of Church training institutions, and to organize patriarchal and archbishop events to spread key messages to Church followers.

His Holiness Abuna Daniel, Archbishop for East, West and North Africa noted at the workshop opening that past attempts to prepare such a manual were poorly organized. "This manual which was prepared on the basis of the religious teachings of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is a very organized initiative which will become useful to the clerics."

"Through this innovative approach  the church can pass on information on HIV preven­tion, reproductive health, harmful traditional practices, such as early marriage, during daily prayers and teachings, public gatherings and religious holidays to encourage people to adopt healthy lifestyles," remarked Dr. Monique Rakotomalala, UNFPA Representative to Ethiopia.

The Developmental Bible project has duration of five years with a two-year pilot phase involving seven dioceses in the Amhara and Tigray Regions and Addis Ababa. Eight Church training institutions including theology colleges were selected to participate in the pilot phase. In the second phase the project will be expanded to another 20 training institutions of the Church.

This project is part of the UNFPA/UNICEF Joint Programme being supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is to be recalled that UNFPA signed a two-year agreement with the EOC in April 2008 on the implementation of the project.