The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church of Our Savior welcomes you to this website, in the name of The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit, The Most Holy Trinity; in the name of the Holy Virgin Mary, the Mother of God; and in the name of the Saints and Blessed Martyrs.
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church of Our Savior (Medhanealem) has been serving the Ethiopian community in the metropolitan area of New York City since it was
founded by a small group of the faithful in August 1984. The Church has since grown in size and in the scope of the services it renders to Ethiopians in the
tri-state area. The church has performed countless Christenings, Weddings, Funeral and Memorial services. It has conducted the Divine Liturgy of the Holy Mass on every Sunday, and has
offered Holy Communion, Confession, and the teachings of the Holy Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Faith. In addition, Sunday school and language instruction in Amharic is
offered to children. Maskal (Feast of the Holy Cross), Christmas, Good Friday, and Easter are celebrated according to the
Orthodox Calendar, in the ancient manner of the Ethiopian Church. The Church has conducted it's services at the beautiful and historic
Riverside Church in Manhattan, and is grateful for the generosity and Christian fellowship of the Riverside congregation in sharing their building for all these years.
Now however, the Church of the Savior is conducting a fund raising effort in order to purchase it's own building to serve as it's permanent home. The task is daunting
considering the high cost of real estate in New York City, however, with a strong faith in Our Lord and Savior, all things are possible, and the efforts are well under way.
We invite all to come and visit us, the faithful to pray with us, and the interested to learn about our faith, our culture and our history by attending our services and the
fellowship breakfasts that follow. The Congregation of the Church of the Savior meets for Mass from 9:OOAM until 11:00AM, and has the breakfast immediately after. We also
invite you to share in the wealth of The Savior, by helping us achieve our goal of purchasing a building for our congregation, by sending a donation to our mailing address.
Service Address:
The Riverside Church
91 Claremont Ave @122nd Street
New York, New York
Mailing Address
570 Riverside Drive Suite 9380
New York, NY 10031-9380
The words "Medhane Alem" translate to "Savior of the World", and refer to Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Churches dedicated to the Savior of the World are very popular and widespread inside Ethiopia. The largest of the Rock Hewn churches, carved from the bedrock in the town of Roha by the Saint Emperor Lalibella in the 12th Century is the "Beta Medhane Alem" (House of the Savior of the World). The principle Ethiopian Shrine at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem is that of "Medhane Alem". A new metropolitan Orthodox Cathedral of the Savior of the World (Medhane Alem) is being built in the Bole district of Addis Ababa currently. There is also the older Church of Medhane Alem in the Kechene district of Addis Ababa was built in 1911, and also the "Keraniyo" (Calvary) Medhane Alem Church in the western suburbs of the city which is actually much older than the city of Addis Ababa itself. When the Emperor Haile Selassie lived in Exile in Bath England during the Italian occupation in the 1936, he established the Church of Medhane Alem in his home in England, and returned it to Ethiopia when he was restored to his throne. Today that church is known popularly as "Sidetegnaw Medhane Alem" (The Exiled Savior of the World) and more formaly as "Mekea Hazunan Medhane Alem" (Consoler of the Bereaved Savior of the World). Therefore, when a small group of Ethiopian faithful and clergy met in August of 1984, and discussed the establishment of a Church in New York City, their choice of a shrine dedicated to the "Savior of the World" (Medhane Alem) was a natural one considering that they were all far from their homeland, in a new country much as the late Emperor and his entourage had been. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church of Our Savior is the second oldest Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the City of New York, and the oldest in Manhattan. Over the years, clergy and layity have come and gone, but the Church has provided continuity and has been an anchor for the growing and changing Ethiopian Community in the tri-state area.
New York
