ethiopian coptic research evidence team

Ethiopian Coptic Research Evidence Team Final Report 2007 - 2009

Ethiopian Coptic Research Team:

Archbishop Peter Paul Brennan Order of Corporate Reunion

Ecumenical Catholic Diocese of America Married Priests Now! Catholic Prelature

Archbishop Philippe Laurent De Coster

Latin Old Roman Catholic Church of Flanders

Archbishop Metropolitan Primate Mark Pultorak (Samuel) The American Orthodox-Catholic Church

Archbishop Primate Francis Cajetan Spataro

The Apostolic Episcopal Church The Vilatte Guild Extension Academy

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Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of North and South America

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In a climate of confusion, a number of branches of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church now exist in the West, reflecting the divisions in Africa. The last Emperor of Ethiopia, official head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Emperor Haile Selassie I, commissioned Abuna Mikael Gabre Kristos, to establish a diocese of the Ethiopian Church in the Americas. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Patriarch of Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Two days later, in the royal hall,he was invested in office by Emperor Halle Selassie I, and sent with Ukase to establish the church in the west, especially towards Africans of the Diaspora. He was bestowed and installed in the order of Nebur-id. Knowing that unfavorable political change which would affect the church was soon forthcoming, and that there might come a necessity to create a legally separate organization in the west, His Majesty gave Abuna Mikael the freedom to do so.

In 1959, Abuna Mikael served as sponsor for a group of five priests and five deacons sent by Abuna Basilios for advanced study. However, some of the priests, including Fr. Laike Mandefro broke relations with Abuna Mikael. Fr. Laike Mandefro sought authority from Abuna Theophilos (after the death of Abuna Basilios) to begin to gather Ethiopian-Americans into a congregation in Brooklyn, which was later relocated to the Bronx. As the work of Fr. Laike Mandefro grew, he was raised to the rank of Archimandrite and placed in charge of the Ethiopian Church in the West, Archimandrite Mandefro was consecrated a bishop. Mandfredo was invested in 1979 as Abuna Yeshaq, Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the Western Hemisphere.

Abuna Mikael recognized a similar need, and established the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of North and South America, reinserting the name “Coptic” into the name of the church, (1962) because he wanted strongly to identify with and maintain connection to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria as well as the royal and ecclesiastical line of Ethiopia. His Beatitude imparted to each of his sons the coveted Apostolic Succession of the Oriental Stream.

Pope Cyril VI approved the initiation of the Patriarchate of Ethiopia, long hoped for by the Ethiopian church, by ordaining the first Ethiopian patriarch, His Holiness Abuna Basilios. This Established for the first time a separate Ethiopian Orthodox Church (1959), which until then had existed as a branch under the mother Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria of Egypt.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of NSA, being an Autocephalous body, recognize H.H Pope Shenouda III, Abuna Merkorios, in exile, as the lawful Patriarch, and Abuna Apollo as Metropolitan Primate. Being an autocephalous body, this group is not under the control or directly governed by the See of Alexandria. The Holy See of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Archdiocese of North and South Amercia is located in Manhattan, New York.

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Resaerch and Justifying Emails

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Ethiopian Coptic Apostolic Succession of Saint Mark

1. Anba Yusak II (Egyptian Coptic Pope) (Enthronement 1946) (+ 14.11.1956), Archbishop of Girga, Patriarch of Alexandria, consecrated January 13, 1951, as Patriarchal Vicar (Itchege): Gebre Giyorgis (Anba Basilios), Archbishop of the Orthodox Coptic Church, Archdiocese of Ethiopia in 1951. He was the Patriarch-Catholicos of the Orthodox Coptic Church in 1959. (+ 1970).

2. Anba Kirillus/Kirollos VI (Azer Joseph Atta) (Coptic Pope) (See photograph) (October 3, 1902 – March 9, 1971), Patriarch of Alexandria of the Orthodox Coptic Church in 1959. Anba Kirollos VI elected and enthroned as first Patriarch-Catholicos, June 28, 1959 of the Orthodox Ethiopian Coptic Church, Anba Basilios (Abuna Basilios) (+ October 12, 1970).

3. Abuna Basilios is the consecrator of La Von Miguel Haithman (Abba Gabre Mikael Kristos) (+ 1985). He was ordained priest in 1959 for the Orthodox Ethiopian Church. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained to the Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Metropolitan (Patriarch, quotation Wikipedia) of

Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Archbishop metropolitan Gabre Mikael Kristos, assisted by the bishops Gabre Kristos Jeremiah (David William Worley) and Marcos Kristos (Lennard Lares), consecrated February 16, 1982, Philip Lewis. He was ordained priest in the Orthodox Episcopal Church, April 4, 1972. He was elected Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of the Orthodox Ethiopian Coptic Church of the Americas North and South, and of Europe in 1990.

4. Archbishop Philip Lewis consecrated under condition (sub conditione) October 13, 1990, Archbishop Nils Bertil Persson, Primate of the Apostolic Episcopal Universal Church (the Apostolic Episcopal Church Worldwide).

5. Archbishop Nils Bertil Alexander Persson, who consecrated on June 25, 1995 in London (UK), with co-consecrators, Bishops Hans Dieter Sauerlandt, and George Boyer:

Archbishop Philippe Laurent De Coster, of the Latin Old Roman Catholic Church of Flanders

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A Few Biographies of Popes and Prelates

of the former Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the newly founded Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church (1962)

Anba Kirillus/Kirollos VI (Azer Joseph Atta) (Coptic Pope)

Pope Cyril VI was born in Damanhour, Egypt, into a Coptic Orthodox family. He resigned a civil service position to become a monk in July 1927. He passed his probationary period and, on February 24, 1928, took his monastic vows at the Paromeos (Roman) Monastery and assumed the name of Father Mina el-Baramosy (Mina of the Roman Monastery).

In 1947, Father Mina built the Church of Saint Mina in Cairo and used to pray in the Church of the Holy Virgin (Babylon El-Darag) before assuming papacy.

He became Pope of Alexandria on May 10, 1959 (2 Pashons, 1675 A.M.) On June 28, 1959,

In accordance with the old Coptic church tradition Pope Cyril VI was the only Monk in the 20th century to be chosen to be the Coptic Pope without being a Bishop /Metropolitan before becoming the Pope as before him there was three Bishops / Metropolitans who became Popes; John XIX (1928-1942) , Macarius III (1942-1944) and Pope Yousab II and after him Pope Shenouda III was a Bishop before becoming a Pope.

Pope Cyril VI elevated the Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church to the title of Patriarch-Catholicos. Abuna Baslios, who was the first Ethiopian to be appointed Archbishop of Ethiopia by the previous Pope, Pope Joseph II, became Ethiopia's first Patriarch. Pope Cyril VI was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Star of Solomon by Emperor Haile Selassie in gratitude. In November 1959 he laid the foundation stone of the new Monastery of Saint Mina in the Mariout Desert.

In January 1965, Pope Cyril VI presided over the Committee of Oriental Orthodox Churches in Addis Ababa, the first ecumenical and non-Chalcedonian synod of these churches held in modern times.

In June 1968, Pope Cyril received the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist and Apostle, which had been taken from Alexandria to Venice over eleven centuries earlier. The Saint's relics were interred beneath the newly built Cathedral of Saint Mark in Cairo, which was built by Pope Cyril and was inaugurated in a ceremony attended by President Nasser, Emperor Haile

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Selassie, and delegates from most of the world's churches.

The papacy of HH Pope Cyril VI was also marked by the unprecedented Apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun, Egypt (starting on 2 April 1968).

It is said that Pope Cyril VI was gifted with prescience, and that he knew who was coming to see him, their needs (before they revealed them), and God's answers to them. For instance, he knew the time of his departure. He is also said to have had the gift of bilocation. It is believed by many that countless miracles occurred and continue to occur to this day through the intercession of Pope Cyril VI.

At his death bed, Pope Cyril VI said this to the clergy: "I am leaving to the Lord... With vigilance defend the Church... may the Lord shepherd you." He died on March 9, 1971, after a short illness.

Attesting to the sanctity of his predecessor, HH Pope Shenouda III stated "There is no man in all the history of the church like Pope Cyril VI, who was able to pray this many liturgies. He prayed more than 12,000 liturgies. This matter never happened before in the history of any pope of the popes of Alexandria or the world, or even among the monks. He was wondrous in his prayers."

The seat of the Pope during his papacy in Cairo remained in the Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Azbakeya in Cairo but he built the Saint Mark's Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Abbasseya Cairo which is currently the Seat of the Coptic Orthodox Pope.

Abuna Basilios

Some reform was also effected within the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. In July 1948, Haile Selassie initiated steps, completed in 1956, by which he, rather than the patriarch of Alexandria, would appoint the abuna, or Patriarch, of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Thus, for the first time in sixteen centuries of Ethiopian Christianity, an Ethiopian rather than an Egyptian served as head of the national church. The Ethiopian church, however, continued to recognize the primacy of the Alexandrian see. The Coptic and Ethiopian Churches reached an agreement on 13 July 1948 that led to autocephaly for the Ethiopian Church. Five bishops were immediately consecrated by the Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriach of All Africa, empowered to elect a new Patriarch for their church, and the successor to Abuna Qerellos IV would have the power to consecrate new bishops. This promotion was completed when Coptic Orthodox Pope Joseph II consecrated an

Ethiopian-born Archbishop, Abuna Basilios, 14 January 1951. Then in 1959,

Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria crowned Abuna Basilios as the first Patriarch of Ethiopia.Patriarch Abune Basilios died in 1970, and was succeeded that year by Patriarch Abune Tewophilos. This appointment was followed by the creation of enough new bishoprics to allow the Ethiopians to elect their own patriarch. Abuna Basilios, the first Ethiopian archbishop, was elevated to the status of Patriarch in 1959. The postwar years also saw a change in the church-state relationship; the vast church landholdings became subject to tax legislation,

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and the clergy lost the right to try fellow church officials for civil offences in their own court.

His Holiness Abuna Basilios was born on 23rd April 1891 in Mada Mikael, a village in the district of Merhabete in Shoa Province. Woldetzadik Solomon, his father, was an ecclesiastical official. In his home town he received elementary church education and then he entered the Monastery of Debre Libanos where he received advanced religious education. He took the oath of celibacy and became a monk at the age of 21. For 12 years thereafter he served in the same Monastery. At the beginning of the year 1933 he was nominated Head of the Ethiopian Churches and Monasteries in Jerusalem. He had already given distinguished service in various capacities for several years, in important monasteries and churches in Ethiopia. He remained in Jerusalem for two years. During that time he continued to experience that profound satisfaction which comes through prayer and which is given only to the elect and pure inn heart. While in Jerusalem, he used to visit reverently those places where Christ had lived in poverty and humility, where he had preached to the crowds, where He had given back health and hope to the sick and resurrection to the dead, where He had shown the way of that truth which leads to eternal life. Abuna Basilios thus consolidated his theological knowledge which, once he came back to his fatherland, enabled him to fulfil the duties of Etcheguie of the Ethiopian Church open to an Ethiopian. He became known as Etcheguie Guebre Guiorguis. During Facist Invasion in 1935 he accompanied His Imperial Majesty and the Ethiopian troops to the battle of Maichew where he gave moral support to all. During the five years of the foreign occupation, he lived in exile in Jerusalem. In those difficult and troubled days for Ethiopia, he remained constantly in touch with the resistance fighters and through them he sent words of encouragement to the population of Ethiopia. Abuna Basilios was consecrated Archbishop in July 1948 during a ceremony held at the Patriarchate of Saint Mark in Egypt. In 1950, on the death in Cairo of Abuna Kyrollos, 110th and last Egyptian Archbishop of Ethiopia, he became Head of the Church of Ethiopia, with authority to nominate Bishops and Archbishops. Later in the year 1959, during a solemn ceremony at which His Majesty Emperor Haile Sellasie I was present, he was consecrated first Ethiopian Patriarch of the National Church of Ethiopia. Reference: The Church of Ethiopia – The National Church in the Making – by Yolande Mara (ASMARA – Publisher “IL POLIGRAFICO” (1972), pages 113-115)

La Von Miguel Haithman (Abba Gabre Mikael Kristos)

In a climate of confusion, a number of branches of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church now exist in the West, reflecting the divisions in Africa. The last Emperor of Ethiopia, official head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Emperor Haile Selassie I, commissioned Abuna Mikael Gabre Kristos, to establish a diocese of the Ethiopian Church in the Americas. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained to the Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Patriarch of Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Two days later, in the royal hall,he was invested in office by Emperor Halle Selassie I, and sent with Ukase to establish the church in the west, especially towards Africans of the Diaspora. He was bestowed and installed in the order of Nebur-id. Knowing that

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unfavorable political change which would affect the church was soon forthcoming, and that there might come a necessity to create a legally separate organization in the west, His Majesty gave Abuna Mikael the freedom to do so.




The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of NSA, being an Autocephalous body, recognize H.H Pope Shenouda III, Abuna Merkorios, in exile, as the lawful Patriarch, and Abuna Apollo as Metropolitan Primate. Being an autocephalous body, this group is not under the control or directly governed by the See of Alexandria. The Holy See of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Archdiocese of North and South Amercia is located in Manhattan, New York. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)

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Archbishop Lewis Philip – Archbishop Bertil Persson – George Boyer

Apostolic Succession from the Russian Orthodox Church through Bishops Joseph A. Zuk, Walter Myron Propheta, and La

Von Miguel Haithman (Gabre Mikael Kristos), along the American Orthodox Catholic Church.

Foreword The Mission Statement of The American Orthodox Catholic Church - Propheta Jurisdiction is to foster and propagate, in the example of our Holy Father St. Walter Myron Propheta, a true and authentic American Orthodox Catholicism: faithfully expressing the faith, belief, Traditions and Praxis of the early and undivided Church. Furthermore, we call both seeker and Disciple to leadership and accountability in the Orthodox and Catholic Church; empowering them to use the every gift given for the ministerial uplifting of all the People of God.

The American Orthodox Catholic Church, is also known as the Propheta Jurisdiction. Its foundations are in the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow in Russia. It is also related to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Ethiopia.

The AOCC, in its present form, was founded in 1964 as a separate and autocephalous jurisdiction, in a continuation of the autonomy granted to the initial American Orthodox Church. This Communion was chartered in the State of New York in 1965 by Patriarch Walter Myron Propheta of Blessed Memory. From the time of St. Propheta until the present, the AOCC has evolved from a long and storied past.

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The current Hierarchs, Clergy and Seminarians of this Church have begun an attempt at breathing new life into an all-but-forgotten unique Orthodox legacy and the heritage of St. Walter Propheta, re-establishing and making relevant for these times a Communion long dormant.

The AOCC has taken upon itself the calling of implanting a truly American and all-embracing Orthodoxy, branching out into the Liturgical expressions of both Eastern and Western Orthodox Christianity.

As a result of this Church's roots in the ancient Patriarchate of Alexandria, and because of missionary activity reaching the Celtic Isles, a Celtic Orthodox presence has been established in this Jurisdiction.

The goal of St. Propheta and all other adherents is to make right faith and worship an empowering characteristic of personal and communal spirituality: this within the broader scope of returning to communion with the Body of Christ, with the Father, and with one another those who, for whatever reason, have been disenfranchised from their faith communities of origin, the restoration of the place of and the role this Church once held in the broader picture of American Church history, maintaining absolute Liturgical purity, and propagating uncompromised Apostolic teaching.

History As It Is

The AOCC-Propheta Jurisdiction in its present form, was founded in 1964 as a separate and independent jurisdiction. This Communion was chartered in the State of New York in 1965 by Patriarch Walter Myron Propheta of Blessed Memory.

The AOCC has taken upon itself the calling of implanting a truly American and all-embracing Orthodoxy, as distinct from the canonical jurisdictions of the Orthodox Church in America and the Ecumenical Patriarchate, branching out into the liturgical expressions of both Eastern and Western Orthodox Christianity.

The stated goal of Propheta and the AOCC is to make right faith and worship an empowering characteristic of personal and communal spirituality: this within the broader scope of returning to communion with the Body of Christ, with the Father, and with one another those who, for whatever reason, have been disenfranchised from their faith communities of origin, the restoration of the place of and the role this Church once held in the broader picture of American Church history, maintaining absolute Liturgical purity, and propagating uncompromised Apostolic teaching.

The first missionaries from the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow and all Russia, stepped upon the shores of the North American Continent in 1794; establishing a foundation on Kodiak Island, and building mission outposts in what is now the State of Alaska. Hierarch after Hierarch was consecrated in succession from the Patriarchal Seat and sent to serve and administer these parishes, clergy and faithful.

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One such Bishop was Tikhon Bellavin, a holy Martyr for both the Church and for Orthodoxy, and a Canonized Saint: Metropolitan Archbishop of The Russian Orthodox Church in America during the years 1895-1907; until he was recalled to Moscow to lead the re-established Russian Patriarchate.

In 1917 Patriarch Tikhon and the Holy Synod elected a Presbyter from the Patriarchate of Antioch, Abdullah (Aftimios) Ofiesh, for consecration to the Episcopacy. Ofiesh had come to the United States to minister under the Omophora of the Exarch for all people of Arab descent in America, Archbishop St. Raphael Hawaweeny: Hawaweeny having been himself consecrated as Hierarch by St. Tikhon. Ofiesh was assigned to serve as Dean of the Cathedral of St. Nicholas in New York City.

The Consecration of Fr. Aftimios as Bishop was celebrated at that very same Cathedral on May 31, 1917 by the laying on of hands from Archbishops Evdokim Mischersky of the Russian Church in America, Alexander Nemolovsky, Russian Orthodox Exarch for Canada and the Aleutian Islands, and Bishop Stephen Dzubai, of the Russian Orthodox Diocese of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In this sacramental act was passed to Hierarch Aftimios the validity and canonicity of Russian Orthodoxy.

The mandate subsequently given by Patriarch Tikhon to the new Bishop was to found, under Synodal Constitution from the Mother Church, an autonomous American Orthodox Church.

A decade later, this call was to be confirmed. In that year, 1927, Metropolitan Platon, spiritual leader of the Russian Orthodox Church in America and a successor to Patriarch St. Tikhon in this country, gave now Archbishop Ofiesh care and responsibility; reiterating the missionary challenge of St. Tikhon, of building an American Church for the Orthodox population of this country who were not being satisfactorily served by ethnic Orthodoxy; as well as those from other denominations of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church who might come to wish to associate themselves with an autonomous and independent American Orthodox Church.

As successive years unfolded, other Bishops from ethnic Churches would cooperate with one another in consecrating Hierarchs and ordaining clergy for their respective Jurisdictions, thus significantly contributing to the building of American Orthodoxy. Most notable among these are the Churches of Greece and Ukraine, the Church of Albania, and the Greek Patriarchate of Alexandria.

It is not only from its Russian heritage, but also from the other Churches and Patriarchates given to every other Bishop in the history and lineage of American Orthodoxy, including Walter Myron Propheta, that the AOCC claims the absolute legitimacy and validity of its descendency.

The Coptic Patriarchates of Alexandria (Egypt) and Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) Of more recent dating, and of equal importance to the history of the presently ministering AOCC - Propheta Jurisdiction is the Apostolic Lineage given from the Coptic Church of Ethiopia.

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The first Hierarch to be spoken of here is Abuna Basilios, consecrated to the Episcopacy in 1951 by Patriarch Kyrillos VI and Archbishop Joseph Youasab II of the Coptic Church of Egypt. Upon the Orthodox Clergy and faithful of Ethiopia being granted their autocephaly, Basilios was consecrated as their Patriarch.

In the decade of the 1950s, under Abuna Basilios, came a Fr. Gabre Mikael Kristos (La Von Miguel Haithman); originally ordained to the Presbyterate by Archbishop Hubert Augustus Rogers of The North American Old Roman Catholic Church. We do not know if the Ethiopian Patriarch Abuna Basilios accepted Fr. Mikael Kristos’ ordination by Rogers or if he re-ordained under condition him deacon and priest. It could be that Abuna Basilios accepted his Holy Orders up and included the priesthood; or, he may have wanted to confirm his Holy Orders.

In a climate of confusion, a number of branches of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church now exist in the West, reflecting the divisions in Africa. The last Emperor of Ethiopia, official head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Emperor Haile Selassie I, commissioned Abuna Mikael Gabre Kristos, to establish a diocese of the Ethiopian Church in the Americas. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained to the Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Metropolitan of Gojjam (not ‘Patriarch’ as stated in Wikipedia’s article), and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Two days later, in the royal hall,he was invested in office by Emperor Halle Selassie I, and sent with Ukase to establish the church in the west, especially towards Africans of the Diaspora. He was bestowed and installed in the order of Nebur-id. Knowing that unfavorable political change which would affect the church was soon forthcoming, and that there might come a necessity to create a legally separate organization in the west, His Majesty gave Abuna Mikael the freedom to do so.



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The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of NSA, being an Autocephalous body, recognize H.H Pope Shenouda III, Abuna Merkorios, in exile, as the lawful Patriarch, and Abuna Apollo as Metropolitan Primate. Being an autocephalous body, this group is not under the control or directly governed by the See of Alexandria. The Holy See of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Archdiocese of North and South Amercia is located in Manhattan, New York.

It is remarked that prior to his return to this country in 1959, Gabre Mikael was consecrated to the episcopate, and nominated as assistant-bishop (‘chorbishop’, as some would say, word no longer in use at least in Roman Catholicism; or bishop-coadjutor or assistant) by Abuna Basilios; and in 1962 was ordained to the full Episcopacy, “the enthronment” part, also by Abuna Basilios, and named Metropolitan Primate of the EOCC for North and South America. (Concerning assistant or coadjutor bishops, refer to the Roman “Codex Iuris Canonici, Canon 403 to Canon 411.)

Archbishop Walter Myron Propheta

In a treatise about the American Orthodox Catholic Church, it is also necessary to speak of Archbishop Walter Myron Propheta. Propheta was born in 1912 in the City of Lviv in Ukraine to Archpriest and Mrs. Dimitray Propheta. Archpriest Dimitray, being the eleventh generation of Ukrainian Orthodox clergy in his ancestry, was known in religion as Wolodymir I and was, according to the AOCC, a spiritual leader of some influence, respected among the Hierarchs of the Autocephalous Orthodox Communions as they existed in his time. Speaking in ecclesiastical terms, Walter Propheta was ordained to the Presbyterate, becoming the twelfth generation to carry on the legacy of Ukrainian Orthodox Priesthood in his family, on May 5, 1933 by The Most Reverend Bodhan Schpylka, Bishop and future Metropolitan Primate of The Ukrainian Orthodox Church in America - Ecumenical Patriachate of Constantinople: the UOCA having been founded by Archbishop Joseph Zuk. After a quarter century of service to this Orthodox Jurisdiction as Priest, Fr. Walter was elevated to the Office of Mitred Archpriest and appointed Chancellor of the UOCA; these honours were bestowed upon him in 1959 by Hierarch Schpylka. As Presbyter, Propheta

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was first Pastor of St. Mary's Ukrainian Orthodox Church in South Plainfield, New Jersey and others. In the late 1950s, the congregation at the Church of the Holy Resurrection in the Bronx, New York wished to have the vernacular brought into the celebration of the Divine Liturgy to replace the traditional Old Church Slavonic. It was Propheta's desire that the broader scope of not only the Church but also Orthodoxy be made available and accessible to all regardless of national origin. Due to a rubrical disagreement with Metropolitan Bodhan, who served as Dean of Priests as well as Pastor because Schpylka would not sanction the change, Archpriest Walter split from the Ukranian Orthodox Church and ventured into the realm of canonical, independent autocephaly. He took up the mission of restoring the vision of American Orthodoxy, like those who had come before him and whose succession he would soon share. In 1965, Propheta chartered the American Orthodox Catholic Church in New York. His resolve in this labour is shown by his cooperation with such well-known and longestablished Hierarchs as Archbishops Peter Zhurawetsky and Hubert Augustus Rogers, and many others. He himself, however, remained faithful to his Ukrainian Orthodox heritage. October 4, 1964 saw Archpriest Walter consecrated to episcopacy by Joachim Souris of The Greek Archdiocese of Brooklyn and New Jersey, (former American Exarchate of the Patriarchate of Alexandria) and Metropolitan Theodotus DeWitow of The Holy Orthodox Church in America. This Episcopal Consecration was sanctioned by the Roman Catholic Cardinal Archbishop of New York at the time, Francis Spellman, although the Episcopal consecration did not need the approval of the Roman Pope. Archbishop Theoklitos Kantaris of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus and Metropolitan DeWitow, on March 30, 1965 and by the laying on of hands, elevated Bishop Walter service as Archbishop and Metropolitan Primate of The American Orthodox Church/American Orthodox Catholic Church. The influence of The American Orthodox Church/American Orthodox Catholic Church under Propheta's Omophora in the 1960s and early 1970s extended to many parts of the world and was comprised of clergy and religious in Europe, Africa, the Caribbean, South America, Great Britain and the United States. Propheta died on October 8, 1972. He was laid to rest in the State of New Jersey. Propheta was canonized as a saint by the AOCC-Propheta Jurisdiction on June 9, 2004.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of North and South America) The establishment of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church in North America would prove of great importance, for upon the assassination of Ethiopia's beloved Emperor Haile

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Selassie and the overthrow of the Ethiopian government, Abuna Basilios was sent into exile. He came to America and settled in New York City. The AOCC believes that at this time, the EOCC in Basilios' homeland fell into both heretical and blasphemous practices, while the EOCC Church in the United States, under Hierarch Gabre Mikael, retained its faithfulness to Canonical Orthodoxy. (This is not a view shared by the remainder of the Coptic Orthodox churches or by the broader Orthodox communion.) For a time also, The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church came under the Omophora of Archbishop Propheta and was known as 'The American Orthodox Catholic Church - Archdiocese of the Coptic Rite.' Bishop Gabre Mikael Kristos and the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church are integral to the history and the succession of the current AOCC - Propheta in that Gabre Mikael, who had also received Consecration from Archbishop Propheta and thus received the lineage of American Orthodoxy, was the principle consecrator of Archbishop Gabre Medhin Jeremiah (David W. Worley), retired Metropolitan Primate of The American Orthodox Church/American Orthodox Catholic Church.

Abuna Gabre Medhin Kristos Jeremiah (David William Worley) The year of our Lord 1970 saw the ordination of David William Worley to the Subdiaconate by a representative of ‘The American Orthodox Catholic Church – American Orthodox Church’ in Rochester, New York. Following the reception of this Minor Order; Subdeacon Worley went to the New York City Borough of the Bronx, entered Monastic Life, and began his service as a Cleric in the AOCC/AOC. His deaconate came shortly thereafter; and on September 12, 1970 he received the priesthood from the Most Reverend Anthony Everheart (Father Tony Everheart started his services in a tent. After, the building he founded at 726, Gate Avenue in Brooklyn, was dedicated by Archbishop Abuna Theophilus of the Ethiopian Church, on December 14, 1959). Bishop Everhearts was at that time 80 years of age. He also was an Auxiliary (assistant, coadjutor) Bishop to the Patriarch of the AOCC/AOC. Abuna Gabre Medhin Kristos Jeremiah’s association with Metropolitan Gabre Mikael Kristos and the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church began in 1971; when, subsequent to his ordination and elevation to the Offices of Mitred Archpriest and Assistant Bishop (chorepiscopus, as some would say) at the hands of Patriarch Walter Myron Propheta and Archbishop John Christian Chiasson, he was assigned to minister with Abuna Mikael Kristos and the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church; being also given the ministry as Jurisdiction’s Chancellor. November 18, 1972 saw Assistant-bishop (chorbishop) Jeremiah consecrated fully to the Episcopacy at the Cathedral Church of Saint of Saint Leonard in Brooklyn, New York. Metropolitan Gabre Mikael Kristos was the principle consecrator, assisted by Hierarchs Francis Ryan, James Edward Burns, and Anthony Everhaert.

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It is important to note that Abuna Jeremiah was the first and only non-African American to receive Episcopal Consecration in the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church, within which he also established the Church of Saint Barbara. After his Episcopal Consecration Abuna Jeremiah was appointed the Bishop Ordinary for the Brooklyn, New York Diocese of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church. He was widely known and respected in and around New York City for his ministries among the African American, Hispanic, and Immigrant populations. Abuna Jeremiah was also invested in the Order of Saint Anthony of the Desert (Egypt), an Order of Ethiopian Knighthood, bestowed only on Clerics.

Archbishop Walter Myron Propheta’s Legacy

The influence of The American orthodox Church/American Orthodox Catholic Church under Propheta's Omophora in the 1960s and early 1970s extended to many parts of the world and was comprised of clergy and religious in Europe, Africa, the Caribbean, South America, Great Britain and the United States. Archbishop Walter Myron Propheta died on October 8, 1972. He was laid to rest in the State of New Jersey. (From Wikipedia mainly, historian unknown, later confirmed Archbishop Mark Pultorak)

Russian Orthodox and Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Apostolic Successions

Joseph A. Zuk (? – 2/23/34) was consecrated on 7 February 1932 by Bp. Aftimios (Abdullah Ofiesh; Holy Eastern Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church in North America), assisted by Bp. Sophronios Bishara (Bishop of Los Angeles) as Assistant Bishop of The Holy Eastern Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church in North America with special oversight over The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of America. The ecclesiastical jurisdiction of these bishops (Ofiesh, Bishara & Zuk) is believed by many to be the sole canonical successor of The Russian Orthodox jurisdiction established for North America by way of Alaska in 1763 under Canon Law (Council of Chalcedon, 453 A.D.); thus this jurisdiction would be the only lawful (i.e., canonical) Orthodox jurisdiction in the U.S.A. Bishop Zuk consecrated to the Sacred Episcopate: William Albert Nichols (12/4/1867 – 2/6/1947) on 27 September 1932, together with Bp. Sophronios Bishara, assisting Abp. Aftimios (Abdullah Ofiesh). Bishop Nichols took the ecclesiastical name of Ignatius. Against canon law and Church tradition, Bp. Ignatius (Nichols) married in June of 1933, for which he was formally removed from Office by Bp. Bishara. Upon the death of both Bp. Bishara and Bp. Zuk in 1934, Bp. Nichols assumed leadership of part of the Holy Eastern Orthodox and Apostolic Church in North America,

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officially incorporating it in the State of New York on 16 March 1936 under the name: The Holy Orthodox Church in America. This newly incorporated jurisdiction also included the former Anglican Universal Church of Christ in the United States of America (Chaldean), which allowed married bishops and was headed by Abp. George Winslow Plummer. Ignatius, Archbishop of Washington, D.C., consecrated to the Sacred Episcopate: George Winslow Plummer (8/25/1876 – 1/23/1944) on 8 May 1934, assisted by Bishop Ambrosius (Maitland Raines of The Russian Orthodox Church; consecrated by Bp. Alexander Vvedensky) and took the ecclesiastical name of Mar Georgius. Mar Georgius consecrated to the Sacred Episcopate: Stanislaus de Witow (born Stanislaus Witowski; 2/9/1890 – 4/1969) on 29 November 1936, assisted by Abp. Ignatius (William Albert Nichols) and Bishop Irenaeus (Henry van Arsdale Parsell; consecrated 19 September 1920 by Bp Manuel Ferrando of the Reformed Episcopal Church assisted by Mar Georgius/Plummer) and took the ecclesiastical name Theodotus. Bp. Theodotus became head of The Holy Orthodox Church in America on 14 April 1951 succeeding Abp/Primate Roy C. Toombs (who had succeeded Mar Georgius on 23 January 1944). Abp. Theodotus consecrated to the Sacred Episcopate : Walter Myron Propheta (1912 – 10/8/1972) in Springfield, Massachusetts, on 3 October 1964, assisting Ptr. Joachim Souris of the True Orthodox Church of Greece (consecrated 2 June 1951 by Ptr. Joseph Klimovicz of the American Holy Orthodox Catholic Eastern Church, assisted by Ptr. Peter A. Zhurawetsky, Bp. Jozef Zielonka, and Bp. Clement I {John Cyril Sherwood}). On 30 March 1965 he was elevated to Archbishop by Abp. Theodotus and Bishop Theoklitus Kantaris (Bishop of the Greek Orthodox Diocese of New York , consecrated by Makarios III, Archbishop/Primate of Cyprus), and took the ecclesiastical name of Patriarch Woldymyr I. Patriarch Woldymyr I consecrated to the Sacred Episcopate La Von Miguel Haithman (known as Abuna Gabre Mikael Kristos), obviously ‘sub conditione’, because of his first consecration at Addis Ababa, Abuna Gabre Mikael Kristos being ordained to the Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Metropolitan (Patriarch in Wikipedia) of Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Walter Myron elected on March 21, 1971 and consecrated same year 1971 in the Apostolic Succession of the Russian Orthodox Church through bishop Joseph A. Zuk:

La Von Miguel Haithman (Abuna Gabre Mikael Kristos). He consecrated, assisted by the bishops Gabre Kristos Jeremiah (David William Worley) and Marcos Kristos (Lennard Lares), on February 16, 1982, Philip Lewis. He was ordained priest in the Orthodox Episcopal Church, April 4, 1972. He was elected Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of the Orthodox Ethiopian Coptic Church of the Americas North and South, and of Europe in 1990.

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Archbishop Philip Lewis consecrated under condition (sub conditione) October 13, 1990, Archbishop Nils Bertil Persson, Primate of the Apostolic Episcopal Universal Church (the Apostolic Episcopal Church Worldwide).

Archbishop Nils Bertil Alexander Persson, who consecrated on June 25, 1995 in London (UK), with co-consecrators, Bishops Hans Dieter Sauerlandt, and George Boyer:

Archbishop Philippe Laurent De Coster, of the Latin Old Roman Catholic Church of Flanders.

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The “email” document concludes our research work from 2007 to February 2009

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Last update on Wikipedia on February 3, 2009 by Bishop-Elect Lamed Burrison, of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church. It summarises all that has been mentioned in this

research work from 2007 to 2009

In a climate of confusion, a number of branches of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church now exist in the West, reflecting the divisions in Africa.

The last Emperor of Ethiopia, official head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Emperor Haile Selassie I, commissioned Abuna Mikael Gabre Kristos to establish a diocese of the Ethiopian Church in the Americas. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained the Episcopacy by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Patriarch of Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Two days later, in the royal hall, he was invested in office by Emperor Haile Selassie I, and sent with Ukase to establish the church in the west, especially ministering toward Africans of the Diaspora. He was bestowed and installed in the order of Nebur-id. Knowing that an unfavorable political change that would affect the church was soon forthcoming, and that there might come a necessity to create a legally separate organization in the west, His Majesty gave Abuna Mikael the freedom to do so.

In 1959, Abuna Mikael served as sponsor for a group of five priests and five deacons sent by Abuna Basilios for advanced study. However, some of the priests, including Fr. Laike Mandefro broke relations with Abuna Mikael. Mandefro sought authority from Abuna Theophilos (after the death of Abuna Basilios) to begin to gather Ethiopian-Americans into a congregation in Brooklyn, which was later relocated to the Bronx. As the work of Mandefro grew, he was raised to the rank of Archimandrite and placed in charge of the Ethiopian Church in the West; Archimandrite Mandefro was consecrated a bishop. Mandefro was invested in 1979 as Abuna Yeshaq, Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the Western Hemisphere.

Abuna Mikael recognized a similar need, and established the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of North and South America, reinserting the name “Coptic” into the name of the church in 1962, because he wanted strongly to identify with and maintain connection to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria as well as the royal and ecclesiastical line of Ethiopia. His Beatitude imparted to each of his sons the coveted Apostolic Succession of the Oriental Stream.

Pope Cyril VI approved the initiation of the Patriarchate of Ethiopia, long hoped for by the Ethiopian church, by ordaining the first Ethiopian patriarch, His Holiness Abuna Basilios. This established for the first time a separate Ethiopian Orthodox Church (1959), which until then had existed as a branch under the mother Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, Egypt.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of NSA, being an autocephalous body, recognize H.H Pope Shenouda III, Abuna Merkorios, in exile, as the lawful Patriarch, and Abuna Apollo as Metropolitan Primate. Being an autocephalous body, this group is not under the control or directly governed by the See of Alexandria. The Holy See of the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Archdiocese of North and South America is located in Manhattan, New York.

References on Abuna Gabre Mikael Kristos (Referred in the book as “Kristos, Mikael Gabre, Ethiopian Orthodox Church of North and South America.) See also, in same work, Lewis Philip, Archbishop of same Church for North and South America.

Abuna Gabre Mikael Kristos is variously quoted on Wikipedia, and by writers holding documents.

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Independent Bishops: An International Directory”. Edited by Gary L. Ward, Bertil Persson, Alan Bain. Preface by J. Gordon Melton. Apogee Books, Penobscot Building, Detroit, Michigan 48226, U.S.A.

Retrieved from “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethiopian_Orthodox_Coptic_Church_of_North_and_South_America”

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Confirming Summary

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Independent Bishops: An International Directory”. Edited by Gary L. Ward, Bertil Persson, Alan Bain. Preface by J. Gordon Melton. Apogee

Books, Penobscot Building, Detroit, Michigan 48226, U.S.A.

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The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of North and South America

In a climate of confusion, a number of branches of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church now exist in the West, reflecting the divisions in Africa. The last Emperor of Ethiopia, official head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Emperor Haile Selassie I, commissioned Abuna Mikael Gabre Kristos, to establish a diocese of the Ethiopian Church in the Americas. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Patriarch of Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Two days later, in the royal hall,he was invested in office by Emperor Halle Selassie I, and sent with Ukase to establish the church in the west, especially towards Africans of the Diaspora. He was bestowed and installed in the order of Nebur-id. Knowing that unfavorable political change which would affect the church was soon forthcoming, and that there might come a necessity to create a legally separate organization in the west, His Majesty gave Abuna Mikael the freedom to do so. In 1959, Abuna Mikael served as sponsor for a group of five priests and five deacons sent by Abuna Basilios for advanced study. However, some of the priests, including Fr. Laike Mandefro broke relations with Abuna Mikael. Fr. Laike Mandefro sought authority from Abuna Theophilos (after the death of Abuna Basilios) to begin to gather Ethiopian-Americans into a congregation in Brooklyn, which was later relocated to the Bronx. As the work of Fr. Laike Mandefro grew, he was raised to the rank of Archimandrite and placed in charge of the Ethiopian Church in the West, Archimandrite Mandefro was consecrated a bishop. Mandfredo was invested in 1979 as Abuna Yeshaq, Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the Western Hemisphere. Abuna Mikael recognized a similar need, and established the Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of North and South America, reinserting the name “Coptic” into the name of the church, (1962) because he wanted strongly to identify with and maintain connection to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria as well as the royal and ecclesiastical line of Ethiopia. His Beatitude imparted to each of his sons the coveted Apostolic Succession of the Oriental Stream. Pope Cyril VI approved the initiation of the Patriarchate of Ethiopia, long hoped for by the Ethiopian church, by ordaining the first Ethiopian patriarch, His Holiness Abuna Basilios. This Established for the first time a separate Ethiopian Orthodox Church (1959), which until then had existed as a branch under the mother Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria of Egypt. The Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church of NSA, being an Autocephalous body, recognize H.H Pope Shenouda III, Abuna Merkorios, in exile, as the lawful Patriarch, and Abuna Apollo as Metropolitan Primate. Being an autocephalous body, this group is not under the control or directly governed by the See of Alexandria. The Holy See of the Ethiopian

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Orthodox Coptic Archdiocese of North and South Amercia is located in Manhattan, New York.

1. Abba Yusak II (Egyptian Coptic Pope) (Enthronement 1946) (+ 14.11.1956), Archbishop of Girga, Patriarch of Alexandria, consecrated January 13, 1951, as Patriarchal Vicar (Itchege): Gebre Giyorgis (Anba Basilios), Archbishop of the Orthodox Coptic Church, Archdiocese of Ethiopia in 1951. He was the Patriarch-Catholicos of the Orthodox Coptic Church in 1959. (+ 1970).

2. Abba Kirillus/Kirollos VI (Azer Joseph Atta) (Copt ic Pope) (See photograph) (October 3, 1902 – March 9, 1971), Patriarch of Alexandria of the Orthodox Coptic Church in 1959. Abba Kirollos VI consecrated and enthroned as first Patriarch-Catholicos, June 28, 1959 of the Orthodox Ethiopian Coptic Church, Anba Basilios (Abuna Basilios) (+ October 12, 1970).

3. Abuna Basilios ordained and elevated as “Comos” (Archimandrite, July 18, 1962): La Von Miguel Haithman (Abba Gabre Mikael Kristos) (+ 1985). He was ordained priest in 1959 for the Orthodox Ethiopian Church. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, Abuna Mikael was ordained to the Episcopacy, by His Holiness Abuna Basilios, Abuna Markos Patriarch of Gojjam, and His Grace Petros, Metropolitan of Gondar, on July 12, 1959. Archbishop metropolitan Gabre Mikael Kristos, assisted by the bishops Gabre Kristos Jeremiah (David William Worley) and Marcos Kristos (Lennard Lares), consecrated February 16, 1982, Philip Lewis. He was ordained priest in the Orthodox Episcopal Church, April 4, 1972. He was elected Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of the Orthodox Ethiopian Coptic Church of the Americas North and South, and of Europe in 1990.

4. Archbishop Philip Lewis consecrated under condition (sub conditione) October 13, 1990, Archbishop Nils Bertil Persson, Primate of the Apostolic Episcopal Universal Church (the Apostolic Episcopal Church Worldwide).

5. Archbishop Nils Bertil Alexander Persson, who consecrated on June 25, 1995 in London (UK), with co-consecrators, Bishops Hans Dieter Sauerlandt, and George Boyer:

Archbishop Philippe Laurent De Coster, of the Latin Old Roman Catholic Church of Flanders.

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More evidence as found in above research work

Death certificate of Anba Mikael Gabre Kristos

November 18, 1972 saw Chorbishop Jeremiah consecrated to the full historic Episcopacy by Archbishop Gabre Mikael as primary consecrator, assisted by Hierarchs Francis Ryan, James Burns and Anthony Everhart: each of these Archbishops also possessing the succession of the American Orthodox Church. His elevation to Archbishop came late in 1978 at the hands of Hierarchs Gabre Mikael, Burns, Ryan and Carey Presson.

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Message from the Emperor Haile Selassie I.

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Archbishop Philippe Laurent De Coster, B.Th., D.D.


And its Apostolic Communities in Belgium and France

© Publisher Eucharist and Devotion 2009 Gent, Belgium

Email: [email protected]

For all the help in the research work, our gratitude to:

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Archbishop Peter Paul Brennan

Order of Corporate Reunion Ecumenical Catholic Diocese of America Married Priests Now! Catholic Prelature

Archbishop Philippe Laurent De Coster


Archbishop Metropolitan Primate Mark Pultorak (Samuel) The American Orthodox-Catholic Church

Archbishop Primate Francis Cajetan Spataro

The Apostolic Episcopal Church The Vilatte Guild Extension Academy

2007 – 2009

Special thanks to

Bishop-Elect Lamed Burrison

Ethiopian Orthodox Coptic Church

Manhattan, New York, USA

ethiopian coptic research evidence team

Documents