Jack Voelkel
Frumentius, Apostle of Ethiopia (4th Century)
What started off as an incredible adventure was somehow turning into a nightmare before their very eyes, as Frumentius and his brother Aedesius watched, horrified, while the furious Ethiopians slaughtered the crew of their ship and their beloved uncle and tutor, Meropus.
It had begun so well. Only months earlier Meropus surprised them with this amazing invitation, “Would you like to accompany me on an investigative tour down the Mediterranean coast? We would go overland to the Red Sea, and then on to Arabia.” The teenagers’ parents thought that the trip would be not only an exciting experience for the boys but an educational one as well. Being Christians, they prayed earnestly for them before the trip began and sent them on their way. The boys drank in the new sights but increasingly became aware of the absence of any Christian witness in these lands.
Then tragedy struck. On the trip back home to Tyre (Syria) their ship landed at a port on the western coast of the Red Sea, in a country now known as Ethiopia. Unbeknownst to them, the people of that region were incensed by the violation of a treaty. They considered the ship in league with those at fault and took revenge by killing all the crew and passengers. The boys had gone ashore to stretch their legs and were reading under a tree when the attack occurred. They watched helplessly as their comrades were massacred and escaped with their lives, though not with their freedom. They were taken to King Elle-Amida who made them his personal slaves. He placed Frumentius in the home of Anbaram, a Jewish priest with Christian sympathies. The man came to love him and practically adopted him as his stepson.
Once they learned the local language, the king himself came to appreciate the natural talents of the boys and took pains to educate them in the ways of his people. Like Joseph in Egypt, he gave them more and more responsibility until Aedesius became his trusted cupbearer (who tasted his wine to make sure it wasn’t poisoned) and Frumentius his secretary and archivist. Before his death, the old king thanked the boys for their great service to him and his realm and officially granted them their freedom.
Then with great anticipation, they made plans to return home (at last!). Then the queen asked to speak to them. “I know how much it must mean to you go home, to see your parents and your homeland,” she began. But then she pleaded, “But we have one like you here. Please stay a few years longer to help me educate my young sons, the princes Ezana and Sheazana, and to help me administer the government.”
What made them respond positively to her request? Was it because they took pity on the queen facing such a difficult task alone? Was it because they saw a unique opportunity for the Gospel? Whatever it was, they did decide to stay on and help the queen until Ezana became of age and was able to take the reins of government in his own hands. The teaching that they gave him stayed with him all his life.
Then the day came for them to leave. As they stood on shipboard Aedesius could talk of nothing but the joy of seeing their parents and loved ones. Frumentius, however, was silent. He had grown and matured in his faith and the Lord was pressing on him the need of the people of Ethiopia. There were so few Christians there and they needed effective leadership. He astounded Aedesius when he announced that he would interrupt his journey home and stop off in Egypt to speak to the Christian leaders there about sending pastors to Ethiopia.
In Alexandria he sought out Bishop Athanasius. As Frumentius shared his story, his deep concern for the Ethiopians, their need to hear the Gospel, and for someone to organize the churches, the good Bishop recognized the uniqueness of this young man. He exclaimed, “What other man shall we find in whom the Spirit of God is as in you, who can accomplish these things?”
Athanasius took Frumentius under his wing. He taught and trained him. He took him with him to the great Council of Nicea (AD 325) where he was upholding the orthodox theology against Bishop Arius. When he considered him ready, he ordained him both a priest and bishop, and challenged him to return to Ethiopia and lead the people to the feet of Christ. Frumentius received Athanasius’ challenge as a word from the Lord. He took as his title Abba Salama (Father of Peace). To this day the Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is still addressed by this title.
King Ezana received his former teacher with joy. As the months went by, Frumentius led his former pupil deeper into the ways of God. The king responded with enthusiasm and on one occasion declared:
In the faith of God, and the power of the Father and Son and Holy Spirit, who saved for me the kingdom by the faith of his Son Jesus Christ, who helped me and always does help me, I, Ezana, King of the Axomites and Homerites…Son of Elle-Amida, servant of Christ, give thanks to the Lord my God.
King Ezana made Christianity the state religion and also destroyed the pagan temples. In his nascent zeal, however, he resorted to the culture’s methods of dealing with enemies, and killed the pagan priests as well. Archeologists have noted that coins of that period abruptly change from bearing pagan symbols to be marked with a Christian cross. Frumentius discovered that discipling strong willed leaders steeped in pagan traditions was a long and challenging process!
The young bishop renewed his friendship with his “stepfather,” Anbaram, the “pro-Christian” Jewish priest. With the training he had received from Athanasius he helped this man understand the relationship between the man’s Jewish heritage and the Christian fulfillment of it. Anbaram not only received baptism but was later ordained a priest and worked closely with his “stepson” in sharing the Gospel and developing churches.
Recognizing the need for the Ethiopians emerging from paganism to visualize what a Christian community could look like, Frumentius approached some Christian merchants living in the port cities, and challenged them to take their faith seriously. He helped them build churches and established weekly worship.
Frumentius could not forget his boyhood experiences when he and Aedesius traveled through other pagan lands with their uncle, so long ago. Once the church in Ethiopia was well established, he organized missions to Nubia (Africa) and Yemen (Arabian peninsula) and established churches there. Recognizing the need for his people to have the Bible in their own language, he produced the first Ethiopian translation of the New Testament.
What happened to Frumentius’ brother, Aedesius? He returned home to Tyre and also decided to become a priest. Years later, he shared with the historian Rufinius the adventures that he and Frumentius had as boys. It is from Rufinius’ Ecclesiastical History that most of these facts come down to us.
Jesus was well aware that it would often be through suffering and persecution that the Gospel would spread to those who had never heard it. He prepared his disciples for just such situations. He warned them, “On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. And the gospel must first be preached to all nations….Do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit” (Mark 13:9-11).
When two young Syrian students watched with horror as their uncle and the crewmen of their ship were massacred before their eyes, little did they realize how the Lord would use their unintended stay as slaves in a strange land. God has His unexpected ways even today to bring the Gospel to all nations, even those we might call “unreached.” He used Frumentius. He may even use you.
Sources: Michael Ott. Catholic Encyclopedia Vol V, online edition. Norman Hugh Redington. The Ecole Glossary. Internet. Edwin M. Yamauchi. Africa and the Bible. Baker, 2004.
Jack Voelkel / April 2005 / InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
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