Soteriology (ትምህርተ ድኅነት): A Brief Overview from the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Perspective

Soteriology (ትምህርተ ድኅነት), the study of salvation, is a central theme in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC). It focuses on God’s divine plan to restore humanity from sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. This essay will explore the meaning of soteriology, examine what Christ saved us from, explore the various aspects of salvation (መዳን), and outline the requirements for attaining salvation from the EOTC perspective.

Soteriology comes from the Greek words “sōtēria,” meaning salvation or deliverance, and “logos,” meaning study or discourse. In the context of the EOTC, it refers to the study of God’s redemptive work through Jesus Christ. The Church teaches that salvation restores the broken relationship between God and humanity caused by sin, reconciling humanity to God and granting eternal life.

From What Is Humanity Saved?

1.     From the Wrong Deed (Sin) Committed Through Adam (ጥንተ አብሶ/ የአዳም በደል)

Christ’s sacrifice freed humanity from the power and penalty of sin, which had affected both the righteous and the unrighteous before He offered Himself. Now, no one is punished for Adam's disobedience and sin; rather, individuals are accountable for their own actions—breaking God’s law and commandments and failing to accept the price paid for them. Colossians 2:14 clarifies this: “በእኛ ላይ የነበረውን የሚቃወመንንም በትእዛዛት የተጻፈውን የዕዳ ጽሕፈት ደመሰሰው፤ እርሱንም በመስቀል ጠርቆ ከመንገድ አስወግዶታል::” Revelation 1:5 also states: “ለወደደን ከኃጢአታችንም በደሙ ላጠበን…” Christ shed His blood and broke His body to forgive our sins. We were slaves to sin; He made us His children. The prophets lamented (wept), saying, “የቀደመውን በደላችንን አታስብብን፥ ምሕረትህ በቶሎ ታግኘን፥ እጅግ ተቸግረናልና።” (Psalms 79:8). God heard humanity’s cry, saw their trouble, and removed their wrongs.

2.     From Eternal Death (ከዘላለም ሞት ወይም ፈርሶ ፣ በስብሶ ከመቅረት)

Death is the separation of the soul from the body, but following Christ's resurrection (ትንሳኤ), this separation became only temporary. At the final resurrection, the soul and body will be reunited, for Christ has granted us victory over death. By descending into hell (ሲኦል), Christ freed souls from death and ended eternal separation. Through His resurrection, He assured humanity of life after death and a resurrection beyond the grave (መቃብር).

This truth is echoed in 1 Corinthians 15:55: “ሞት ሆይ፥ መውጊያህ የት አለ? ሲኦል ሆይ፥ ድል መንሣትህ የት አለ?”, fulfilling what was prophesied in Hosea 13:14: “ከሲኦል እጅ እታደጋቸዋለሁ፥ ከሞትም እቤዣቸዋለሁ፤ ሞት ሆይ፥ ቸነፈርህ ወዴት አለ? ሲኦል ሆይ፥ ማጥፋትህ ወዴት አለ?”

Humanity has been saved from the bondage of eternal death (the devil) and the sphere of hell. This is further affirmed in Colossians 1:13: “እርሱ ከጨለማ ሥልጣን አዳነን፥ ቤዛነቱንም እርሱንም የኃጢአትን ስርየት ወዳገኘንበት ወደ ፍቅሩ ልጅ መንግሥት አፈለሰን።”

Mankind found salvation from death through the price paid by his Creator, who became human to teach the way to escape death. Through His resurrection, He conquered death, reopened paradise, and led humanity to the path of eternal life. The Lord Himself affirmed this, saying, “እውነት እውነት እላችኋለሁ፥ ቃሌን የሚሰማ የላከኝንም የሚያምን የዘላለም ሕይወት አለው፥ ከሞትም ወደ ሕይወት ተሻገረ እንጂ ወደ ፍርድ አይመጣም።” (John 5:24).

This work of salvation is entirely by God’s grace, not by our deeds. Ephesians 2:8-10 explains: “ጸጋው በእምነት አድኖአችኋልና፤ ይህም የእግዚአብሔር ስጦታ ነው እንጂ ከእናንተ አይደለም፤ ማንም እንዳይመካ ከሥራ አይደለም። እኛ ፍጥረቱ ነንና፤ እንመላለስበት ዘንድ እግዚአብሔር አስቀድሞ ያዘጋጀውን መልካሙን ሥራ ለማድረግ በክርስቶስ ኢየሱስ ተፈጠርን።” Salvation through Christ is not earned by our works is a free gift of His grace and abundant forgiveness.

By becoming man, God conquered eternal death, rescuing us from separation and the eternal death of the soul. Romans 8:31 declares: “እንግዲህ ስለዚህ ነገር ምን እንላለን? እግዚአብሔር ከእኛ ጋር ከሆነ ማን ይቃወመናል?” In this way, we are no longer separated from God, for He has become one with us. By taking on our flesh and soul, He united Himself with humanity. He died our death and bore our suffering. Isaiah 53:4 reveals this truth: “በእውነት ደዌያችንን ተቀበለ ሕመማችንንም ተሸክሞአል፤ እኛ ግን እንደ ተመታ በእግዚአብሔርም እንደ ተቀሠፈ እንደ ተቸገረም ቈጠርነው።”

After Christ’s death and resurrection, death lost its power. Previously, death led people to hell— the second death. Now, it leads those who keep His commandments to life. For the righteous, death has become the path to paradise—the kingdom of heaven—turning from something feared into something sought after, as it became the way to God. From Adam to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, both sinners and the righteous were saved through the price paid on the cross. 1 Timothy 2:6 affirms this: “ራሱንም ለሁሉ ቤዛ ሰጠ::”

Our Lord appointed apostles to preach this salvation, proclaim the gospel, and testify to forgiveness for the past while establishing the law for the future. He sent them into the world to teach future generations that salvation is available to all. Through their word, those being saved were added daily. Acts 2:47 records, “እግዚአብሔርንም እያመሰገኑ በሕዝብ ሁሉ ፊት ሞገስ ነበራቸው። ጌታም የሚድኑትን ዕለት ዕለት በእነርሱ ላይ ይጨምር ነበር።”

What Are the Requirements for Salvation Today?

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church teaches that salvation is a synergy between God’s grace and human response. While Christ’s redemptive work has made salvation possible for humanity, it does not mean one can live in sin or disregard God’s laws and commandments while claiming, “I am saved.” Philippians 2:12 emphasizes this, stating, “...በፍርሃትና በመንቀጥቀጥ የራሳችሁን መዳን ፈጽሙ:: ” St. Paul wrote these words to Christians in Philippi, who already believed in Christ. If their salvation were complete, why would he instruct them to work out their salvation with fear and trembling (በመንቀጥቀጥ)? This verse highlights the ongoing nature of salvation and the necessity of personal effort in response to God’s grace.

The essential requirements for salvation include:

 

1.     Faith

Faith is believing and accepting everything God has done for humanity's salvation. It means trusting in His Word, acknowledging His existence and divinity. Without knowing God, one cannot understand His works. Thus, faith starts with belief in God’s existence, divinity, creation, and the mystery of His distinct trinity and oneness. It grows by trusting in all that this great God has done.

To be saved, mankind must return to faith in Christ, the Savior of the world, who established order and law for us: “ኢየሱስም፦ እኔ መንገድና እውነት ሕይወትም ነኝ፤ በእኔ በቀር ወደ አብ የሚመጣ የለም።” (John 14:6). Similarly, John 1 : 9 declares “ ለሰው ሁሉ የሚያበራው እውነተኛው ብርሃን ወደ ዓለም ይመጣ ነበር። በዓለም ነበረ፥ ዓለሙም በእርሱ ሆነ፥ ዓለሙም አላወቀውም። የእርሱ ወደ ሆነው መጣ፥ የገዛ ወገኖቹም አልተቀበሉትም። ለተቀበሉት ሁሉ ግን፥ በስሙ ለሚያምኑት ለእነርሱ የእግዚአብሔር ልጆች ይሆኑ ዘንድ ሥልጣንን ሰጣቸው ።” Additionally, Hebrew 4 : 16 states, “እንግዲህ ምሕረትን እንድንቀበል በሚያስፈልገንም ጊዜ የሚረዳንን ጸጋ እንድናገኝ ወደ ጸጋው ዙፋን በእምነት እንቅረብ” calling us to approach God’s throne for grace. Yet, faith alone is insufficient, as James 2:26 teaches: “Faith without works is dead—  ከሥራ የተለየ እምነት የሞተ ነው።”

  2. Baptism

Mark 16:16 states, “ያመነ የተጠመቀም ይድናል,” emphasizing that both faith and baptism are essential for salvation. While faith is fundamental, baptism is equally necessary, as it is a divine command for humanity's salvation. Simply believing is insufficient; both faith and baptism must work together for salvation, as clearly indicated in this passage.

 

If someone argues that faith alone is sufficient for salvation, it is important to remember that even demons have faith (James 2:19). Salvation and incorporation into the Church require both faith and baptism.This was the mission of the apostles: to preach life and salvation, baptize believers, and make them participants in salvation. Their task was to convince, baptize, and save—demonstrating the integral role of both faith and baptism in the process of salvation.

 

The story of the eunuch in Acts of the Apostles teaches us that baptism is necessary for salvation after belief. It reads: “ፊልጶስም አፉን ከፈተ፥ ከዚህም መጽሐፍ ጀምሮ ስለ ኢየሱስ ወንጌልን ሰበከለት። በመንገድም ሲሄዱ ወደ ውኃ ደረሱ፤ ጃንደረባውም፦ እነሆ ውኃ፤ እንዳልጠመቅ የሚከለክለኝ ምንድር ነው? አለው። ፊልጶስም፦ በፍጹም ልብህ ብታምን፥ ተፈቅዶአል አለው። መልሶም፦ ኢየሱስ ክርስቶስ የእግዚአብሔር ልጅ እንደ ሆነ አምናለሁ አለ። ሰረገላውም ይቆም ዘንድ አዘዘ፥ ፊልጶስና ጃንደረባው ሁለቱም ወደ ውኃ ወረዱ፥ አጠመቀውም።” (Acts 8:35-38). This passage emphasizes the connection between faith and baptism in the salvation journey.

 

As shown in the story above, faith alone does not save. The eunuch first believed and then was baptized. Philip did not say, “You are saved; go,” but baptized him. Therefore, baptism, following faith, is essential for salvation. Christ, who came to save the world, commanded his disciples, saying, “እንግዲህ ሂዱና አሕዛብን ሁሉ በአብ በወልድና በመንፈስ ቅዱስ ስም እያጠመቃችኋቸው፥ ያዘዝኋችሁንም ሁሉ እንዲጠብቁ እያስተማራችኋቸው ደቀ መዛሙርት አድርጓቸው፤ እነሆም እኔ እስከ ዓለም ፍጻሜ ድረስ ሁልጊዜ ከእናንተ ጋር ነኝ።” (Matthew 28:19–20). Christ’s goal was not to say, “I have already saved people,” but to enable people to believe, be baptized, keep the commandments, and become His disciples. The Bible shows that salvation is achieved through this process, not merely by saying, “I am saved.”

 

The Bible does not simply tell us to watch the path of salvation, but to walk in it. In Acts 16:30-33, the jailer asks, “ጌቶች ሆይ እድን ዘንድ ምን ማድረግ ይገባኛል? ኣላቸው። እነርሱም፦ በጌታ በኢየሱስ ክርስቶስ እመን አንተና ቤተ ሰዎችህ ትድናላችሁ አሉት። ለእርሱና በቤቱም ላሉት ሁሉ የእግዚአብሔርን ቃል ተናገሩአቸው። በሌሊትም በዚያች ሰዓት ወስዶ ቍስላቸውን አጠበላቸው፥ ያን ጊዜውንም እርሱ ከቤተ ሰዎቹ ሁሉ ጋር ተጠመቀ ።” Paul and Silas baptized the jailer and his entire family after his belief because baptism is essential for salvation, not just faith alone. If faith alone were sufficient, baptism would not have been necessary for the jailer and his entire family. This emphasizes the biblical teaching that baptism is a crucial step that follows belief in the salvation process.

 

John 3:5 states, “ኢየሱስም መለሰ፥ እንዲህ ሲል፦ እውነት እውነት እልሃለሁ፥ ሰው ከውኃና ከመንፈስ ካልተወለደ በቀር ወደ እግዚአብሔር መንግሥት ሊገባ አይችልም።” This shows that baptism, following belief, is essential for salvation. A person who believes but is not born of water and the Holy Spirit cannot be saved. Salvation means living a sanctified life in His name and inheriting God’s kingdom.

 

Baptism also grants the forgiveness of sins as shown in Acts 16:37-38: “ይህንም በሰሙ ጊዜ ልባቸው ተነካ፥ ጴጥሮስንና ሌሎችንም ሐዋርያት፦ ወንድሞች ሆይ፥ ምን እናድርግ? አሉአቸው። ጴጥሮስም፦ ንስሐ ግቡ፥ ኃጢአታችሁም ይሰረይ ዘንድ እያንዳንዳችሁ በኢየሱስ ክርስቶስ ስም ተጠመቁ፤ የመንፈስ ቅዱስንም ስጦታ ትቀበላላችሁ።” Through baptism, we accept the salvation that Jesus Christ offers, and it is one of the ways God forgives sins.

3.    Partaking in the Eucharist (ሥጋውና ደሙን መቀበል)

 

After believing and being baptized, one must eat the holy flesh and drink the precious blood of Jesus Christ. His flesh and blood are the fulfillment of faith and baptism, where true life is found. Holy flesh and precious blood of the Lord are the mystery that confirms the foundation of faith and baptism leading to rebirth through the Holy Spirit and becoming children of God. Baptism brings new life, and those born in this way need nourishment to grow, which is provided in His flesh and blood. Whoever partakes in them becomes a child of God, a recipient of the kingdom of God, and a sanctifier of His name. The Scripture says, “ለሚጠፋ መብል አትሥሩ፤ ነገር ግን ለዘላለም ሕይወት ለሚኖር መብል የሰው ልጅ ለሚሰጣችሁ ሥሩ፤ እርሱን እግዚአብሔር አብ አትሞታልና።” (John 6:27). John 6:51 also states, “ከሰማይ የወረደ ሕያው እንጀራ እኔ ነኝ፤ ሰው ከዚህ እንጀራ ቢበላ ለዘላለም ይኖራል፤ እኔም ስለ ዓለም ሕይወት የምሰጠው እንጀራ ሥጋዬ ነው።”

John 6:53-56 states, “ስለዚህ ኢየሱስ እንዲህ አላቸው፦ እውነት እውነት እላችኋለሁ፥ የሰውን ልጅ ሥጋ ካልበላችሁ ደሙንም ካልጠጣችሁ በራሳችሁ ሕይወት የላችሁም። ሥጋዬን የሚበላ ደሜንም የሚጠጣ የዘላለም ሕይወት አለው፥ እኔም በመጨረሻው ቀን አስነሣዋለሁ። ሥጋዬ እውነተኛ መብል ደሜም እውነተኛ መጠጥ ነውና። ሥጋዬን የሚበላ ደሜንም የሚጠጣ በእኔ ይኖራል እኔም በእርሱ እኖራለሁ።” Verses like Romans 5:9, Ephesians 1:7, John 1:7, and 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 further emphasize the significance of partaking in the holy flesh and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, we must believe, be baptized, and partake of His flesh and blood, where forgiveness is found. Through faith, baptism, and the seal of His flesh and blood, we make salvation a reality.

4.    Doing Good (Keeping God’s Commandments and Laws)

 

Believers who are baptized, partake of His flesh, and drink His blood must live by good works. Faith, baptism, and the Eucharist alone do not save; one must also follow God in obedience (በመታዘዝ). Matthew 5:16 states, “መልካሙን ሥራችሁን አይተው በሰማያት ያለውን አባታችሁን እንዲያከብሩ ብርሃናችሁ እንዲሁ በሰው ፊት ይብራ።” This highlights the necessity of good works. Scripture affirms that after believing, being baptized, and partaking in the Eucharist, one will be rewarded according to his or her deeds: “እነሆ፥ በቶሎ እመጣለሁ፥ ለእያንዳንዱም እንደ ሥራው መጠን እከፍል ዘንድ ዋጋዬ ከእኔ ጋር አለ።” (Revelation 22:12)

It is a lack of understanding to forget that when our Lord comes to judge, He requires not only faith but also works, as stated in Matthew 25:35: “ተርቤ አብልታችሁኛልና፥ ተጠምቼ አጠጥታችሁኛልና፥ እንግዳ ሆኜ ተቀብላችሁኛልና፥ ታርዤ አልብሳችሁኛልና፥ ታምሜ ጠይቃችሁኛልና፥ ታስሬ ወደ እኔ መጥታችኋልና።” Thus, in addition to faith, baptism, and the Eucharist, good works are essential for salvation. Observing God’s commandments and laws is also required. When the man asked the Lord, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” our Lord responded, “… keep the commandments” (Matt. 19:16-17). For a deeper understanding of this part, specifically the aspect of the law, refer to this essay: https://tewahedoperspective.blogspot.com/2025/01/faith-and-work-in-depth-examination-of.html.

 

5.    Perseverance (መጽናት)

Salvation requires more than believing, being baptized, and partaking of His flesh and blood—it also demands perseverance. Those who believe and later reject, or who enter and leave the faith, cannot attain salvation. Matthew 10:22: “በሁሉም ስለ ስሜ የተጠላችሁ ትሆናላችሁ፤ እስከ መጨረሻ የሚጸና ግን እርሱ ይድናል።” Similar messages are found in Matthew 24:13 and Mark 13:13.

Likewise, Hebrews 3:6 declares: “እኛም የምንደፍርበትን የምንመካበትንም ተስፋ እስከ መጨረሻው አጽንተን ብንጠብቅ ቤቱ ነን።” This emphasizes the necessity of steadfastness (ጽናት) in faith and hope. Hebrews 3:14 adds: “የመጀመሪያ እምነታችንን እስከ መጨረሻው አጽንተን ብንጠብቅ፥ የክርስቶስ ተካፋዮች ሆነናልና።” Similarly, Revelation 2:10 proclaims: “እስከሞት ድረስ የታመንህ ሁን የሕይወትንም አክሊል እሰጥሃለሁ።”

Therefore, salvation is attained through faith, baptism, partaking of His flesh and blood, and remaining steadfast in good works.

In summary, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church’s soteriology emphasizes the transformative power of Christ’s redemptive work. Salvation is a gift of grace that reconciles humanity to God, liberates us from sin and eternal death, and grants us eternal life. By His incarnation, death, and resurrection, Christ overcame death and opened the path to eternal communion with God. Through faith, sacraments, obedience to His commandments, and preservance believers participate in this divine gift. The Church continues to proclaim this message, offering the hope of salvation to all who seek it.