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The first initiative to establish a Pastoral Care for the Ethiopian Catholic Community was taken by the Sacred Congregation for the Eastern Churches. In 1982 this Congregation requested the Ethiopian Episcopal Conference (EEC) to appoint a chaplain for the community who reside in the USA.

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On May 10, His Excellency Archbishop Paulos Tsadua, President of EEC sent a formal letter to the Sacred Congregation for the Eastern Churches in the Vatican who endorsed the letter and sent it to the United States Conference of Catholics Bishops (USCCB). The USCCB presented this letter to the local ordinary His Excellency Archbishop James A. Hickey, who at that time was in charge of the Office of Pastoral Care of Migrant and Refugees.

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After several consultation with the parties involved, on December 30, 1983 Archbishop Hickey appointed Rev. Tesfamariam Baraki for the pastoral care of the community under the title of Kidane-Mehret Ge’ez Rite Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Washington.

 

The Eastern Ge’ez Rite Mission Parish was established in 1984 and it celebrated its first Divine Liturgy in the Ge’ez language on Sunday January 1, 1984 at St. Gabriel Catholic Church in Washington, DC with about 50 people.
 

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