Ethiopian bishop describes ongoing conflict as people's 'Way of the Cross'

An Ethiopian Catholic bishop has described the massive destruction, suffering and loss of life that continues to plague the people in his eparchy since violence spilled over from the conflict that erupted in the Tigray region more than a year ago.

Bishop Lesanuchristos Matheos of the Eparchy of Bahir Dar-Dessie described the violence as a "Way of the Cross" for the church and the faithful.

"We are all in great tribulation, tension and sorrow with the numerous people who are in exodus, forced to leave their land and property to save their lives and that of their families," he said in a recent message.

"Numerous lives are lost, public and private properties are looted," including hospitals, and infrastructure has been destroyed, he wrote.

The "most painful" aspect of his hospital visits, the bishop said, has been ministering to the young girls and women being treated for injuries they sustained as victims of sexual violence. Armed groups on both sides of the conflict have been accused of using rape as a weapon of war.

The eparchy's territory is just south of Tigray, a region in northern Ethiopia, and spans the entire country, from west to east.

The conflict spilled into the eparchy when armed forces aligned with the former ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front, known as TPLF, moved out of Tigray and seized several towns within the eparchy’s boundaries — including Dessie, Kombolcha and Kobo — as they advanced toward the capital Addis Ababa. Forces allied with the Ethiopian government later retook the towns.

However, church infrastructure in those areas has come largely undone as religious communities and lay workers scattered and fled to safety.

As summer started, TPLF forces took control of Kobo, where the Capuchin Fathers run St. Joseph Church, an orphanage, an elementary school and high school. By early July, the Capuchins fled with the 20 orphans in their care as part of a mass exodus from Kobo to Woldiya, about 34 miles south. At least one of the Capuchins' buildings was damaged. Health workers, teachers and other lay workers also fled the town.

The Ursuline Sisters in Kobo, who run a clinic and a kindergarten, however, decided to stay behind to serve the people. But with the collapsed communications infrastructure in Kobo, the bishop said he has not received much news about the sisters.

"The little information we are receiving is from some individuals who know our sisters and who have escaped from the town," he said. "We are worried about them, as they do not have supplies, especially food and other supplies."