Sr. Celestine Nnadi, Nurse, Midwife, and Pastoral Worker

In 1973, two Holy Rosary sisters concluded a fact-finding report on their trip to Ethiopia thus: "There is no clear-cut way in Ethiopia." In the decades that followed, missionary work there has borne this out to a degree scarcely imagined in that first assessment.

Since the turn of the 20th century, Ethiopia, an ancient kingdom, the home of Coptic Christianity, has known Italian occupation, a struggle for modernization, a UN-mandated federation with Eritrea, socialist revolution, severe famine, and military rule. But a splendid welcome greeted the first Holy Rosary Sisters in Addis Ababa, followed shortly by a tour to a village of the lame and the blind that surrounds a Coptic monastery of hermit monks and nuns and a hair-raising trip deep into the Blue Nile Gorge.

The Holy Rosary Sisters opened their first mission, a clinic at Metcha, in a rural area 85 km. northwest of Addis Ababa. In Jimma, 350 km. further on, the sisters located and served in a school that had an inexperienced director, an untrained staff, inadequate budget, and 3,000 students living in rented rooms around the city.

Shortly after the sisters' arrival, a coup deposed Emperor Haile Selassie and brought great changes. People were organized into political/social structures called Kebele groups; the socialist policies and the attitude of the local Kebele controlled the people's activities. The sisters wisely inserted themselves into the evolving scene, modified their plans, and kept close to the people. In 1978, however, all expatriate missionaries had to leave Jimma's province, Kaffa. Back in Metcha, the sisters' programs in health education, home economics, and handicrafts— subjects favored by the socialist regime— seemed most fruitful for the apostolate.

In 1985, famine struck Ethiopia and work shifted to feeding programs. With grant assistance, the Holy Rosary Sisters developed programs in primary health care, agriculture, water and sanitation, as well as women's programs that empower men and women to take control of their lives. The sisters collaborated with the Ethiopia Women Lawyers Association, for example, which still offers training programs on marriage laws, property rights, child marriage, and kidnapping for marriage.

The Marxist regime did not forbid the teaching of religion, but it made it difficult. However, the regime accepted the missionaries' work in development projects and in clinics and hospitals, including the sisters' work among the handicapped, the blind, the lepers, and the poor.

Only since 1994 have there been free democratic elections and constitutional guarantees of freedom. In recent years, the HIV/AIDS pandemic has wrought havoc with education and left thousands of orphans.

Today …
The new government has placed a priority on building schools and training teachers; it acknowledges that the low level of education, especially in the rural areas, keeps Ethiopia from competing successfully with other African countries. It is difficult for the sisters to get work permits, but they continue to care for the impoverished and the neglected. Six Holy Rosary Sisters serve in a "volunteer" (rather than official) status. When justice issues affect women, Holy Rosary Sisters help them to navigate the legal system. Ethnic challenges continue, as does the challenge to hand over work to local people. The MSHR hope Ethiopian young women will join in their work.

<BACK TO TOP>

HOME | Our Inspiration | Missions & Ministries | Our Community | Our Spirit | Justice & Peace | Help | Contact