Haile Selassie I (The Light of the World) said, "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" who can resist an invitation so full of compassion?
Because of this personal experience in the goodness of the Bible, I was resolved that all my countrymen should also share its great blessing and that by reading the Bible they should find truth for themselves. Therefore, I caused a new translation to be made from our ancient language into the language which the old and the young understood and spoke.
Today man sees all his hopes and aspirations crumbling before him. He is perplexed and knows not whither he is drifting. But he must realise that the Bible is his refuge, and the rallying point for all humanity. In it man will find the solution of his present difficulties and guidance for his future action, and unless he accepts with clear conscience the Bible and its great Message, he cannot hope for salvation. For my part I glory in the Bible."
Haile Selassie I (The Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah) said, "We have laboured that the Holy Scriptures and the books left to Us by the Church Fathers be multiplied by means of modem printing techniques and be distributed to all not only in our modern language, but also in Geez, our ancient language. Our Ethiopian Orthodox Church, which was cut off for centuries from her fellow Christian Churches, has joined the World Council of Churches and co-operates in the task of strengthening the Faith and bringing about Church unity. We have helped and will continue to help the missionaries who are sent from other lands to preach Gospel to those of Our people who have not come to the knowledge of God's saving grace. As the unity of the Church is of great concern to Us and, God willing, being hopeful that this sacred objective might be achieved in our day and age, We were happy to have convened two years ago a meeting of the Heads of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in Our Capital City of Addis Ababa to deliberate on ways and means of bringing about harmony and unity in the Church.
We refer to all these only to indicate that this age above all ages is a period in history when it should be our prime duty to preach the Gospel of Grace to all our fellow men and women. The love shown in Christ by our God to mankind should constrain all of us who are followers and disciples of Christ to do all in our power to see to it that the Message of Salvation is carried to those of our fellows for whom Christ Our Saviour was sacrificed but who have not had the benefit of hearing the good news.
Since nobody can interfere in the realm of God we should tolerate and live side by side with those of other faiths. However, if the threat is posed we shall not fail to resist with courage any such incursions. We wish to recall here the spirit of tolerance shown by Our Lord Jesus Christ when He gave forgiveness to all including those that crucified Him.
In these modern days, there are a multitude of things published in print and broadcast by radio which captivate the human mind and spirit; many new ideas are disseminated by the learned. Many wonderful appliances are produced to make life more and more comfortable. The rich powers have passed on from exploring and exploiting this earth and are vying with each other to explore and conquer the moon and the planets. Knowledge is increasing in a bewildering manner. All this is good, wonderful and praiseworthy. But what will be the end of it all? It is Our firm belief that only what the Lord wills will be done. We should be careful that the results thus achieved by mankind should not meet with the fate of the Tower of Babel, the handwork of those people of old which came to pieces in their hands. The Apostle Paul says: "The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God" and "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise and they are vain." The reason for this is because generally speaking man makes himself and his wisdom the beginning and the end of his aim in life, and we are convinced that the end of this is destruction and death.
Our Lord Jesus Christ says: "What has a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?" Why did the effort of those who tried to build the Tower of Babel come to nothing? Was it not because they tried to live apart from their Creator, and because, vaunting themselves in their wisdom, they tried to build a tower whose top was to reach unto heaven and thus make a name for themselves? It is Our conviction that all the activities of the children of men which are not guided by the Spirit and counsel of God will bear no lasting fruit, they will not be acceptable in the sight of the Lord and will therefore come to nought as the Tower of Babel came to nought.
It is for this reason that the Church of Christ, and especially Christian leaders, have such an enormous responsibility. However wise or however mighty a person may be, he is like a ship without a rudder if he is without God. A rudderless ship is at the mercy of the waves and the wind, drifts wherever they take it and if there arises a whirlwind it is smashed against the rocks and becomes as if it has never existed. It is our firm belief that a soul without Christ is bound to meet with no better fate.
Therefore 0! Christians, let us arise and, with the spiritual zeal and earnestness which characterized the Apostles and early Christians, let us labour to lead our brothers and sisters to Our Saviour Jesus, Who only can give life in its fullest sense."
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