The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, in its extraordinary session on Thursday, stripped 25 bishops of their titles.
The decision came after a group of 26 bishops recently established a new Holy Synod for the Oromia region in violation of the canon of the Church.
The Holy Synod of the church accepted the apology presented to it by one of the bishops but passed a decision against the 25 bishops to be separated from the church and be called by their secular names.
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church on Wednesday started three days of prayers as part of the rituals before the meeting of the Holy Synod. The Opening ceremony was held in St. Mariam Church near the Patriarchate.
The establishment of the new Holy Synod happened in Welliso, 110 kilometers away from the capital Addis Ababa in what seemed a politically motivated decision.
The breakaway from the Holy Synod was carried out by three bishops who were members of the Holy Synod with the objective to form an ethnic Oromo-based patriarchate in what is called the Oromia region of Ethiopia.
The three bishops ordained 25 other bishops and assigned them to dioceses across the Oromo region of Ethiopia. Implied in their act is that they are taking over Churches in the region.
The church also appointed bishops in replacement of the 25 archbishops to different dioceses across the world.
