Leaders of Oromo congregations in the Pacific Southwest District met over the summer to share with District leaders God’s work among them. The Oromo people are an ethnic group native to east Africa, especially Ethiopia, with beautiful culture, language, and traditions. That culture is fostered even as Christ is witnessed to fellow immigrants and the next generation. Oromo congregations are found in each of the District’s metropolitan areas, including Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, and Las Vegas.
Dr. Desalegn Serba, a lay leader of the Oromo Evangelical Lutheran Church of Phoenix, offered details of their growing ministry which gathers on the campus of Christ Church Lutheran. Among the congregation’s outreach ministries is ‘Outreach through Celebration’ as they intentionally connect with extended family and friends of their Oromo members at baptisms, anniversaries, weddings, and family reunifications here in the United States. As they continue to grow, the congregation is searching for larger space (sanctuary, classrooms, offices, etc.) in the Valley.
Dawa Jarso leads the Oromo ministry in San Diego as he completes his studies in the Ethnic Immigrant Institute of Theology (EIIT) through Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. The church meets at Our Redeemer Lutheran in San Diego and partners with the new Lutheran Mission Society San Diego (LMSSD). Relationships with Pastors Tardelli Voss and David Weber have encouraged Dawa with both direction in ministry and connection with other Lutherans in the region. The congregation is now searching for an English teacher to serve their community.
The Oromo church in Los Angeles meets at Mt. Calvary Lutheran, Beverly Hills, and draws worshippers from as far away as Lancaster and Riverside. Their congregational secretary, Fetenu Feyera, travels more than an hour each way and comments that “nothing is too far for Jesus.” Without an Oromo speaking pastor onsite, they are faithfully and digitally given the Word by Pastor Tafa Abebie of the Mekane Yesus church in Ethiopia and provided the sacraments by Pastor John Berg at Mt. Calvary. This summer’s meeting enabled them to better connect with the other Oromo churches and discuss options for pastoral leadership.
Having begun as a house church, the Oromo congregation in Las Vegas now worships on the campus of Faith Community Lutheran Church in Summerlin. The Sunday afternoon service includes jubilant singing and dancing, along with Biblical teaching about the work of Christ in their lives. Pastor Alemayehu Fite, a graduate of the Mekane Yesus seminary, shares that there are more than 3,000 Oromo in the Las Vegas metro area. The congregation is particularly focused on identifying and raising up leaders for second-generation Oromo in the United States.
Each Oromo congregation already receives support grants from the District for ongoing ministry and heard more about mission grants for specific future projects. (Grant details and applications are available to everyone at www.psd-missions.org.) These churches join dozens of others across the Synod as part of the Oromo Evangelical Lutheran Mission Society (www.oelms.com). See God @ Work for yourself at an Oromo congregation nearest you and join them for a ministry event. We thank God for these brothers and sisters in Christ!
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