Save Kidist Mariam Church

Kidist Mariam Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in Stone Mountain, Georgia, is in crisis. The church’s administrative board has splintered into two factions that are currently in the midst of an unwarranted legal battle in the name of the church. These actions grossly infringe upon the authority of the general assembly as ordained under the church’s bylaws which state that “the General Assembly has the highest authority on all pertaining to property, rights, and related matters of the church.”

The lawsuit brought before the Superior Court of DeKalb County by the two factions has created an environment so toxic that the congregation can no longer worship as one, as they had done for 27 years prior. Relationships within families and between life-long friends have deteriorated as a result. To prevent confrontation between the factions during church service, the Court has granted each party alternating weeks to hold separate church services until the dispute reaches a resolution, whether amicably or legally.

Our mission is to restore and maintain the sanity of Kidist Mariam Church so that the congregation may, as a whole, worship according to Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church doctrine and tradition. This requires us to pursue the full implementation of the church’s bylaws on all matters pertaining to church property, members’ rights, and all related affairs of the church.

Thus it is with grave concern that we—a group of seven church members—have hired a lawyer and filed a motion to intervene in the lawsuit brought by the warring factions. As a result of the intervenors’ tireless effort, we have compelled both factions to call a Court-Supervised Extraordinary Meeting of the General Assembly. The aim of this meeting is to provide a resolution to the dispute and to dismiss the lawsuit that the church never authorized.



In order to achieve our objective, we seek your financial support to pursue the legal effort associated with holding the Extraordinary Meeting. Currently the parties, including the Intervenors, through their respective lawyers and Court-Appointed Special Master and meeting Parliamentarian, are negotiating the purpose, terms, and conditions of the Extraordinary Meeting that includes the following:

- The location, date, and time of the Extraordinary Meeting
- The Record and Notice Dates for the Extraordinary Meeting
- The timing, form, and content of the Extraordinary Meeting notice, including the issues to be heard and voted upon
- The persons entitled to vote at the Extraordinary Meeting
- The number of votes required and the format for conduct of the Extraordinary Meeting
- The procedures for the ordered and fair conduct of the Extraordinary Meeting as determined by the Special Master including the establishment of quorum and the procedures for voting at the Extraordinary Meeting
- Any other issues the Special Master considers necessary to facilitate and to conduct the meeting


The Intervenors:

Hailemelekot Alemu
Medina Hagos
Teshager Mengesha
Denber Mengistu
Mandefro Negusse
Beniam Sharew
Mulugeta Zeleke
Teshager Mengesha