Our church story  was established to preserve and proclaim the ancient faith of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, to administer the holy sacraments, and to serve the spiritual and communal life of Ethiopian Christians in the Arlington and Northern Virginia area. Our journey began on October 7, 2012, when our church began offering spiritual services at the Helen Wilson Community Center on Franconia Road in Alexandria, Virginia. Led by the spiritual guidance of Abba Frehiwot (Komos) and Grace of God, the Church laid its foundation with prayer, humility, and hope, offering spiritual teachings, prayers, and community services in line with the Church’s sacred traditions. It was during this foundational period that our parish officially took the name: Debre Menkrat St. Emmanuel and St. Rufael Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. As our congregation grew, the arrival of Deacon Kassahun Tesemma in December 2012 markea new chapter: the beginning of full liturgical worship, including the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. His faithful service continues to this day. In October, 2013, the church moved to a new location at 6200 Indian Run Parkway, worshipping through a formal rental agreement within thefacilities of the Syrian Orthodox Church. Services continued faithfully until 2019, when, through God’s provision and the dedication of its members, the church secured its permanent home at 4800 31st Street South, Arlington, VA.This sacred space now serves as the heart of our liturgical
life, spiritual education, and cultural expression. From weekly liturgies and feast-day celebrations to youth programs and community outreach, Debre Menkrat continues to be a place where faith is nourished, tradition is honored, and love abounds.
Today, Debre Menkrat Church stands as a beacon of light and tradition, welcoming all who seek communion with God through the Orthodox Christian faith. With a strong emphasis on worship,sacraments, teaching, and community service, our church continues to growspiritually and in terms of outreach.
In addition to weekly liturgies, we provide:
  Religious education for children and youth
  Sacramental services including baptism, confession, and matrimony
  Volunteer and charitable outreach programs
  Fellowship events that preserve our language, culture, and Orthodox identity Christ is the cornerstone of our Church, and our members are the living stones built upon that holy foundation. Through their prayers, offerings, and faithful service, the mission of Debre Menkrat continues to flourish in love and truth. We invite you to worship with us, serve with us, and be part of the ongoing legacy of faith that connects us to the historic Church of Ethiopia.
“And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.”  Acts 2:47 We welcome all who seek a deeper relationship with God through the timeless teachings and holy mysteries of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Join us as we grow in unity and service, rooted in the rich legacy of our forefathers and guided by the light of Christ.

          የቤተክርስቲያናችን አመሰራረት     

ፍራንኮንያ መንገድ ላይ በሚገኘው በሄለን ዊልሰን ኮምዩኒቲ አዳራሽ ውስጥ በመሰብሰብ ኪዳን የጀመርነው መስከረም 27 ቀን 2005 እንደ ኢትዮጵያ አቆጣጠር እንዲሁም ጥቅምት 07 ቀን 2012 እንደ አውሮፓውያን አቆጣጠር ነው። አዳራሹም የተገኘው በነ ወ/ሮ ስምረት ያዕቆብ እና በወ/ሮ ሃና ያዕቆብ አማካኝነት ሲሆን ያለምንም ክፍያ ለ11 ወራትም ተገልግለንበታል።

ቤተክርስቲያናችን በአባታችን በአባ ፍሬሃይማኖት (ቆሞስ) ተቆርቁሮ በዚሁ በፍራንኮንያ መንገድ ላይ በኪዳን ትምህርት ተጀመረ። የቤተክርስቲያኑ ስምም ደብረ መንክራት ቅዱስ አማኑኤል ወሩፋኤል የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋህዶ ቤተክርስቲያን ተብሎ ተሰይሟል። ከጥቂት ወራትም በኃላ ዲያቆን በመገኘቱ ቅዳሴም እንዲጀመር አስችሎናል። ዲያቆኑም አቶ ካሳሁን ሲባል ከህዳር 23 2005 አ.ም ጀምሮ ለቤተክርስቲያናችን በሊቀ ድቁና እያገለገለ ይገኛል።

ከዚያም ከ11 ወራት በኃላ ከጀመርንበት ከፍራንኮንያ መንገድ ቤተክርስቲያናችን አሁንም በድጋሚ በወ/ሮ ስምረት አማካኝነት በኤድሰል መንገድ በ6200 Indian Run Pkwy ላይ የሚገኝ የሶርያን ኦርቶዶክስ ቤተክርስቲያን ተገኝቶ በዚያ ቤተክርስቲያን ከጥምቀት 6 ቀን 2013 እንደ አውሮፓውያን አቆጣጠር ጀምሮ በወር 1000 ዶላር እየከፈልን ስንጠቀም ቆይተናል።በ2019 እ.ኤ.አ በ4800 31st Street South Arlington VA ቦታ በእግዚአብሔር ፈቅድ ተገዝቶ በዚህ ስፍራ አገልግሎት እየተሰጠ ይገኛል።