Sixty-five years ago, Billy Graham stood in Ethiopia’s capital and boldly preached the Gospel to 12,000 people. Fast forward to 2024, and his son Franklin Graham returned to that very soil — but this time, he preached to over 430,000 hungry souls in a place that once silenced Christians with the iron fist of Marxism. That’s not just revival. That’s a divine comeback.

For decades, Meskel Square in Addis Ababa was the stage for military parades, Soviet-style propaganda, and public displays of communist dominance under Ethiopia’s brutal Derg regime. From the 1970s to the early 1990s, this square was drenched in fear — not faith. Christians were harassed, hunted, and hauled off to prison cells simply for worshipping the Lord Jesus Christ. Public preaching? That would’ve gotten you tortured.

But now? Now, the Name above all names echoed from every corner of that square as Encountering God, a two-day outreach organized by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, turned Meskel into a modern-day altar. National television broadcast the Gospel across Ethiopia — yes, even on government-owned airwaves. That’s how far the pendulum has swung from tyranny to truth.

A Land Once Muzzled, Now Roaring for Jesus

Semeon Mulatu of the Ethiopian Kale Heyot Church — an evangelical denomination with over 12,500 churches and 11 million members — put it plainly: “There were seasons it was difficult to call the Name of God… but now we have the freedom.” And they’re not wasting it.

On March 8–9, nearly half a million Ethiopians gathered in the open air — no fear, no shame, and certainly no communist censors — to worship, sing, and hear Franklin Graham preach the simple, undiluted truth of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Franklin, preaching in Amharic through an interpreter, spoke of blind Bartimaeus and the reality of spiritual blindness. He didn’t sugarcoat it: “Outside of Jesus Christ, you’re spiritually blind,” he declared. “There is no one righteous, no not one.”

And the people listened. Thousands responded. 4,000 souls publicly professed faith in Christ, raising their hands not in submission to a regime, but in surrender to the Savior.

From Chains to Praise

You want to talk about full-circle? One of the event’s attendees, Dereje Abebe, was only 16 when the Derg’s goons threw him in prison for attending a youth group. They beat him. They tortured him. They demanded he reject Christ and parrot communist slogans. He never broke.

Now, at age 62, Abebe helped broadcast the Encountering God event around the globe. The man who once sat in chains for his faith now delivers the Gospel by satellite. You can’t write a more poetic victory.

His words say it all: “This is a great victory for God’s people. It’s amazing how God keeps His promises… I was emotional in Meskel Square when people worshipped and the Word of God was spoken. My eyes were filled with tears.”

From TikTok to Testimony

This wasn’t just for the seasoned saints. Dinknesh Metekel, 20, found out about the event on TikTok — proof that the Gospel meets people right where they are. She came with a heart full of guilt and unconfessed sin. She left with joy and freedom. “I didn’t have joy before I gave my life to Jesus,” she said. After repenting, she danced and sang with thousands of others as the sun set over a square that once echoed with the bootsteps of soldiers.

Another young man, Ashenafi Hariso, came forward in tears. Addicted, ashamed, and empty, he repented and gave his life to Christ. “I feel a joy that I’ve never felt before,” he wept. Real freedom isn’t found in the slogans of revolution — it’s found at the foot of the cross.

A Mother’s Peace, A Nation’s Hope

On the second night, 320,000 Ethiopians packed the square and flooded the side streets. Franklin preached about Zacchaeus — another broken man seeking a glimpse of the Savior. One mother, Wubalem Bafa, was tormented by fear for her two young children after a terrifying dream. Living with a family that pressured her to abandon Christianity, she found courage in Christ that night. She trusted Jesus to protect her family and secure their future. That’s the power of the Gospel.

Equipping the Saints for Battle

This wasn’t just an emotional high. BGEA trained 26,000 believers through the Christian Life and Witness Course to disciple new converts. 8,000 of them volunteered as prayer counselors, making sure those who came forward wouldn’t be left alone.

Churches got involved — 1,600 of them. They distributed 1.2 million “I Am Andrew” cards, each with names of unbelievers being prayed for. And when the time came, 1,400 buses rolled in to transport souls straight to the heart of the revival.

Even the pastors got fed. On March 7, 1,200 Ethiopian pastors gathered for a daylong “Preach the Word” conference. Pastor Skip Heitzig reminded them they aren’t spiritual entertainers — they’re truth-bearers. “You’re not the manufacturer,” he said. “You’re the distributor.”

This Is What Victory Looks Like

What happened in Addis Ababa wasn’t just a religious event. It was a spiritual victory. It was a reclaiming of a nation’s soul. From a square where Christians were once beaten into silence, the Word of God rang out like a trumpet.

The communists tried to bury the church. They failed. They tried to erase the Gospel. It came back stronger. This wasn’t just 430,000 people attending a crusade — this was the resurrection of public faith in a place once shackled by Marxist darkness.

As Hans Mannegren, director of the outreach, said: “There was a hunger and thirst… People needed and wanted this recalibration of what is a victorious Christian life.”

Well, they got it.

And if Meskel Square can go from red flags and military parades to raised hands and gospel choruses — there’s hope for any nation that dares to turn back to God.