Page 149 - Unseen Hands by Nona Freeman

In the Furnace
a woman approached him on the street he would often listen to her request. (He feared a man might try to kill him.)
While Tekle prayed, Erkenesh waited for Emperor
Haile Selassie where she knew he would pass. Soldiers surrounded her with guns, but the emperor motioned her
to the side of the car. He listened while shetold him about her son's being killed by a police-ordered attack and about the circular letter. He took her to the palace, treated her kindly, and telephoned the chief of police to investigate the letter of instruction to kill on sight.
Tekle and Erkenesh returned to Awasa with a letter
ordering the circular to be withdrawn. They then faced
the seriousproblem ofhousing. The building they rented before had been nearly demolished, and no one in the city would rent a building of any kind to them or to their members. This effectively scattered the church, anepisode repeated in all the places where they had ministered. Many saints languished in prison, and fear paralyzed the rest.
Word spread that Erkenesh had spoken to the
emperor, and that Tekle had received compensation for
the death of his son. The owners of the damaged building came demanding their share. Nothing remained for Tekle and Erkenesh to do but to return to Addis. They had no idea of the desert experience ahead.
Friends who had been gracious in the past now re fused to entertain the fugitives for fear of reprisals. They went to a hotel, and three days later their money ran out. They had no idea what to do or where to go, but as Tekle walked out on the verandah of the hotel he saw a young
man, Kaleab, running toward him. "The Lord told me to 147