In my recent visit to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, I was given an opportunity to visit the community of Korah. Korah is one of the poorest places in Ethiopia, a leper colony that houses 75K+ people who are considered to be the outcasts of society. In Korah, people live in shacks made of corrugated metal, 
leftover lumber, plastic and other such materials. Their dirt floors are covered with nothing more than a woven plastic-like material. During the rainy season these shacks do not prevent the rain from pouring into the homes so people will dig a trench in the dirt floor to allow the water to drain out of the house. We visited with several families who invited us into their homes. One of the larger homes was not much bigger than a single room in my house and this home housed 6 families. 
I visited Korah because of a young man I met by the name of Samuel Liben; we called him Sammy. I was blessed to learn about his life and how the Gospel had impacted him and inspired him to serve and minister to this community of lepers.As we visted the people of Korah, we prayed with them and asked many questions about life in Korah.
There were many things that struck me about Korah, such as the beauty of the people living there. Addis Ababa was poverty stricken and Korah was the worse part of it. Yet, even amidst such depravity, it was impossible to not notice how stunningly beautiful the people are there and moreover, they are the kindest people I have ever met and their affection for children is unsurpassed.
As I walked with Sammy through Korah, he explained to me what it meant for these people that we came to be with them. He told us that it was important that we were there and that we visited and touched the people living there. He said, “For them, it is like Jesus touching the leper…you are like Jesus.” Then it struck me. These people knew the magnitude of their distress and as we prayed I was awestruck by the depth of their devotion. They bow in submission to The Almighty, and they cry out to Him 
for help but they do not question His presence nor His love for them. As we walked through the village, people would look at us and smile, children would run out of alleys and point at us. I felt the weight of my burden each time I met the eyes of one of them and particularly the children. It wasn’t guilt I felt, but rather responsibility. I recalled the lyrics to a song, “Now that I have seen, I am responsible, faith without deeds is dead.” Korah and places like it are indicative of a much greater problem. Many point to our fallen world as the problem. While I agree that this is what life in a fallen world looks like, the problem I have in mind is that of unresponsiveness from God’s people. To look upon such suffering and hardship might cause one to question God’s benevolence.
However, I agree with Ravi Zacharias who said, “those of us who are believers are God’s hands in benevolence, to lighten the burdens and pains of this world and if we don’t do that we are not being Godly in our lives.” From this day forward, I will carry with me the burden of Korah. I do not know what that means exactly, but I know I will never be the same after having been there. I know God will use this experience for His glory. 
Sammy showed us the church he helped found and introduced us to some of the ministry leaders in that small church. I will write about the church in a separate post. This post will address Sammy’s history and the history of Korah. Therefore, the rest of this post is written by Sammy himself where he gives a brief history of Korah. This is the first of several posts that I will be writing about Korah.
At the end of this post is a slide show I have put together, I hope you will watch it.
Also, before I get to Sammy’s article, I want to introduce Michael Halcomb, a friend of mine who also visited Korah and was also deeply impacted by what he experienced. He has written some articles about Ethiopia’s Outcasts:
Among Ethiopia's Outcasts: Lepers, Orphans, AIDS Victims and More
Sons Of Korah In Ethiopia: Heirs To Ethiopian Poverty & Injustice
Sammy, God's Voice In Ethiopia: How Will You Respond?
History of Korah
75 years ago the village was established because of leprosy. The people came from the countryside to seek treatment for their illness. They came to Alert Hospital, which was established by Dr. Ross, from the U.S. and a Dutch doctor named Chris Dorman. When they heard of the spread of leprosy, these two men approached King Hale Selase to request land to establish a hospital specifically for the treatment of leprosy. King Hale Selase was willing to give land, but only land that was far from the town and in the forest as to keep the people with leprosy separate from everyone else. The two doctors started the hospital and began treating these patients who had immigrated from the countryside.
These infected people came to the city because their family members believed they were cursed when they contracted leprosy. Some of these individuals were put into a separate hut when their disease was discovered and later their family tried to light their hut on fire. The family members were so convinced that the leprosy was a curse that they were willing to kill their own children. Some escaped from these hostile family members and came to Addis for treatment.
The History of Liben
Liben was born into a big family in the countryside. He was the youngest of 7 brothers, so he was in charge of taking care of the cattle as a shepherd. He made sure they ate, stayed safe, and went to the river for water. Liben did not have shoes, like many children in the countryside, so he picked up the bacteria that causes leprosy. This is how leprosy spread throughout the countryside, basically because of a lack of shoes.
Although he kept the illness a secret, his parents eventually found out that he had leprosy. In response, his father ordered 4 of his brothers to take Liben into the forest and kill him. One day they took him out into the forest and he did not know where he was going. When they reached a hidden place, they began to beat him, and then shot him in the face. Thinking he was dead, they threw his body off of a cliff to hide what they had done. Amazingly, Liben was not dead. Thankfully, he was found by someone who knew of the Alert Hospital in Addis Ababa, who then sent him there for treatment.
When Liben came to Addis, he went to the hospital for treatment and met Tsahi, who had also fled the countryside and came to Addis for treatment of leprosy. He came 400 kilometers and she traveled 600 kilometers to come to Addis, the only place where treatment was available. Many people who came from such far off places walked, which only intensified their conditions.
Liben and Tsahi were married shortly after they received treatment. To their great joy, they gave birth to a healthy son, Samuel and then 2 years later to a healthy girl, Tsega. They took up residence in the place where the hospital was established, which was called Korah. They, along with many others who received treatment at the hospital, chose Korah as their home, because they feared the rejection they had faced outside of this safe haven. Therefore, Korah became Ethiopia’s leprosy colony
Doctors Ross and Dorman continued to serve this community that grew year by year as more people heard of the Alert Hospital. People are still coming to Alert Hospital today to receive treatment for their leprosy. When they come, they find a community who they can relate with and therefore Korah continues to grow. Together, this community faces much rejection from outsiders who refuse to truly understand their condition or former conditions. They face great challenges to find work because of stigma, and therefore the community is consumed with poverty. The village also lacked consistent water and power supply because it was seen as unimportant by those in control of such resources.
Doctors Ross and Dorman also built an elementary school for the children of the Korah community, because although they did not have leprosy, they were prohibited from attending school in the city. For those who never had the chance to receive an education, the two doctors began a handy craft project that trained the people of Korah to make crafts that could be sold for a profit.
After King Hale Selase lost power to the Communist Dirge Regime took power and the lives of the people of Korah only worsened. The regime wanted those with leprosy to be eliminated. Therefore, the military base close to the colony would often send out soldiers to beat and even slaughter residents of Korah. They thought it was better if these “lepers” were dead.
Years ago, the impoverished people of Korah began sending their children to the nearby landfill (the king also put this far away from the city just like these people) to collect anything that seemed edible. To survive, these families consumed food that others had thrown away. This became their lives – waking every morning, running to the trash yard, and then fighting to salvage the best that could be found there for food. This is still happening today. After the communists had power for 17 years the revolutionaries took back control. With this change there came a new, yet disgraceful opportunity – this new government would actually let the “lepers” beg in the city.
The statistics now show that there are approximately 75,000 people living in the Korah area. This community is made up of people with different backgrounds, but one thing in common – poverty. The area is becoming a breeding ground for HIV as prostitution has become [rampant] in the community – a popular response to the poverty trap. Small moonshine houses are also a common business here as many men choose to drink as an escape from the realities of their lives.
The name Korah came from the idea that the people in the community were cursed. For years people referred to the leprosy colony and those in it as the sons of Korah who were swallowed up by the earth in the old testament because of their sinfulness. Eventually this became the official name of the community, only [exacerbating] their shame and rejection.
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below is a slideshow of images from Korah.