PTR Student Stories: Getting to Know Obse Mekonnen

My academic journey has taken detours in different fields. I studied medicine and specialized in radiology after having worked as a general practitioner for one year. I have always been interested in theology since my undergraduate years and made an effort to carve out some time to explore my interest. I formally enrolled into a school of theology as a part-time student while I was specializing. Theology provided me with the framework to learn about myself and my context more deeply, in ways that my previous training had not. Theology introduced me to the world of social sciences and the importance of learning to interrogate power, ideologies and the importance of positionality and situatedness. 

Amid this exploration, the Tigray war happened and it was disorienting to see the response of the religious leaders and faith community to the war. Ever since then, my country has been dipped into an endless cycle of armed conflicts. The recurring conflicts in my country have compelled me to redirect my focus to peace studies, particularly towards understanding the implicit and explicit narratives that enable such violence to recur. For my Bridging Gaps research project (exchange programme in 2025), I explored the complex nexus between religion and war, Vis a Vis the Tigray war. It was also this same programme that introduced me to the Peace, Trauma and Religion track at the VU. As Ethiopia continues to navigate turbulent times, collective trauma continues to accumulate and remains largely unaddressed. I am interested in exploring the role of religion and theology in both fueling conflict and serving as a resource for reconciliation and healing. 

So far, I am enjoying the programme. I love how learning happens in community and in dialogue. I have found our conversations in class to be enlightening and enriching. For me personally as well, it has become a space where I can articulate and refine my thoughts. I come from Ethiopia, a country whose context and issues has by and large remained invisible and peripheral in any of the academic discussions. Hence, being here for me is also an exercise in inserting my context into the academic discourse.

Obse Mekonnen

Obse Mekonnen previously served as a radiologist at a cardiac center and as a volunteer in the Social Transformation Initiative at the Evangelical Students Union of Ethiopia (EVASUE).