al-monitor.com CAIRO — Cairo has begun a diplomatic campaign on two tracks, one explicit and one undeclared, with European countries and donor parties. This came after the Egyptian government escalated its campaign against the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam under its current specifications to…
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By Abraha Belai, Ethiomedia February 19, 2014 Copilot Hailemedhin Abera Gezahegn SEATTLE – Amid a flurry of government propaganda to label the hijacker of an Ethiopian Airlines plane a mental patient, a family member of the co-pilot says her cousin…
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Ethiopia seed bank’s novel approach to preserving diversity under threat There is concern that the work of small farmers as custodians of diversity will be undone by the G8 New Alliance By Claire Provost Wed 19 February 2014 Inside the…
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Sudan Tribune February 19, 2014 (KHARTOUM) –Sudanese foreign minister Ali Karti has criticised Egypt for its handling of a dispute involving the construction of a massive dam project in Ethiopia, which it has vehemently opposed over concerns it could disrupt…
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FEBRUARY 18, 2014 HRW Ethiopia can develop its land and resources but it shouldn’t run roughshod over the rights of its indigenous communities. The people who rely on the land for their livelihoods have the right to compensation and the…
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Tuesday, 18 February 2014 Addis Ababa, 18 Feb 2014 – Twenty seven Ethiopians marching Nakonde Province have intercepted and arrested for illegal entry into Zambia. Nakonde District Commissioner James Singoyi has confirmed the arrest of the illegal immigrants in an…
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Every year during Timket — the holiest holiday on the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian calendar — thousands of pilgrims flock to the city of Gondar to immerse themselves in holy water. Two days of festivities ends in a jovial splash about.Gondar, Ethiopia (CNN) — France has Lourdes, India has the Ganges. Ethiopia, meanwhile, has Gondar.
Situated about 450 miles north of Addis Ababa, encapsulated by hills and tall trees, and dotted with 17th-century relics from the city’s glory days (when it was the country’s capital), Gondar today can seem somewhat remote. During the religious festival of “Timket,” however, the city is inundated with pilgrims who come to re-enact the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan, and take a dip in the holy waters at the historical Fasilides Bath.
Nearly two thirds of Ethiopia’s 94 million population is Christian, and the majority of those belong to the Orthodox church. For them, Timket — celebrating the Epiphany — is among the most important occasions of the year. It’s is a two-day affair that begins with a procession of “tabots,” holy replicas of the Ark of the Covenant — the sacred chests described in the Book of Exodus as carrying the stone tablets on which the 10 Commandments were written.
The tabots are wrapped in cloth and placed on the heads of Ethiopian Orthodox Christian priests, who parade the streets en route to the bath. The priests, clad in ceremonial robes, are escorted by drums and by the clapping and singing of worshipers, who hold an overnight vigil until dawn.
There are services the following morning which culminate in the priests blessing the waters of the historic bath, while onlookers crowd every nook surrounding the bath — some getting a pristine view from nearby trees.
When the priests are done, the mood turns jubilant, and the spectators rush to jump into the pool.
“The water is blessed in the name of the Holy Trinity … in the name of God. The water is now sacred, and the sick shall be cured,” explains Ezra Adis, the head priest at the local Medhanelem Church.
“That is why the young people who jump in first get excited; it is a spiritual love,” he adds.
Read this: Ethiopia’s churches “built by angels”
The plunge is so swift that some participants get battered in the process — though most are unperturbed by a few scratches.
Awaiting daybreak during Timket
Holy water wash away sins“I jumped from high above,” boasts one man who dived into the waters from one of the nearby trees.
“I was apprehensive,” he adds. “The branches could give way and you could fall on the rock edge of the pool, and there was a possibility I could have lost my life, but at this moment, I am doing what I feel good about, and that possibility of death doesn’t scare me.”
The Timket festival dates back to the 16th century, but it was marked only in churches until the baptismal ceremonies were introduced, explains Bantalem Tadesse Tedla, a historian at the University of Gondar.
The baptisms, usually held on January 19, are celebrated differently in other parts of the country. “There are three options for Timket,” says Tedla. “To be immersed, to collect water from three pipes and pour it on people, or to collect water and sprinkle it — it depends on the availability of water.
“In Gondar, the first is implemented, because of the existence of this very important building,” he adds, referring to the stone bath — a UNESCO world heritage site built in 1632 for King Fasil (Fasiledes).
As the afternoon winds down, people begin to leave the pool and head back to the streets, but the festivities aren’t quite over. Each tabot is now paraded back to its respective church with crowds of onlookers eager to get one last look at them.
Back at the churches, it’s a different, quieter scene. Congregants fill the church grounds to listen in on a final service, and after a closing prayer it’s time to send the tabot back inside the church to its resting place.
The locals will eventually return to their homes for a special feast, but in the meantime, the celebrations on the streets of Gondar continue — a chance for orthodox Christians to celebrate and come together for one of the most sacred and festive days of the year.
The pilot who stole his own jet and sought political asylum in Geneva was from a solid middle-class family. School friends remember a calm presence; a sister suggests darker emotions. Christian Science Monitor By Will Davison A fateful mix of paranoia,…
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The pilot who stole his own jet and sought political asylum in Geneva was from a solid middle-class family. School friends remember a calm presence; a sister suggests darker emotions. Christian Science Monitor By Will Davison A fateful mix of paranoia,…
The post Thrown by unseen enemies, Ethiopian Air hijacker waltzes into Swiss jail appeared first on 6KILO.com.
Business Insider By Alex Davies A man who says he was among the 193 passengers on the Ethiopian Airlines plane hijacked by its own co-pilot and flown to Geneva took to Reddit to describe the experience. The Rome-bound flight, which took off from Addis Ababa,…
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