Easter in Addis

This trip worked out so well, because ever since my friend Tsion had told me about Orthodox Easter in Ethiopia, I've wanted to experience it. She invited us to do celebrate with her family and we had a wonderful time.

Fasting for Easter begins 60 days prior, 40 days for Christ's time of fasting and 20 days that stem from old traditions of fasting for Ethiopia's King (Haile Silassie was the last king/emporer, revered by the many Jamaican Rastafarians here as the messiah, but that is a story for another post).

Ethiopian days begin at sunrise, so people fast - no food or drink - from then through a noon (our time) church service that ends between 2 and 3 in the afternoon. After that, they may eat a simple meal of kolo or of vegetable wot and possibly fish. 

The Sunday before Easter, the priests go door to door and give people palms to put on their heads, to celebrate Christ entering Jerusalem on the donkey and people laying palms on the ground in front of him. 

The final week of Easter, they may go even more hard core, and give up things like sleeping in beds in favor of the floor, in remembrance of Christ's suffering in the garden before his death. 

Priests do not use the cross in the lead up to Easter. Instead they only use a stick (a specific type they carry with a T top), and they make the sign of the cross with it, partially to symbolize the shoving and shaking of Christ when he was abused prior to death.

one of MANY sheep stands on the roadside

In preparation for the big end of the fast and celebration of the resurrection, people that can afford to will buy a sheep and most will buy a chicken to make doro wot. However, they are not allowed to slaughter any animal until after sunset on Saturday night. Sales of sheep go on through the night and into Sunday morning, and every time we drove into our apartment compound, we saw more sheep by the guard house. 
 

selling grass

People also put long grass on the floors of their homes, to make them smell nice and to remind them of the palms laid out for Jesus' walk through Jerusalem on the donkey.

Early in the evening, we went out to a hotel where Tsion has held some conferences, to check internet, eat, and do some shopping for gifts. The hotel is called the Elilly, and it is absolutely lovely. In their lobby, they had a symbolic Easter display that included bread in the shape of a lamb.

And this one view of Addis from the Elilly's roof:

 

Just as each region of the country has it's own decorative version of the cross, Easter traditions differ in the various regions. For example, in Soddo, people go to church all night, and at 6am, all the different churches meet in the streets and celebrate Christ's resurrection. In Addis, people go to church though out the day and into the night, and remain there until the time it is believed the Jesus left the grave, about 2:30 am. The priests chant, non-stop, in the ancient language of Ge'ez, a language of Semetic origin (same roots as Arabic and Hebrew), which is still used in religious services by the Orthodox and some Ethiopian Jews.

a gabi, worn over traditional clothes

We dressed warmly (and even then I was cold to the core by the time we came home) and headed out at midnight. The church was already full, though we could catch glimpses of the service and candles inside. 

neighborhood Orthodox church where we celebrated Easter.

The priests them come outside and placed hot coals in an incense burner that they swing back and forth. They also brought out a cross for the faithful to kiss, and, the Tabat, over which they hold a richly embroidered umbrella. The Tabat symbolizes the Ark of the Covenant, which holds a pot of manna and the 10 commandments. The Tabat is in the shape of the commandment stone, but is meant to represent the entire ark (it is also represented on crosses by the box at the bottom of the cross). Ethiopian people believe the actual ark is located in Northern Ethiopia, and is guarded by a priest appointed for life there. I read a book about this called The Sign and the Seal (link), which made me think it could be true. For all the Ethiopians I've asked, there is no doubt.

There was a lot of bowing and kneeling and standing and chanting with the priests, and some of the faithful lay sleeping on the ground, worn out after praying and fasting (the last day is a complete fast). It is definitely a faith for people of stamina! There are cylinders of metal all around the roof of the church, which chime when the wind blows. Here are some of the sounds from my almost-hidden camera.

Around 2am, the priests brought out a drum and began to dance and chant, and the women (we were on the women's side of the church) would ululate on certain cues. The drumming and chanting and dancing reached a fever pitch as the moment of Christ's return was remembered. 

Beautiful Tsion with her girls and auntie

Then, everyone goes home to eat. We noticed more sheep by the guard house of Tsion's apartment community when we got home. Because we'd only partially participated in the day, we chose to go to sleep and then went to see Tsion's family for a breakfast of traditional Ethiopian bread, doro wot, lamb tibs, injera and even kifo, cow meat (usually eaten fresh and raw, like tartar but with spice instead of lemon). 

fresh cow meat for sale

With it we had honey wine or soft drinks, and I opted for a shot of smooth Araka, useful when you've eaten too much! I enjoyed speaking with Tsion's father about Chinese and Russian vs. American involvement in Ethiopia - eye opening. Then, we went to the Beza International church for a rousing Easter Day service featuring a video of some of the doctors in the congregation who went to help the tribe of people that put plates in their lips. I spoke to one doctor after the service and he said it was a way to avoid being sold into slavery, but now people no longer want them, so they will take some plastic surgeons back with them on their next trip.

Beza International Church

By the end of church, the streets were filled with what was left of the sheep, skins for sale. I also saw an interesting sight, pigs, which are not eaten here by Orthodox or Muslim, but are used to help control garbage. Good idea.

When we got home, Nebeyou decided to pretend to be a priest, and put on a show for the girls as only Nebeyou can. It reminded me of when we adopted him. I asked, through a translator, "What do you want to be when you grow up, Nebeyou?" He replied, "A pastor . . . or a rap star."