November 2, 2010 / Tikimt 23 2003
Gospel from EjersaGoro,
the New Bethlehem
The Church of EjersaGoro, Hohet
Mesrak Kidane Mheret known as St Kidane Mheret Church that has been
built on the burial ground of the Emperor’s umbilical cord, is
finally under renovation. In about four months, the Church, inside and
outside, will be completely restored.
The cost is estimated to be more than
100,000.00 birr that will be covered by someone wanting to remain an
anonymous who said,
“I wish I had more, I would have erected His statue as well.”
No doubt when the appropriate time
comes the erection of the statue will be materialized with an
inscription, “Behold Philistia, and Tyre with Ethiopia , this man
was born here” As it has been said, there is a time for everything.
In the rosy times of EjersaGoro, it
was a habitat to 300 clergy and was called the town of the ministers.
The length and breadth of the church’s land reached further than the
naked eye could see. It was one of the richest churches in Ethiopia.
The wishes of priests to serve here would be like a dream come true.
That was then, today no priest in
EjersaGoro would like to stay more than two years. Even the priest I
had the opportunity to introduce to you, Muse Walelenge, left
EjersaGoro for another town after serving for barely two years.
According to the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church, five clergy are the minimum required to conduct Sunday morning
mass. In EjersaGoro, it is practical impossible to fulfill this
sanctified duty. It considers keeping one priest for more than two
years is like God has answered the prayer of the Church.
In Ethiopia having Church without
high priests and hermits is like having a library without books on the
shelves. High priests and hermits are trained in oral tradition, as
well as specializing in verbal art forms such as, miracles of Saints,
proverbs, riddles, chants, lyrics, poetry, tales, myths, legends, and
chronicles of Kings and Queens going back to time immemorial.
The High priests and hermits, who
relinquish ancient wisdom through their enlightening storytelling,
have the uncanny ability to share their skillful art form with large
crowds, lasting up to several hours, without even a hint of boredom
manifesting during the event. Their oral talent, derived from deep
roots in the ancient Christian tradition, is passed on from one
generation to the next; a system in which memories are everything.
Their memories are like the rivers that flow from the Ocean; they stem
from a very rich and all-encompassing source.
In EjersaGoro, at the St Kidane
Meheret Church, such spiritual individuals are becoming a fading
memory. Recovering from such a significant loss will be a struggle for
EjersaGoro to overcome; however, there is hope. When the Emperor’s
story rises for a second time, the glory of the Church will rises
along with it.
The relationship between the Church
and the Emperor has always been intertwined with each other. The
Emperor’s birth date and the annual St Kidane Meheret celebration
fall on the same day. This is one of the primary reasons why the
Emperor named the Church after St Kidane Meheret.
In 1974, when the Emperor was
detained inside His palace, the last day on the earth, He called upon
St Kidane Meheret for justice, similarly to the way He had called upon
God during the League of Nations’ betrayal.
According to Eshetu T. Mariam, a
special protocol affiliate who was an attendant to the Emperor during
his final days, the Emperor pleaded, “My Lady St. Kidane Meheret,
you are my witness. If I have not done my best for the good of these
people, you be the Judge; and now, I demand justice.” The Emperor
delivered this impassioned plea to His Holy St. Kidane Meheret, while
collecting the tears from his cheeks with his finger, and then
sprinkling them from His finger through the window. Afterward, He
meditated deeply for several hours.
Aba Koronchose, hermit, the Bible
teacher of Empress Menen, and confessor of the famous Ethiopian Army,
who marched in the Korean war, interpreted the Emperor’s demand and
said, “The tears of the Emperor, blended with St Kidane Mehrat’s
grief, inflicted the country with horrible catastrophes known as the
Red and the White terrors; the terrors unlike any the nation has ever
seen before, was the judgment of the St. Kidane Meheret,” Aba
Koronchose continues by saying:
“The arch enemies of the Emperor
were the students and the army. Both have been paid immense price. The
students massacred by the army, and later the army routed and killed
by a small group of guerilla fighters known as the, TPLF. When St
Kidane Meheret punishes she doesn’t raise a stick, but instead uses
one assailant group against the other. The students called the Emperor
“a thief”, the army overthrew the crown of the Lion of Judah, and
the Ethiopia Orthodox Church, which instead of defending the defender
of the faith, Haile Selassie, chose to be silent, didn’t they get
what they deserve? They all got what they deserved; including the
Church.”
It was four years after the Emperor
demanded Justice at the League of Nations that Europe flamed with
fire. Similarly, in Ethiopia , it was four years after the Emperor
demanded justice for His illegal and unrighteous dethroning that
Ethiopia caught the flame of the Red and the White terrors. History
proves the correctness of the Emperor’s Judgments both in Europe
1940 and in Ethiopia 1978.
Aba Koronchose proficiently has given
advice for the remedy of the destructive tide that has flowed through
Ethiopia following the wrongdoings against the Emperor. Aba Koronchose
proclaims, “If the nation gets on its knees and asks for
forgiveness, only then will peace and love prevail, and the church
will be united again. Forgiveness is what it takes.”
As we wait for exoneration, let the
Rastafarians do the right thing by making the Emperor’s birthplace,
the new Bethlehem , a living place for High priests and hermits to
once again, tell stories about the Emperor, and His mother and father,
to the coming generation. The Church in EjersaGoro should also be the
site of an international archive for His chronicles. Many of
belongings of the Emperor should go to this Church so they will be
available to historians and tourists alike.
Three month ago, August 23, 2010, St.
Kidane Meheret exhibited some of the Emperor Haile Selassie’s relics
during its centennial. Some special objects and the large gold
procession cross were seen for the first time, which is a blessing
considering that during the 1978 Somalia invasion and occupation, the
entire people of EjersaGoro’s evacuated the area. Most of the church’s
belongings were moved to the city of Harrar , except for the Arch of
St. Kidane Meheret and the Emperor’s big gold procession cross. A
legend puts forth that the two relics are guarded by an invisible
Lion. When the entire region of EjersaGoro, including the Church, was
looted and pillaged; only these objects remained untouched.
As we are aware, today is the
coronation day of HIM. On this significant occasion, the 80th
anniversary of the of the Emperor being officiated to the throne of
Ethiopia, the Church of St. Kidane Meheret, would like to announce
that all houses of Rastafarians, who wish to come for pilgrimage, are
welcomed beginning next year, July 23, 2011. This will be the
anniversary of the 119 birthday of the Emperor.
With the promise of the coming July
23, 2011 pilgrimage, this will be the first in recognition of HIM, the
father of Africa union, who advocated for, and became the champion of,
African liberation and the black Diaspora.
The birth of the Emperor is the birth
of a new Africa , it is also a birth of the prophecies of Marcus
Garvey, and it is indeed the birth of the black consciousness
throughout the world.
118 years ago, on July 23, 1892,
twelve hours after the Emperor was borne, the town criers on horseback
galloped in different directions from the city of Harrar, and broke
the tranquility of the night by declaring, “Hear me! Hear me! Behold
the awaited son is born! Unto us a child is born! Unto us a son is
given!” They sped up to the hills and mountains, saying the same
words over and over again, until they traveled the whole area. When
they returned, the streets of Harrar were flocked with the warriors of
Ras Makonnen.
The army was known to be strong as a
lion, fast as a cheetah, and merciful to its captive. To get up and
dress and to swarm the streets of Harrar took a matter of minutes. The
warriors welcomed the newborn future leader with a thousand gun
salute. They felt He was the one who would win the next battle against
the European colonialist, not only in the battlefield but it also in
the field of diplomacy, good over evil, known as the Haile Selassie’s
triumph.
After the church bells rang, the
warriors’ beating drums followed. The patriots were in their full
dress, held shields in one hand and spears in the other, while
marching through the gates of Harrar. They sang the worrier’s song
that converts the cowardly heart into a Lion’s heart.
The air was filled with joy and the
parties in the street lasted for week, until Yeshemebet arrived from
EjersaGoro. When she arrived on the Mule back, thousands cheered and
threw branches of olive trees at the Harrar gate. Yeshemebet responded
to the adoration with a smile. From a distance, Ras Makonnen got off
from his horseback and bowed down to welcome his Queen.
Brothers and sisters, when we are
celebrating the birth and the coronation of the Emperor, we are also
celebrating the mother and the father of the Emperor. The trio is one
and inseparable. Let us seize on this living history and expand it to
the fullest level by making the first pilgrimage in Africa . On July
23, 2011 let thousands of Rastafarians come to the streets of
EjersaGoro.
Please pass this to at least one
Rastafarian
Peace and love from EjersaGoro, the
new Bethlehem.
Sent to Rasta Ites by
Ras Sela, original sent by Mulugeta Haile.
