axum, #tigray
Ethiopians beleive that the true Arc of the Covenant is housed in this building at Saint Mary's of Zion in Axum. The high Priest of the church is the only person allowed to see it in his lifetime. The arc, if real, was kept in a part of the main church except during the Muslim-Christian wars of the 1600's when it was moved to an Island on Lake Tana. Good thing, St. Mary's of Zion was destroyed in the war. In the 1940's Emperor Heilie Salassie built this building to house the Arc. Every Ethiopian Orthadox church has a building or partitioned-off part of the church that they call the "Holy of holies." Each one contains a replica of the arc. St. Mary's of Zion was the first church in Sub-Saharan Africa, built in the 300's AD (Ethiopia was only the second country in the world after Armenia to adopt Christianity as the state religion.) It was destroyed in the Muslim-Christian wars of the 1600's and rebuilt shortly afterwards. Only the foundation of the origional church remains. In the 1940's Emperor Hailie Salassie built the huge "New Church." So how adametly do Ethiopians believe that the true arc is in this building? Consider this: In the 1950s a new high Priest was chosen after the death of the old one. He was so terrified that he ran out of Axum and had to be chased down and brought back. When it came time to enter the building and see the arc, he had to be phisically forced to the threshhold. Also notice, in the wider picture, that the security around the most famous building in Ethiopia consists of a flimsy fence. That's becuase there's no need to keep Ethiopians out; they're sure they will burst into flames if they even look at it. They believe in it alright!
#veiling #orthodoxchristian #catholic #christian #church
Orthodox Christian’s
A pagan at only 12 and totally agnostic by 16, Chesterton had the remarkable experience of developing a personal, positive philosophy that turned out to…
Remember, never to fear the power of evil more than your trust in the power and love of God. —Hermas, one of the Seventy
Eastern Orthodoxy, one of the three major doctrinal and jurisdictional groups of Christianity. It is characterized by its continuity with the apostolic church, its liturgy, and its territorial churches. Its adherents live mainly in the Balkans, the Middle East, and former Soviet countries.
#orthodoxy #monastery #georgia #faith #nun #candlelight #peaceful
hierophage: “ Cover and inside fold of Moorish Science Monitor from the late 90′s ”
ig: @ ssebastienne
