The story of the baptism of the Ethiopian queen's servant in Acts 8:26–39 is often
considered the beginning of Christianity in Ethiopia. Another church tradition,
however, attributes the evangelization of Ethiopia to an apostle unknown to us today.
According to the Ecclesiastical History of Rufinius, during the time of Constantine
the Great, two young men - Frumenius and Adesius, preached in the Ethiopian capital
of Axum. After the royal family accepted the faith, Frumenius met with Bishop Athanasius,
who gave him the necessary assistants and the title of Bishop of the Ethiopian Church.
The Ethiopic Bible has a long and complicated history that dates back to ancient times.
The origins of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and its scriptures can be traced back to the
4th century AD when Christianity was first introduced to the region. The Bible used by
these early Christians in Ethiopia was written in the ancient Geez language, which was the
language of the Ethiopian people at the time. Christianity spread rapidly in the country.
During his visit in the middle of the 6th century, the Egyptian traveler, monk, and historian Cosmas
Indicopleustus wrote that Ethiopia was a Christian country. This was due to the
rulers' predisposition towards Christianity and to the numerous Christian immigrants who sought
refuge in Ethiopia. For the most part, these were Monophysites who, condemned at the Council of
Chalcedon in 451, were forced to leave Byzantium. Nine of these settlers translated liturgical
literature, built churches, founded monasteries, and laid the foundations of the Ethiopian Church.
Monastic tradition attributes the Gospels of the Ethiopian Church to Saint Abba Garima,
who was one of the Nine Migrants. Over the centuries, the Church of
Ethiopia has developed a unique version of Christianity that incorporates elements
of local culture and traditions. It also covers additional texts, such as the "Pseudo-epigraphs",
which are not considered part of the canon of other Christian traditions.
Today, the ancient Bible is still widely used by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church
and is considered an important part of the country's cultural and religious heritage.
How is the Ethiopian Bible different from others? One of the main differences is that it includes
several additional books that are not considered part of the canon of most Christian cultures.
These books are known as "Pseudo-epigraphs" or Apocrypha and have the first book of Enoch,
Jubilees, the Wisdom of Sirach, and others. They were included in the ancient scriptures because
the Ethiopian Orthodox Church considered them important and contained very valuable information.
Another difference is that the Ethiopian Bible is written in Ge'ez,
an ancient language spoken in Ethiopia that is not used in other parts of the
world. It is because of this fact that it is not widely available and it has
been difficult for people who do not speak the language to access the information in
it. This is one of the factors that helped to preserve it in its original form to this day.
The Ethiopic Bible also offers some differences in the interpretations
of some events compared to other versions of the Bible.
An interesting fact is that it differs not only in the additional texts it has
but also in the canon itself. The canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is slightly different
from that of other Christian traditions. For example, a "narrow" version contains 81 books:
27 books of the New Testament, all the Old Testament books that are in the Septuagint,
the apocryphal Enoch, Jubilees, the books of Ezra, and 3 books of Maccabees. The "expanded" Ethiopic
canon contains the listed books together with 4 books of the Synod of Church Practices, 2 books
of the Testament, and the Ethiopic versions of the Epistle of Clement and the Didascalia.
What does the Ethiopian Bible say about Jesus? As far as Jesus Christ is concerned, the main
story is presented, which is also found in other Christian Bibles. The main difference,
as we have already said, is in the interpretation of some events.
The story of Jesus in the Ethiopic scriptures begins with the prophecy of his coming into
the world and continues with the accounts of his birth, life, teaching, miracles,
death, and resurrection. The Ethiopian Church believes that Jesus is the incarnate Word of God,
the second person of the Holy Trinity, and the savior of mankind.
The Ethiopian Church accepts that Jesus is fully God and fully human,
emphasizing his divinity more than his humanity. It also emphasizes the role of the Virgin Mary in
the life of Christ, as well as the importance of prayer and fasting in following Jesus.
How come no one is talking about the ancient Ethiopian Bible that has all the original scrolls?
Yes, it is indeed only in recent years that this ancient Bible has become more widely discussed,
but the Ethiopian Church does not possess the original scrolls of the Bible, which are believed
to have been written on parchment or papyrus and have not survived to this day. It preserves copies
and translations of the original texts, which are still considered sacred and authoritative today.
It is believed that the Ethiopian Bible is not as well known in the West and among non-Ethiopian
communities due to the lack of translations into other languages and the fact that the Ethiopian
Church is a relatively small, isolated community compared to other Christian denominations.
In addition, it has its own unique liturgical and
spiritual practices that are almost unknown to foreigners.
Another reason for the obscurity of this scripture is the additional texts included in it, which are
known as "Pseudo-epigraphs" and are considered non-canonical by most other Christian traditions.
However, in recent years, interest in the Ethiopic Bible and its unique
features has grown, while efforts have been made to make it more
accessible to a wider audience through translation and scholarly research.
Written in the ancient dead language of Ethiopia, Geez,
it is nearly 800 years older than the King James Version.
It is the worlds first illustrated Christian Bible and was discovered
in a remote Ethiopian monastery. The incredible gospels are called Garima,
after a monk who arrived in the African country in the 5th century.
According to an ancient legend, Abba Garima arrived from Constantinople in 494 and managed
to copy the Gospels in one day with God's help, as God delayed the setting of the sun.
Let's take a peek into these ancient writings and see what
one of the first still untouched Bibles contains.
The Old Testament of the Ethiopian Bible includes the books of the Pentateuch,
which tell about the creation of the world and the history of the Israelites,
as well as about the laws given to them by God.
It also includes historical books, wisdom books, and prophetic books that contain poetry, wisdom
literature, and teachings on how to live well according to the recorded words of the prophets.
The New Testament of the Ethiopic Bible includes the Gospels which tell of the life,
teachings, miracles, death, and resurrection of Jesus;
The Acts of the Apostles, which tell the story of the early Christian church;
The Epistles, which contain teachings and guidance for the early Christian communities; and the
Revelation of John, which contains a vision of the end times and the final triumph of God.
Two manuscripts exist - Garima 1 and Garima 2, of which Garima 2 is probably the earlier. They
are so named in honor of Saint Abba Garima, who, as we said earlier, is credited with the gospel.
Garima 1 has 348 preserved pages, which begin with eleven illustrated canonical tables in arcades,
followed by the Gospel texts in Geez; the Ethiopian language of the Kingdom of Axum from the
4th to the 7th century, which became and remains the religious language of the Ethiopian Church.
Garima 2, also in Ge'ez, is a tome of 322 pages. It has seventeen illustrated pages,
including four fine portraits of Evangelists preceding the respective Gospels, and a separate
portrait of Eusebius of Caesarea preceding his canonical tables. The portraits of Matthew,
Luke, and John are presented frontally and are barely perceptibly different,
but that of Mark, which represent him in profile on the episcopal throne of Alexandria.
Another illustrated page depicts Solomon's temple, or perhaps the fountain of life,
with an unusual-shaped staircase unique to Christian iconography.
The miniatures are in a widespread Byzantine style
and stylistically correspond to the dating of the 6th century.
While the text was certainly written in Ethiopia, some scholars such as Marilyn Heldman argue that
the illustrated pages may have been imported in finished form from ancient Syria or Egypt, while
Jacques Mercier argues that both the text and the illustrations were undoubtedly made in Ethiopia.
The texts of the two manuscripts differ,
and Garima 1 does not appear to derive directly from Garima 2,
suggesting that the common translation from which they derive is likely to be considerably earlier.
Therefore, the Ethiopic translation of the Gospel may be older than thought.
Garima 1's cover is the original, making it the oldest cover n the worls still attached
to its book. It is followed by the Gospel of Saint Cuthbert from the 7th century.
The cover is made of copper and has gilding with a wooden backing,
and its decoration is centered on a large cross. Holes that may have been for jewels are now empty.
The incredible relic is kept in the Garima Monastery near Adwa in the north of the
country, which is located in the Tigray region at an altitude of 7,000 meters.
The survival of the gospel is amazing, considering that the country was subjected to Muslim invasion,
Italian invasion, and a fire in the 1930s which destroyed the church of the monastery.
The exact story of finding the Ethiopian Gospel is not clear, but it is known that the Bible was
discovered by chance travelers in the 1950s who took pictures of the it. Later these served for
the detailed examination and study of the book as well as the establishment of its great value.
Carbon dating gives dates between the years 330 and 650,
which tantalizingly coincides with the date Abba Garima arrived in the country.
Even if he did not complete the task in one day, as tradition has it, the evidence suggests
that it is quite possible that he held in his hands the first volume of the ancient Bible.
Blair Priday of the Ethiopian Heritage Fund stated in an interview:
"Ethiopia has been overlooked as a source of these fantastic things.
"Many of these old Christian relics can only be reached by hiking and climbing
to remote monasteries, as roads in these mountainous areas are limited.
The Garima Gospels have been kept in a high and dry place which has helped
preserve them all these years, and they are kept in the dark so the colors look fresh.''
"The pages were crudely stitched in a 1960s restoration,
some of them wouldn't even turn, AND were falling apart."
"For us, this was the most amazing of all our projects, and the patriarch, the head of the
Ethiopian Church, had to give his permission. "We are currently undertaking other programs
for the restoration of wall paintings and religious texts.
What more of our history is hidden in the hard-to-reach corners of Ethiopia,
we can only guess. One thing is for sure, follow the channel of
consciousness because in it you will find more such little-known but very important knowledge.
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