NEBAB #35: Lent Week 5: Debre Zeyt

          NEBAB #35

The Orthodox Tewahedo Magazine

LENT WEEK 5: ደብረ ዘይት - DEBRE ZEYT

 

The Spiritual Education Unit

Ethiopian Orthodox Church

Archdiocese of the Caribbean and Latin America

In this issue:

Gospel: St Matthew 24:1-36

    1. Of that day and hour no man knows

    2. Beginning of sorrows

    3. Faith and works

    4. “Ask Abba/Kes”

    5. A Miracle of the Holy Virgin Maryam

    6. Children’s corner

    7.ይበል ግዕዝ 

    8. Orthodox Q&A

Commentary on the Gospel:

St Matthew 24:4

And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

Before He begins to tell them the signs of His coming, our Lord simply said, "take heed that no one deceives you". His warning to "take heed" is the theme of this chapter, the purpose of Christian eschatology, and the tone that informs this whole week of Debre Zeyt! 

He said "take heed that no one deceives you" because the following signs are not the things of man but the mysteries of God. People like to make predictions and have dates- this is a waste of time. For Christians, the second coming of Christ is the day we die- because after death we wake up for judgement. For Christians, judgement day is tomorrow- because we don't know when the day of our death is.

He said "take heed", because He was teaching them about the second coming, but before that He told them why He was teaching them- the reason for knowledge. We are tempted to pursue knowledge for its own sake and forget why we have that knowledge or why it is beneficial. As a Christian, when we seek to learn the word of God it should be to change our lives.

He said "take heed that no one deceives you" because this is the only reason it useful for us to learn about the second coming. Not so that we can make predictions- which are useless- and preparations- which we should be making daily- but so that we are not deceived.

May we hear the words of life!

 

Of that day and hour no man knows

The 8 weeks of The Great Fast, also known as Lent, have names and themes laid out in St Yared’s Tsome Digua. The fifth, Debre Zeyt, means ‘The Mount of Olives’. To understand the significance of this minor feast within the Great Fast, let us consider the following.

It was on the mount of Olives that our Lord taught His disciples about the signs of the second coming, and the end of the world. It was on the mount of Olives that He taught them the books of Covenant after His resurrection, and it was on the mount of Olives that He ascended into heaven out of their sight. They were told that He would come in the same way they saw him leave, so we treat the mount of Olives as the place of our Lord's return.

The mount of Olives is significant for us of the second coming- it reminds us of the end and what we have to do to prepare. It reminds us of the need for repentance- let us all go to confession ASAP! It reminds us of the need to be vigilant- we do not know when He will return or when we will die. It also reminds us that the things we see here, even things as glorious as the temple at Jerusalem, are temporary and will come to an end.

Beginning of sorrows

Our Lord told us of war and famine and disease and natural disasters- and then told us that these are the beginning- not the end- of sorrows. He did this to temper our expectations, so that when we see Israel trying to wipe out the people of Gaza (nation shall rise against nation) or when a viral pandemic kills over a million people (pestilences) or when every week on the news there is another earthquake in a faraway part of the world (earthquakes in various places), we should not panic or be caught off guard. These are the beginning of sorrows, He says- there is much more to come.

Many people like to use these current events to make predictions and claim that they have received prophecies and visions about the end of the world, or the 'rapture', or the second coming. Our Lord has prepared us for this- "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it." Anyone who tries to tell you when Christ is coming is not to be believed. "For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect." No matter how great the miracles, do not be deceived. Miracles are not proof of godliness. "Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it."

Do not be deceived.

Faith and Works:

How to survive the end of the world

Here is the prayer of the faithful- "Lord, do not make me the fulfillment of the prophecy." The signs of His second coming as He taught us in Matthew 24 contain many sad prophecies about believers turning away from God. These prophecies teach us of the pitfalls we have to avoid.

Many shall be offended- and being offended will lead to hatred and betrayal. As a Christian, you have the power not to be offended by anything anyone says or does- if you always look inward at your own sin.

The love of many shall wax cold- because of the abundance of iniquity. Sin turns us against one another in ways that are almost invisible if we are not vigilant. Watch carefully for times when you do not want to be close to your brothers and sisters, when you dismiss people you're supposed to embrace, when people approach you and you feel annoyance instead of excitement- these are symptoms of sin. Follow the symptoms and find the sin.

Endure to the end- and you will be saved. Endurance matters. 'Sticking it out' is important. In our modern world it becomes easier and easier to put down things after starting them, but endurance is a muscle and we have to train it. Get used to enduring. Make it your practice. Endure small things so that when great troubles come you can endure them too.

Ask Abba/Kes

"What is the true meaning of 'in My Father's house there are many mansions'?"

It refers to the kingdom of heaven and to the church, which is the kingdom of heaven on earth. The church is the factory that produces you and she calls you by the name 'apostle' or 'martyr' or 'bishop'. There are actually 10 levels of righteousness for believers to reach in our church.

There are also different offices of clergy, and different kinds of service. Some people think 'if I'm not a priest I'm not serving', but everyone has a service to do. The most important and greatest service in the church? Cleaning!

BIBLE QUIZ!

How many provinces did king Ahasuerus/Artaxerxes rule in the days of queen Esther?

 

A Miracle of the Holy Virgin Maryam

A miracle performed by Our Lady Mary, Holy Twofold Virgin, the Mother of God, may her prayers and her blessings be with her servant Laeka Maryam in the morning and in the evening, forever and ever, amen.

One day a teacher went out from the wilderness of Scete. He saw innumerable unclean spirits and demons. He became terrified and fled. He then returned to the icon of Our Lady Mary, Holy Twofold Virgin, the Mother of God, and he said, “Help me, and save me.”

Immediately, he saw a hand of light holding a baptismal cross.

She said to him, “Do not be afraid, do not be terrified. Go out and make the sign of the cross over them.”

Then the teacher went back out and made the sign of the cross over the spirits and demons. They disappeared immediately, and not a single one of them could be found.

Likewise, may she deliver her servant Laeka Maryam from all adversaries, forever and ever, amen.

And again, while the teacher was inside [the house], standing to pray, a brilliant light appeared to him. He became terrified and was afraid. He heard a voice saying, "Awlogeson.” [Say a blessing!]

Then the teacher went out and asked, “Who are you?”

The voice said to him, “I am a servant of the Holy Spirit [Gebre Menfes Qidus].”

The teacher saw many warriors with him. They all had baptismal crosses on their necks.

He asked one of them, “Where are you coming from?”

The soldier responded, “This is the King of Zion. He came to visit you.”

One night, while the teacher was lying in his sickbed, Mary said to him, “Peace be to you, Samra Krestos, my beloved and the beloved of my son. Do not be afraid.”

Then she touched him with her holy hands, and he was instantly healed.

Then Mary said to him, “After you complete thirty years, you will come to us at the banquet table of my son.”

Then he rose and prostrated before her. Then she bid him farewell and ascended into the heavens.

He lived all the days of his life, loving Our Lady Mary, Holy Twofold Virgin, the Mother of God, and he read her praises every day and he performed her remembrance during every feast. He loved her and put his faith in her until he completed his thirtieth year. After this he died in peace, and Our Lady Mary, Holy Twofold Virgin, the Mother of God, brought him into the garden of rejoicing.

May her prayers and her blessings be with her servant Laeka Maryam, who limitlessly loves Our Lady, forever and ever, amen.

O Holy Virgin Maryam, pray for us!

LIJOCH! The Children's Corner

Memory verse: St Matthew 24 : 13

But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Each of the following pictures represents a verse from Matthew 24. Match the pictures to the verses!

🧔🏽‍♂️👨🏾‍🦱🧔🏻🏛🕍 : Verse _

⛰️🫒👀❓️🚫🪨 : Verse _

👂🏾⚔️🗣⚔️ : Verse _

❤️👥️❄️ : Verse _

🚫🏕🔙👕👖👗 : Verse _

🙏🏾🏃🏾‍♂️🚫❄️7️⃣🗓 : Verse _

🏜🚫🤫🚫 : Verse _

ይበል:ግዕዝ (yibel Ge’ez)

Let's reclaim our forefathers’ language

In Ge'ez, the word for 'second' or is:

ዳግም

dagim - second, other

It comes from the verb ደገመ degeme which means to repeat, do something a second time, or to recite.

This gives us the adjective ዳግም dagim which along with words like ዳግማዊ dagmawi and the feminine ዳግሚት dagimeet can all mean 'second'. E.g. ሰማይ ዳግሚት semay dagimeet - the second heaven (a title of the Virgin Mary).

The book of Deuteronomy (Greek- deutero second + nomos law) in Ge'ez is called ዳግም ኦሪት dagim orit - literally 'second Torah', as it was a repetition of the law given in Exodus for the children who would have been to young to hear it at the time and were about to enter the promised land.

A simple but useful word, look out for it in Ge'ez.

ORTHODOX Q&A

"Why do you have 'priests' wearing special robes? That's the Old Testament law, now we are ALL a royal priesthood!"

Understand this- Christ took the priesthood from the Levites, from the children of Israel, from one special people- and gave it to the whole world. Understand this too- Christ had 12 apostles, 72 disciples and 36 holy women. Even among the disciples He put order and rank. We are the apostles, disciples and holy women. He called Peter saying "do you love me? Feed my sheep". The priesthood of the New Testament is the One Who is the Head of Peter- Jesus Christ the high priest.

Send us your questions at: seu.eotccarla@gmail.com

References

Short message on behalf the Spiritual Education Unit:

His Grace Abune Thaddaeus, Head Administrator Archimandrite Abba Gebreyesus, and all clergy and faithful- thank you for the opportunity to share this labour of love with you. Thanks also to the team of the Spiritual Education Unit for their hard work.

-Liqe Teghuan Tekle Mariam Greene

Miracle of the Holy Virgin Mary: pemm.princeton.edu/en-us/stories/56

CONTACT US:

Archdiocese headquarters: Medhane Alem (Saviour of the World), Old Golden Grove Rd. Arouca, Trinidad and Tobago.

Tel. 868-642-4230.

e-mail: eotc.arch.carla@gmail.com

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