🔥 Thousands of Christians throng Jerusalem for the traditional Holy Fire rite ahead of the Orthodox Easter, despite a security clampdown in the holy city.
❖ Every Orthodox Holy Saturday in Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulcher, thousands gather to witness a flame “miraculously” appearing in the tomb of Jesus.
Orthodox Christians believe it’s a potent symbol of the resurrection.
It’s the Church’s most important miracle. And it’s believed to have been happening annually for the past 1,200 years.
The ritual begins with the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem (or another Orthodox archbishop), descending into the empty tomb of Christ within the church and reciting special prayers. A non-Orthodox Christian is also said to examine the edicule (a small structure surrounding the tomb) to make sure no oil lamps have been left burning inside that the patriarch could use to light his candles.
In the crowded church above the tomb and surrounding the edicule, the faithful chant with one voice “Kyrie eleison” (Lord, have mercy). The wait might be long or short but eventually a light is said to appear in the tomb where the patriarch has been praying alone. He then lights his candles from this miraculous flame and, accompanied by the pealing of bells, emerges to spread the fire among the crowd. The oncedark church becomes illuminated by the miraculous Holy Fire.
It is said that for the first several minutes the fire burns, but does not consume. During this time, many of the faithful bathe their faces and hands in the flame, apparently without being harmed. The flame is passed from candle to candle and then placed in lanterns so that it can be spread far and wide.
Posted by addisethiopia / አዲስ ኢትዮጵያ on January 6, 2023
🛑 A mystery object described by one local news outlet as a “UFO” has been shot down in the southern Russian region of Rostov.
Vasily Golubev, the governor of Rostov oblast, wrote on Telegram that a “small-size object in the shape of a ball” had been discovered flying “in the wind” at an altitude of around one and a half miles on January 3. With the object spotted above the village of Sultan Sala in the region’s Myasnikovsky district, Golubev said “the decision was taken to liquidate it.”
“I urge everyone to remain calm. To ensure security, all forces and means are involved. The sky is covered with anti-aircraft defenses,” he added, without specifying what the object was.
In reporting his comments, local news outlet Pivyet Rostov carried a headline that said “a UFO in the form of a ball was shot down in the sky.”
Telegram channels that night described how air defense systems in Rostov had been operating. The channel Ostorozhna, Novosti (Caution, News) published a video showing a shining object flying and then exploding in the sky.
“Look, another one has gone,” someone is heard saying in the clip, which was captioned, “another video of the work of Rostov regional air defenses.” A witness told the channel how “there was a very strong explosion” and that “everything in the house shook. We realized that the air defenses were in operation.”
Newsweek has contacted the governor’s office for further comment.
Rostov borders the Sea of Azov, which is connected to the Black Sea by the Strait of Kerch, a strategic location for both sides of the war in Ukraine. Since the start of Vladimir Putin’s invasion, the oblast near Ukraine has been subjected to regular shelling and drone attacks.
In October, Rostov was named as one of six Russian regions and two annexed regions in which Putin introduced a “medium-response level” to the threats posed by the war. This includes restrictions on movement and strengthening public order measures.
He also announced a “maximum response”—effectively martial law—on the four regions he claimed to have annexed but does not fully control; Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk.
Posted by addisethiopia / አዲስ ኢትዮጵያ on August 19, 2021
❖❖❖ ቡሄ!ቡሄ!ቡሄ! ❖❖❖
የታመሙትን፣ የታሰሩትን፣ የተደፈሩትንና የተሰደዱትን እንጠይቅ፣
የተራቡትንና የተጠሙትን እናብላ እናጠጣ፣የታረዙትን እናልብስ፣
ለተበደሉት፣ አድሎ ለሚደርስባቸውና ፍትሕ ለተነፈጋቸው እንቁም!
Buhe (Ge’ez: ቡሄ) is a feast day observed by Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church on August 19 (ነሐሴ/Nähase ፲፫/13 in the Ethiopian calendar). On this date, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church celebrates the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor (Debre Tabor Ge’ez: ደብረ ታቦር). People of the neighborhood tie a bundle of sticks together to make a CHIBO, and set it on fire while singing songs. The main song is called “Hoya Hoye” with one singer singing while the others follow in a rhythmic way. It involves young boys singing songs of praise outside of people’s homes, in exchange for fresh bread called MULMUL. The boys then bless the family of the home for the following year.
For weeks in August, Ethiopian boys dress up and perform songs from door to door in neighbourhoods across the country. In return, the boys get ‘Mulmul’ – bread freshly baked for the occasion in each house.
Known as Buhe, the festival – like most cultural celebrations here has its origins in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. It marks the transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor.
“I started participating in Buhe when I was 14. I get very excited when the time for Buhe comes around because it is the commemoration of Jesus appearing in a supernatural light. We celebrate Buhe with very interesting activities,” said Kirubel Sibhat, one of the young performers.
Buhe is also a tradition where young people are reminded to value older generations. The songs are written and performed in praise of adults and elders.
But over time, the tradition of Buhe has struggled to stay alive, especially in urban locations like Addis Ababa – a city undergoing its own transformation as the capital of one of Africa’s fastest growing economies.
Churches are trying to revive the celebration to its old glory. The boys can now also receive gifts of money in place of fresh bread – a sign of the times where people have less time to prepare for such festivals.
“The new generation has the responsibility of learning and continuing the traditions of its fathers, as we age. It has the responsibility of upholding national traditions instead of following foreign traditions,” Said Kassaye Gutema, an Addis Ababa resident.
The boys crack a whip made of braided tree fibers to signal their approach into a neighbourhood. Traditionally the whip was cracked by shepherd boys.
Buhe also marks the last days of the rainy season.
Religious leaders and Orthodox faithful take the time to give thanks and pray for a good harvest. They also take time to reflect on the biblical significance of the events.
According to Wosanyu Zewdie, a deacon and teacher at St. Yohannes school, Buhe is a culmination of tradition and religion.
“The meaning of the whip being cracked is to imitate the sound of the thunder that was heard in the sky. We later light a bonfire to represent the light that was illuminating when Christ appeared. The bread signifies the fact that mothers took bread to their shepherd boys who stayed out late because they thought it was still daylight, but it was Christ’s supernatural appearance. So all the cultural activities you see in relation to Buhe have their origin in religion,” he said.
After sunset, celebrations move to the streets where large bonfires burn well into the night and hundreds sing and dance in anticipation of the new year – marked in Ethiopia according to the Orthodox Calendar in September.
The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is one of the pre-colonial Christian denominations in sub-Saharan Africa and is estimated to have between 40 and 45 million followers. The overwhelming majority live in Ethiopia.
Two years ago, around this time, we arrived early Sunday morning in Armenia. Soon after, my son Hovsep and I attended badarak at the Saint Gregory The Illuminator Cathedral in Yerevan. The festivities of celebrating Vartavar on the streets of the Armenian capital had already started as church services were over. We witnessed a joyous day filled with the tradition of splashing water dating from the pre-Christian era of Armenia, honoring the goddess Asdghig as some say. Others claim that this tradition goes further back to the days of Noah and a remembrance of the flood.
The feast of transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ, one of the five prominent Tabernacle feasts of our church, is celebrated today. We read about the events of the transfiguration in the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke). I invite you to focus on the details from the Transfiguration narrative according to the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus reveals His divinity through a sequence of events and actions that includes His face shining like the sun; his clothes became dazzling white, Moses’ and Elijah’s appearance, a bright cloud overshadowing the scene and the voice of God testifying: “This is my Son, the Beloved; with Him, I am well pleased; listen to Him!” (Matthew 17:5).
I would like you to pay attention to the dazzling white garment of Jesus. White garments are an expression of heavenly beings. In the book of Revelation, John speaks of white garments worn by those who have been saved (Revelation 7:9, 19:14). We find the practical inclusion of this notion in the life of the church in the sacrament of baptism, as we clothe the newly baptized child with white garments. Think about it; everyone baptized in the church has put on dazzling white garments of salvation. In other words, it is through baptism that we are united to the glory of Christ, and He reveals His glory to us through His passion and the crucifixion. The self-sacrifice of Christ is the purification that restores to us the original garment lost through sin. Through baptism, God clothes us in light, and we become light.
So, after all, the splashing of water and the popular mode of celebrating Vartavar, the feast of the transfiguration may not be fragments of pagan Armenia. Maybe it’s a powerful and practical way of reminding us that we are baptized and garmented with the dazzling white clothing of angels and the elect. God continues to administer His grace to us through our active participation in the life of the Church. God restores our old, dirty and torn garments into dazzling white clothes and prepares us to participate in the divine banquet.
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