HOLY ISLANDS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 286, 31 October 1934, Page 14

HOLY ISLANDS

MONASTERIES OF LAKE TANA. IN THE HEART OF ABYSSINIA. In an article in the- Times, London, Major It. E. Cheesman described his visits to the monasteries on the islands on Lake Tana, Abyssinia. My plans (he writes) were to encircle Lake Tana by water and visit every island and every church or monastery on them and those on the shoro as well, which would mean a 220-mil» cruise. Abyssinian church history contains much of value to students of early Christianity, brought to the country in or about the year 370 by Frumentius, who became the first Archbishop of Ethiopia in much the same way that Saint Augustine, 226 years later, brought Christianity to Saxon England and became first Archbishop of Canterbury. The threat of Islam never came near to England, but in the reign of the Abyssinian Emperor Lebna Dengel (A.D. 1508 —1540) his country had been j conquered and coihpletely overrun by a Mohamedan invader, Mohammed : Gran, from the land of Adal, the low- j lying deserts towards the Red Sea, now j occupied by the Danakil tribes. AI- j though Lebna Dengel’s eon and succes. j sor was eventually able to drive the Mohamedans from the country, every; church and monastery of any importance throughout the land had been I sacked and burnt. With them went the i libraries of what must have been priceless manuscripts and books, with Greek and Hebrew copies or even originals of the Scriptures and Apocalypse. It seemed that if any libraries had escaped they would be found in the island monasteries of Lake Tana. Dak Island, the largest on the lnke, is three miles in diameter and is more or less circular. We were told there | were five churches on Dak. None promised to be of much interest, but it would have been unwise not to visit them all. Each church has a village and there are a few other hamlets. Women are allowed on the island, as it is not strictly speaking monastic land. The only industry is agriculture, and there is a sprinkling of the priesthood. AN EARLY CHURCH.

Narga Silasi is a monastery on an islet to the west of Dak. It was built by Yeteye Mentawab, wife of the Emperor Bakafa (A.D. 1721 to 1731). The islet is 600 yards in diameter and is occupied by the church and its outbuildings. Two entrance gateways of stone lead in from the water’s edge, and there is a domed bell tower containing a bell weighing about 2cwt. Like all Abyssinian churches, there was a small house separate from the main building in which the bread and wine of the Sacrament are prepared; the house is invariably known as Bethlehem, arid it is always placed to the east of the church. Another building is called the Ikrbbet, and is the equivalent of our vestry. Books examined were “The Miracles of Christ,” which was beautifully illustrated in colour on parchment; and another was beautifully inscribed in Giz, but we could find no date. Another day was spent in rowing to and visiting the island of Daga, threequarters of a mile from the south-east corner of Dak. It looks like a volcanic cone sticking up in the lake and is 200 ft high. On the summit is situated one of the most sacred monasteries of Ethiopia. The old church of St. Stephen was struck by lightning and burnt down and the new building that has taken its place is of little interest. The Ikrbbet, a masonry walled building of primitive design with thick walls, escaped the fire and contains the tombs and mortal remains of seven Emperors. Tana Kirkos is a small island connected to-day to the mainland by a rock causeway on which, in the low-water months, a man can reach the island dryshod. It would be more accurately •

described as a peninsula. Local legend and probably Abyssinian tradition tell, although I have never seen it mentioned in any book on the country, that here the Ark of the Tabernacle rested and was kept for a long period when it first arrived from Jerusalem and before being taken to it present resting-place at Axum.

ANCIENT ALTARS. The first Superior of the Tana Kirkos Church, or, more correctly, the priest of the temple there, is said to have been Azarias, the son of Zadok, the high priest in Jerusalem in trie days of Solomon ; he is said to have accompanied Menelik I. bringing the Ark. A metal bowl was shown to me on which was embossed an inscription in Sabean characters lin high. Near by the church are three stone pillars, on the top of which circular depressions or cups are cut which are undoubtedly the ancient altars of Hebrew sacrifice. On them is the staff, headed by a cross, brought by r Frumentius and fixed above the altars by r his own hand. The earliest church was founded on the island of Mitraha by the Emperor David I. (A.D. 1382-1411). This was , burnt by Ahmad Gran. Another was built by John 1., and this was sacked by' the Dervishes in the days of the Khalifa and stands in ruins. There is also the Mausoleum of the Emperor lyasus (1682-1706). In spite of this the library contains some well-illumin- I ated books which are said to have been hidden and escaped the sack; but we could find none that was dated. A few day’s’ travel round the northeast corner and along the north shore of the lake brought us to the Gorgora Peninsula. It is a mountainous region and the monasteries on its shore and on the islets off the coast seem to have escaped the notice of both the Gran and Khalifa invasions. A small monastery church of Debra Sena (Sinai), perched on the end of a promontory on the eastern side, is worth a visit, and there are some books. On the mainland I visited the Summer Palace of the Emperor Susenyos (A.D. 1607-1632). The Gorgora Palace is now ruined and deserted, but enough remains to enable one to see that in the days of its splendour it was a magnificent building.