👉🏾👉🏾👉🏾The Mystery of #Geshen #Maryam and the Placing of the Holy Cross (#Meskerem 21)
Beloved in Christ, hear with reverence the history of Geshen Mary, a place not raised by accident nor adorned by human hand alone, but chosen by God Himself as a second Jerusalem upon Ethiopian soil. This hill, lifted high in Wollo, encircled with cliffs and guarded by a single gate marked with the sign of the Cross, has been sanctified as the dwelling place of the mysteries of Calvary.
The Location of Geshen Maryam
✍🏾Geshen Maryam is found in the Wollo Ambassal district, between Deber, Mekdela, Delanta, Yeju, and the Beshelo River. The monastery is built upon a high plateau surrounded by steep cliffs, so that there is only one narrow entrance gate. At the top of this gate shines the sign of the Cross, marking it as holy ground. When we pass through the gate, we enter into a wide courtyard, open like a plain, yet sanctified by the Cross itself.
From Debre Egziabher to Debre Kerbe
✍🏾This sacred place was originally called Debre Egziabher (“Mount of God”), for it housed a stone-hewn church built by King Saint Lalibela. This church was dedicated to God the Father. Later, when the monastery of Lake Stephen was founded, the surrounding area was renamed Debre Negodgwad, and Geshen, being part of this territory, was also given that name.
✍🏾In the 14th century, during the reign of Emperor Zera Yacob, the Cross of Christ was brought and placed in Geshen. From that time forward, the place received a new name Debre Kerbe signifying its connection to the precious Cross. The spiritual head of the monastery was called Memher Israel of Debre Kerbe. From that title and through the veneration of the Mother of God, the site came to be known as Geshen Maryam.
The Request of Emperor Dawit II
✍🏾In the days of Emperor Dawit II, the Christians of Alexandria suffered cruel oppression. They cried to the king of Ethiopia for help: “O King, the Muslims have afflicted us with grievous wrongs. Take up your power and bring us peace.” With holy zeal, the emperor marched with 20,000 troops and sent a warning to Egypt: unless they reconciled with the Christians, their land would be destroyed. Terrified, the Egyptians relented, restored peace, and returned to brotherly relations with the faithful.
✍🏾When the Egyptians later sought to honor Dawit with gifts of gold, the king refused, saying, “I do not desire your wealth. My love for Christ compelled me to defend His people. But I ask this of you: send to me the Cross of our Savior, the bones of the saints, and holy relics, that my land, afflicted with famine and pestilence, may be sanctified.”
The Gift of the Holy Relics
✍🏾The Pope of Alexandria, with his bishops, prepared a treasury of boxes : a portion of the True Cross, bones of the saints, sacred vestments, soil from Jerusalem, water from the Jordan, and holy icons. With honor they were borne on camels to Ethiopia. On Meskerem 21, the relics arrived, and the people received them with rejoicing clapping, bowing, and giving glory to God.
The Divine Vision to Emperor Zera Yacob
✍🏾When Emperor Zera Yacob, son of Dawit, sought to enshrine the Cross in Debre Birhan, he received a vision: “My friend Zera Yacob, put my cross on place of cross” The king searched all Ethiopia, traveling with the relic, but everywhere the Lord repeated His command. At last, after seven days of fasting and prayer, the Lord confirmed His will with a pillar of light, which went before them and guided their steps. This radiant sign did not depart until it brought them to Geshen, in the Ambasel district of Wollo province.
✍🏾There they beheld a holy hill, wondrously formed by God’s own hand carved with beauty, crowned with majesty, and perfectly prepared to be the dwelling place of the Cross. Rejoicing in this divine revelation, they built upon Geshen a great temple, and within it they placed the Life-Giving Cross and the sacred relics each in their place of honor..
Continues 👇🏾