News

“Ethiopia: The Three Faiths” Panel Discussion at the Schomburg

2 Comments

By Tadias Staff

Published: Thursday, June 19, 2008

New York (Tadias) – Continuing the celebration of the Ethiopian Millenium, BINA Foundation is hosting an interfaith panel discussion this Sunday in Harlem. Ethiopia has the unique position of being home to three of the world’s largest monotheistic traditions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Traditional legends trace their Jewish heritage to the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon and the journey of the Arc of the Covenant from Israel to the highlands of Ethiopia. Surviving copies of the holy Book of Enoch and the Book of Jubilees were found and preserved in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia’s ancient practice of Eastern Orthodox Christianity and the translations of the Bible into Ge’ez occurred as far back as the 5th century A.D. with the advent of Syrian monks fleeing Byzantine persecution. And before the first Hijra to Medina, the prophet Mohammad sent his family to Ethiopia and they received refuge from a Christian emperor and one of the hadith or sayings of Mohammad urge that Muslims recognize the refuge that they received and that they abstain from war on Ethiopians.

Ethiopia’s distinction as an early sanctuary for the three Abrahamic religions will be discussed by panelists including: Dr. Ephraim Isaac, Director of the Institute of Semitic Studies at Princeton University; Dr. Ayele Bekerie, Professor of Africana Studies at Cornell University, Dr. Said Samatar, Professor of African History at Rutgers University; and Dr. Yohannes Zeleke, an archaeologist, anthropologist, and historian as well as the former curator of the National Museum of Ethiopia. The panel discussion entitled “Ethiopia: The Three Faiths” will be held on Sunday at 3pm at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

—
Learn more about the panel discussion at www.binacf.org.

2 thoughts on ““Ethiopia: The Three Faiths” Panel Discussion at the Schomburg”

  1. There is going to be a discussion about three faiths that exist in Ethiopia, but the authorities of those faiths will not be present? (atleast according to this report) what kind of discussion will that be. Its disappointing, atleast from my view, that a priestly class of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church will not be present, since they are inheritors of both Judiasm and Christiany in Ethiopia. The news brief was good, except, Ethiopia is not Eastern Orthodox, but Oriental Orthodox; Easter Orthodoxy includeds churches that are not in full communion with the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, such as the Russian and Greek church.

    Thanks.

  2. MT,

    What are you smoking? No, the event is not a religious pow wow. Rather it is an educational discussion by learned men. Here are the speakers the story listed…I guess you just missed that part:

    Dr. Ephraim Isaac, Director of the Institute of Semitic Studies at Princeton University; Dr. Ayele Bekerie, Professor of Africana Studies at Cornell University, Dr. Said Samatar, Professor of African History at Rutgers University; and Dr. Yohannes Zeleke, an archaeologist, anthropologist, and historian as well as the former curator of the National Museum of Ethiopia.

Comments are closed.