Genna ~ Christmas in Ethiopia

We couldn't help but think of our boys on this day of huge celebration here in the US. Emma pondered, "I wonder if they have a tree as big as ours?" It got us to thinking about Christmas in Ethiopia and what it is like. We know that culturally Christianity is very different in various parts of the world, so what would it be like where are boys are? A little googling turned up quite the insight.

To begin with, Christmas isn't celebrated until Jan. 7th! And their celebration is sooo different from our own.

On Christmas Eve the husband will buy a chicken, sheep, or goat and will slaughter it early in the morning. While the father is slaughtering, the mother prepares coffee over a small charcoal fire in preparation for the coffee ceremony that I wrote about earlier in the blog. During the coffee ceremony, the father will ask a blessing from God and then cut a large wheat roll called henbasha for the family to eat. It sounds very ceremonial.

Here in America most churches shut down for Christmas...it is very different there. They have an all-night worship service where people move from one church to another celebrating the coming of the Messiah. Favorite worship spots are usually the ancient church sites which were carved from solid volcanic rock!

They form up concentric circles with the men siting separately from the ladies. A choir sings from the outside circle. Usually candles are given to worshipers as they come into the church.

Later the next day the young men traditionally play a game similar to field hockey and they eat tons of food. Traditional Christmas dishes includes Injera, a sourdough pancake like bread, which serves as both plate and fork along with Doro Wat, a spicy chicken stew served in ornamented baskets, dulet which is made from sheep’s stomach and home made beer called Tela or honey beer called tejie.

It wasn't a big surprise but I read that gifts are not a big deal in Ethiopia. It kids get anything it is usually clothing.

There are so many dialects and cultures in Ethiopia that you will find various ways of celebrating Christmas - but what is true of them all is that worship, dance, color, food and music play huge roles.

Legend has it that the king bearing frankincense was King Balthazar of Ethiopia, so infusing frankincense in the celebration is a must. The locals throw in spices or nuts to flavor the frankincense which was traditionally a gift suitable for only a high priest.

And for Emma's musing - they do not typically use a "Christmas tree" as part of their celebration.

Regardless of the tradition, it tires me out just thinking about it!