H.I.M. speaks on faith and spirituality

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The Bible Speech

"We in Ethiopia have one of the oldest versions of the Bible, but however old the version may be, in whatever language it might be written, the Word remains the same, It transcends all boundaries of empires and all conceptions of race. It is eternal.

"No doubt you all remember reading in the Acts of the Apostles how Philip baptized the Ethiopian official. He is the first Ethiopian on record to have followed Christ, and from that day onwards the Word of God has continued to grow in the hearts of Ethiopians. And I might say for myself that from early childhood I was taught to appreciate the Bible, and my love for it increases with the passage of time.......

"Because of this personal experience in the goodness of the Bible, I was resolved that all my countrymen should also share its great blessing, and that by reading the Bible they should find truth for themselves. Therefore I caused a new translation to be made form our ancient language into the language which the old and the young understood and spoke.

"Today man sees all his hopes and aspirations crumbling before him. He is perplexed and knows not whither he is drifting. But he must realize that the Bible is his refuge and the rallying point for all humanity. In it man will find the solution to his present difficulties and guidance for this future action, and unless he accepts with clear conscience the Bible and its great message, he cannot hope for salvation. For my part I glory in the Bible."

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Material and Spiritual Progress

"To make our wills obedient to good influences and to avoid evil, is to show the greatest wisdom. In order to follow this aim one must be guided by religion. Progress without religion is just like a life surrounded by unknown perils and can be compared to a body without a soul.

"Knowing that material and spiritual progress are essential to man, we must ceaselessly work for the equal attainment of both. Only then shall we be able to acquire that absolute inner calm so necessary to our well-being. Whenever conflict arises between material and spiritual values, the conscience plays an important role and anyone who suffers from a guilty conscience is never really free from this problem until he makes peace with himself and his conscience.

"Discipline of the mind is a basic ingredient of genuine morality and therefore of spiritual strength. Spiritual power is the eternal guide, in this life and the life after, for man ranks supreme among all creatures. Led forward by spiritual power, man can reach the summit destined for him by the Great Creator.

"Since nobody can interfere in the realm of God we should tolerate and live side by side with those of other faiths. In the mystic traditions of the different religions we have a remarkable unity of spirit. Whatever religion they may profess, they are spiritual kinsmen. While the different religions in their historic forms bind us to limited groups and militate against the development of loyalty to the world community, the mystics have already stood for the fellowship of humanity in harmony with the spirit of the mystics of ages gone by.

"No one should question the faith of others, for no human being can judge of the ways of God.

"However wise or however mighty a person may be, he is like a ship without a rudder if he is without God. A rudderless ship is at the mercy of the waves and the wind, drifts wherever they take it and if there arises a whirlwind it is smashed against the rocks and becomes as if it has never existed. It is our firm belief that a soul without Christ is bound to meet with no better fate. The love shown by our God to mankind should constrain all of us who are followers and disciples of Christ, to do all in our power to see to it that the message of salvation is carried to those of our fellows who have not had the benefit of hearing the good news.

"It is our conviction that all the activities of the children of men, which are not guided by the Spirit and council of God will bear no lasting fruits; they will not be acceptable in the sight of God. It will therefore come to naught as the tower of Babel came to naught. The grace of God is Eternal. Angels in Heaven and the Creation on Earth sing His Praise . We thank the Master of the world Almighty God. Power belongs to God. May God Our Creator, the Helper and Guiding Light of us all grant you His Wisdom that you may bear fruits for His Glory."

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Formally Accepting the Title

Defender of the Faith

"Venerable and Holy Fathers, in listening to the profound spiritual message conveyed by your closing addresses, and appreciating the happy outcome of your sustained efforts, Our heart has been touched by profound gladness. It should therefore be clear to the whole world from the result of your work that Your Holinesses have been guided and inspired by the Holy Spirit to accomplish your task in love and unity.

"The great common tasks accomplished by the Conference in unison bestow on the true faith and true order of the Oriental Orthodox Church the admiration of the whole world.

"As Solomon says, physical distance cannot be a barrier to love,. Likewise, the distances among your respective countries have been abolished by the proximity of your hearts. You have thus been able to speak a single tongue and think with a single mind. We thank Almighty God for enabling Us to witness the realization of Our dream in the successful outcome of this historic Conference.

"We are therefore happy to express to you Our readiness, fortified by the results of this Conference, to invite you and the Eastern Orthodox Churches, and also other churches at a later date. We ardently hope that we shall meet once again in the not too distant future.

"As We stated at the inauguration of this Conference, to meet together, to take council with one another, and to act in mutual cooperation, has proved a most fruitful method both in the secular and spiritual fields. Henceforth the way is open for you to follow this fruitful path, and to this end, Our help and assistance will always be forthcoming, since We support your efforts and ideas out of an unshakable conviction that it is Our spiritual duty to do so.

"We are gratified in particular to note that the work of this Conference has been concerned purely with religious spiritual matters free from extraneous political considerations. This is only fitting and proper, for the church, as a symbol of peace, must follow the path of peace in all parts of the world. In this connection We are glad to note that your evangelistic mission in the world has received due emphasis in your deliberations, together with the recognition of the Christian duty to pray for the rights of man and the peace of the world. For world peace can only be made abiding by the Grace of God, through the prayers of the Holy Fathers. the truth of this cardinal fact is evident to all mankind.

"We ardently hope that Almighty God shall bless the implementation of our important resolutions and decisions, just as He has made possible the successful convening and conclusion of this historic Conference.

"Holy Fathers, We have welcomed the title you have given Us, Defender of the Faith, with great honor, May almighty God grace your name. May God welcome your work. We have received this title given Us by you Holy Fathers, with religious reverence. May your prayers help Us in Our effort to fulfill the task entrusted to Us."
January 21st 1965

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Investiture of New Patriarch

"Since We acceded to the Throne of Ethiopia by the Grace of God, We have always striven to improve the standard of living of Our people, to expand and strengthen the educational program of the youth of the country, and uphold the faith of Our Church. We are indeed gratified to see today the fruition of Our endeavors in these regards for which We thank the Master of the world, God Almighty.

"What more can We expect than to see the realization of the major things We had hoped for many years that the Almighty would help us achieve for Ethiopia?

"The world does not remain static but is always changing. Work should progress like the branches of a tree along a river bank, and among the numerous foundations We laid for Ethiopia's overall development, attaining an autocephalous status for the Ethiopian Church is one of the most important. To see the Ethiopian Church reach this stage of electing and consecrating its own prelate is a high achievement.

"When His Holiness, the late Abuna Bassilios, was elected first as an Archbishop of Ethiopia at a ceremony in Cairo some years ago, We felt a singular honor as this was one of the important accomplishments during Our reign and We thanked Our Lord for blessing Our efforts and for sparing Us to witness the consecration of the first Ethiopian patriarch. Although His Holiness Abuna Bassilios is no longer with us, the Ethiopian Church will continue to follow the spiritual path he has laid for her. His successor, His Holiness Abuna Tewoflos, has served the Ethiopian Church faithfully for many years and his experiences will, no doubt, help him meet his new responsibilities. We know both Abuna Bassilios and Abuna Tewoflos from the beginning of their early church services and We shall not forget their mutual confidence and love.

We thank God for enabling Us to be present here today to wish the dead to rest in peace and to congratulate the newly consecrated. There is nothing more We can do to repay God for all He has done for Our country except to thank Him. It is not humanly possible to repay the loving Son who, despite His innocence, was crucified to absolve mankind from sin, and yet prayed on the crucifix to His Father to forgive those who crucified Him.

Generations come and pass. the learned of our Church and the laity know what fundamental relations we now have, and had, with the Egyptian Church. It is religion that binds us with our brethren in Egypt. When We say religion, it is not restricted to the professed faith. In this connection no one should question the faith of others, for no human being can be a judge of the ways of God.

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Conference of Oriental Orthodox Churches

"......Ethiopia has been from ancient times well known for her hospitality, and this is not the first time she has welcomed holy fathers like yourselves. From the 4th century AD onward monks and saints have come from Egypt, Syria and other Christian countries to Ethiopia and have been received with high honor and great respect. To mention only a few among those who are canonized in the Ethiopian church the Nine Saints who came from different countries of the Middle East and Abuna Gebre-Menfus-Kidus are examples. These holy fathers, preaching and establishing monasteries in various parts of Our country have greatly contributed to Ethiopian Christianity. Therefore, many churches and monasteries are dedicated to them in undying memory of the spiritual services which they rendered to our country.

"In ancient times, when the Faith of the whole Church was one, Our country had the closest relations with the Emperors of Christian Byzantium. At the time when several Christian Peoples in the North became subservient to non-Christian powers, our country gladly provided asylum to thousands of Christian refugees. It had equally given asylum from religious persecution at an earlier date to the followers of the founder of Islam. Only when our own immediate neighbors ceased to be Christians did our contacts with our fellow-Christians in the North and East become difficult to maintain. Ethiopia, an island of Christianity, has make her own distinctive contribution to the Christian faith; for, ever since her conversion to Christianity she has remained faithful, her age-old ties with the Apostolic church uninterrupted. For this reason she is universally renowned as the faithful daughter of St Mark of Alexandria. The opportunity we have today to discuss our common interests and problems together is the fruit of that ancient unity. To defend the faith and to preserve our ancient ties with your respective countries, our fathers the Emperors of Ethiopia and the Ethiopian people have exerted great efforts all through our history. We are grateful to all of them.

It is therefore with great joy that We welcome Your Holinesses to Our land and to Our Church. Your Holinesses bring with you sacred memories from the ancient past. Your presence here is a pledge and token of the desire of all Christians to be one. Ever since We ascended the historic throne of Ethiopia. We have considered it Our duty to call for a meeting of the churches who belong to the same fold. We were praying to God for His help in achieving this holy purpose, so that He may grant it to Us to see this event. In ancient time the Byzantine emperors used to summon the councils. Our sincere wish from the very beginning was to see these churches meeting to discuss their common interests and decide on their common problems. This wish is in actual fact fulfilled today, and We are happy to witness it. Therefore, We thank Almighty God first because He has enabled Us to properly fulfill Our clear duty, and secondly, because Our long cherished desire has now met with fulfillment. Henceforth the matter will demand the spiritual unity and hard work of Your Holinesses. For strength can be achieved through unity, and success is the fruit of co-operation. There is no doubt that work done through a co-operative spirit shall meet with success. Christ affirmed:

'....that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.'

Matthew 18:19...................."

January 15th 1965 Addis Abeba

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