The Lion of Judah: Prince Ermias Sahle Selassie

from the Library of Congress in Washington DC well good afternoon your Royal Highness ladies and gentlemen welcome to the Library of Congress I'm mary-jane Deeb chief of the African and Middle Eastern Division and today it is my distinct pleasure and honor to welcome to the library His Royal Highness Prince Sara Mia haile selassie it is the first time that a member of the imperial family of Ethiopia has graced the hallowed halls of the Library of Congress with their presence and certainly the first time that a member of the family will make a presentation on its long and prestigious history as many of you already know when Emperor Haile Selassie the first of Ethiopia was crowned on November 2nd 1930 his titles included King of Kings Lord of lords conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah and elect of God and so we're all looking very much looking forward to hearing about the Lion of Judah but now may I introduce dr. Peggy Burstein head of the Hebraic section where the collection of Ethiopian material lies dr. Pearlstein good afternoon as dr. deed mentioned I'm Peggy Pearlstein I'm head of the Hebraic section in the African and Middle Eastern Division of the Library of Congress and our wonderful collection of materials that that are here here are part of the Hebraic section and before this presentation today His Royal Highness Prince Hermes Sally Salah say came upstairs to the African Middle Eastern Division and our reference librarian in charge of the materials fed to whom to Runa made a wonderful presentation of manuscripts newspapers maps and contemporary materials so we're very pleased to have the materials here at the Library of Congress and we encourage you to come and use them as I mentioned to the Prince the collection is used but we're always happy to have other people come and make discoveries as well and so now I'd like to turn the program over to Fanta who will introduce the Prince thank you very much biggie for the introduction ladies and gentlemen welcome aboard this is a program I have been looking forward to for a long time and I'm very very thankful for His Royal Highness Prince areas for accepting my invitation I would like to begin by a statement about myself in relation to the royal family if admitted I would like to include a bit of personal history that I was a participant in the opposition to the monarchy in the university days in my university days a student I do not want to engage in criticizing the educational system in hydro Selassie University that I was engaged in for failing short of instruction instructing its citizens with their true history but I relied meet there was a general ignorance in the academia in the knowledge of the long and glorious history from the dynastic cushitic sovereigns to the Solomonic line of sovereigns it is a sort of sort of cathartic to me to have the the princes of Ethiopia with me in one hole to remind each other to once again archive document and preserve this glorious history of for posterity so I'm so happy that we came together finally I will now begin to introduce Prince armies His Royal Highness Prince Hermes president of the crown Council of Ethiopia is the only son of his late imperial Highness Prince Salah Selassie Haile Selassie and her Imperial Highness Princess Mahanta optimum the late Prince de Haile Selassie was the youngest son of his Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie and impressed melon of Ethiopia His Royal Highness Prince Hermes was born in Addis Ababa on June 14 1960 and lived in Ethiopia for a considerable part of his early life where he had his primary education he continued his studies at the old right preparatory school and then at Halle Berry College in England he graduated with an undergraduate degree in the social services in economics from the University of California in Santa Barbara he continued his education at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy between 1983 and 1985 His Royal Highness is a father of two sons Prince Haris lassie and Prince pistachio born February the 20th 1992 Prince Hermes has a diverse personal background and has been deeply involved in the development and institutionalize ation of democratic principles and market economic philosophies in Africa particularly in the horn he is an active member of the expatriate Ethiopian community in the United States and actively follows issues related to the Horn of Africa in 1993 Prince Hermes was invested in exile as the president of the Ethiopian crown Council the body which acts during an interregnum as the custodian of the crown and which during the reign of an emperor acts as the principal advisory body to the crown the appointment was made by the late Emperor am halassi first upon his installment the prince has travelled extensively and met with a thousand heads of state promoting the welfare or Gideon and Ethiopians in 1998 he briefed the United States Congress on two occasions regarding the prospects for peace in the Horn of Africa this included a special briefing to the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee on October 14 1998 in 1997 hi-his His Royal Highness was named the recipient of the International Strategic Studies Association Silver Star Award for outstanding contributions to strategic progress through humanitarian achievement by the worldwide worldwide NGO the International Strategic Studies Association for his accomplishment in supporting Ethiopian refugees his Highness is patron of the Haile Selassie fund for Ethiopia's Children incorporated a us-based nonprofit charitable trust which raises funds for causes which a Ethiopian children including scholarships I now call upon His Royal Highness Prince Hermes I was lucky to the podium to give us his presentation on the line of thank you good afternoon friends scholars and distinguished guests it is my great honor and privilege to be here with you today in the renowned Hebraic section of the United States Library of Congress African and Middle Eastern Division to begin with I will share with you an ancient Ethiopian saying we must study the past and understand the present for to charter a better future for us all I must tell you that I am NOT a theology and make no pretense at being so indeed some perhaps many of you already possess extensive knowledge of today's subject the origins and religious symbolism of the Lion of Judah consequently I will initially introduce the subject and hopefully end with a robust question-and-answer period which I anticipate will prove both entertaining and enlightening for all of us it is with great reverence humility and some concern I come before you to discuss and explore this topic my concern Springs from the certain and harsh knowledge that whenever poetry and magic of myth is interpreted as biography history or science it is frequently mortally wounded the living images become only remote facts of a distant time or sky and it's never difficult to demonstrate that a science in history mythology is in a large part absurd thus when a civilization begins to reinterpret its mythology in this way as biography history or science the life goes out of it temples become museums or tourist attractions and the link between the two perspectives is dissolved in modern times arguably such blight has even descended on the Holy Bible was in the old and new Testament and a great part of the Christian movement the late and renowned American mythologist writer and lecturer Joseph Campbell has observed that simples are simply the vehicles of communication and that they must not be mistaken for the final turn the tenor of their reference thus no matter how attractive or impressive symbols may seem they remain but convenient means accommodated to the understanding hence the personality or personalities of God whether represented in the Trinitarian dualistic or Unitarian terms picture Li or verbally has doc as documented fact or apocalyptic vision no one should attempt to read or interpret them as the final thing the abiding challenge of the t religion is to keep the symbol translucent so that it may not block out the very light that it's supposed to convey for then alone do we know God writes in thomas aquinas when we believe that he is far above all that man can possibly think thus mistaking a symbolic vehicle for his tenor can lead to spilling not only of valueless ink but also valueless blood to bring the images back to life one must seek not interesting applications to modern affairs but illuminating hints from the inspired past when these are found vast areas of half-dead iconography disclosed again their enduring and permanently human meaning in the Jewish tradition the earliest reference to the line of Judah comes from Genesis in the first book of the Hebrew Bible the Torah and the Christian Old Testament the book of Genesis generally considered to have been written sometime between 1400 and 1440 BC in Genesis chapter 14 verse 9 when blessing his son Judah the Jewish patriarch Jacob refers to Judah as the young lion thus here we first note the line becoming metaphorically and symbolically paired with Judah and the Jews it is also from this text that the Lion of Judah further evolves into a titular station or office defender and leader of the Jewish tribe which itself becomes the basis of considerable messianic expectation and speculation and early Judaism indeed King David the Jewish Messiah becomes inextricably and astrology linked in the Judean Christian tradition as the reference for the Lion of Judah we frequently find lion gates America archaeological ruins from Israel to the gates of Ethiopia's Aksumite and pious palaces and temples to the Hittites sites in Turkey to the Babylonian and Persian sites in Iraq or the Assyrian and Egyptian sites it was widespread and popular symbol of royalty as the lion was seen by many as the king of the Predators or even as the king of all the beasts in fact we know that ramses ii at light lines as the successive Etape and emperors including up until the time of my late grandfather the last emperor haile selassie the first in ancient jewish art we often also find lines depicted in protective rules guarding the Ark of the Covenant at Chapel entrances as in the sculpture of the ancient synagogues at Sardis horizon or Purim in Palestine in many of the mosaics dating from the early Byzantine era in medieval Jewish art the lion pear is commonly depicted leaning up on either side of the Tree of Life next to the crown thus it is the heraldic shield replaced by a symbol of God and the lions are seen as serving the king of all kings in modern times the Jewish heraldic representation of the city of Jerusalem remains the venerable Lion of Judah in the subsequent Christian tradition the lion allegory persists in the news Testament book of Revelation chapter five verse five and one of the elders said said unto me weak not behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah the Ruth of David had prevailed to open the book and to open the seven seals they're all although the dominant image of Jesus and revelation is the slain but now the triumphant Lamb the Apostle John continues to employ the part of powerful and traditional lion symbol in Revelation chapter five verse five it proclaims that the Lion of the tribe of Judah has already timed not through final judgment on the wicked but rather through his atoning death and opening up the possibility for all of us to be saved Christ therefore is worthy to unseal the judgments quo because he has already achieved salvation through his death as the slain and sacrificial lamb of God who takes away the world sin theologians generally concede that the symbol is read and understood as direct reference to Jesus where he is regarded as the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the root of David in Christianity the Lion of Judah symbol is commonly used to refer to Jesus Christ in fact many Christian ministries used the symbol as their emblem or prefix to their names Christians believe that while the ancient tribe of Levi prepared priests that of Judah was the tribe of kings Jesus is believed to be descendant of the tribe of Judah Jesus is commonly referred to as the overcoming one and the one qualify Thoth in the scrolls and the seven seals according to the book of Revelation Jesus was the sacrificial lamb and the Lion of Judah the prophecy of the coming of the Lord to judge the world as the Lion of Judah is clear throughout revelations as the Earth's oldest independent nation Ethiopia traces its unbroken history back to more than five millennia the earliest records of Ethiopia around 3,000 BC just prior to the Egyptian Old Kingdom came from Egypt Egyptian traders who refer to the lands south of new Nubia as punto young the first known egyptian voyage to punt occurred in the 25th century BC under the reign of Pharaoh sorry the most famous Egyptian expedition to punt Iowa comes during the reign of Queen Hajj support probably around 1495 BC as the expedition was memorized in the intricately carved reliefs on the temple of Deir al bukhari at Davis there are also numerous references to Ethiopia in the Old Testament of the Hebrews and the Christian Bibles as the Old Testament is to the Hebrews or the Quran is to Islam the Kebra Nagast or the book of the glory of kings of ethiopia is the ancient and revered repository of our country's millennia all the national and religious history as well as our constitution more than 700 years old in its presence in written form the Kebra Nagast derives from it appears millennium old oral tradition and details the history and origin of the salami decline of Ethiopian kings it is also regarded to be the definite of authority on the history of the conversion of Ethiopia to Christianity the salami dynasty of atiba is so named by the virtue of the dynastic descent from the union of the venerable Jewish Messiah King Solomon of Israel and the Queen of Sheba more than 900 years bc by Ethiopian dynastic tradition all monarchs must trace their lineage back to Menelik the first who was offspring of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba in 1913 my late grandfather took the title his imperial majesty Haile Selassie the first King of Kings conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah and elect of God these titles had been traditionally given to eat a pancakes to recognize the Old Testament emphases of Ethiopia's Christianity and to Claire to declare the regions sacred duty and subservience to God that is why frequently kept in monarchs refer to the soundness code princess shall come out of Egypt and Ethiopia shall stretch her hand unto God in Ethiopian tradition many LICO had returned as a young man to visit his father Solomon in Jerusalem was regally received when mini-league departed to Ethiopia King Solomon which who was very pleased by the regal manner and demeanor of his royal offspring ordered the chief priests to an advisors of king of the kingdom to send their first sons with him for the benefit of Ethiopian crown which would mini-league would eventually inherit among these with Tzadik the high priest who is claimed took the Ark of the Covenant with him that that was concealed from mini-league who did not learn until the party had returned to Ethiopia the symbolism of the Ark is particularly important in Ethiopian Orthodox Church every single church must contain a replica of the ark before it can be consecrated one of the most important vegetables in the calendar of the ethiopian orthodox church system cut during which the ark or the replica thereof is wrapped installed and carried in great processional reverence the Kebra Nagast relates this marvelous story of how the Ark of the Covenant came to Ethiopia where it is believed to be enshrined in the special tragedy at the Chapel of the tablet constructed next to the Church of Santa Maria of Zion in Axum it is reported that the ark was moved to st. Mary's into the chapel because of the divine heat from the tablets it cracked the stones of its previous sanctum indeed my late grandmother Empress Menen had paid part of the construction cost of the new chapel the Church of st. Mary of Zion in Axum is a venerable icon of the Ethiopian religious belief and legend it is also the most important Church in Ethiopia st. Mary is dedicated to the holy mother Mary who in the Christian tradition was the vessel of Christ and thus the fulfillment of religious prophecy adherents believe that when Mary was exiled in Egypt that she had also had visited Ethiopia the original said Mary Zion was built in the 4th century AD and has been destroyed and rebuilt again Ethiopia was a respected and sophisticated Empire in the time of the New Testament in fact the Ethiopian eunuch in the 8th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles returning from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem is the first European to be baptized by the Apostle Philip we learned that he is the keeper all the treasure of the Queen who is named Kentucky a regal regal name thus the eunuch is actually identified as the Queen stretcher a position of supreme confidence in the royal household it is likely that the Queen was told of this unusual religious encounter when her Bergeron returned and thus the news of the Christian gospel had reached Ethiopia long before the official adoption of Christianity as the religion of Rome and dtopping crown in the 4th century written records from about 800 BC to the first century BC are confined to the names of Kings found on carvings however the action might period is relatively well documented the Aksumite kingdom represents a significant peak of Ethiopian civilization which spans the era of conversion of the ruling dynasty to Christianity in the 4th century AD it was also considered a very advanced civilization by the Roman Emperor Empire in fact the Roman Emperor Constantine had declared that citizens of Aksum were to be considered equal with the citizens of Rome Constantine and as an Adityan King of Kings made Christianity the respective religion in their kingdoms in the ancient and revered tradition of the Ethiopian Orthodox Christians there have been three traditional symbols of demonstration and manifestation of humanities into relationship and connection with the divine and that these are called the three signs the firs ein is the Temple of Solomon in Israel which according to the Bible is the first Temple in Jerusalem Jews and is thought to have been constructed around 8:30 to BC during its history it was repeatedly attacked in fact and according to Jewish religious traditions before its final destruction by Rome in 70 AD the temple had in Solomon's time being repository for the fabled Ark of the Covenant sequence subsequently Jewish Scriptures say that the Ark will remain hidden until God gathers his people together again the Jewish faith today believe that the Temple of Solomon will and must be rebuilt before the coming of the Antichrist indeed contemporary Orthodox Jews pray three times a day for the restoration of Solomon's Temple adherents of the Orthodox faith in Ethiopia believe that according to prophecy when the temple is rebuilt again one door is reserved for the Lion of Judah for Christ to open it up again the second Zion which ever which I have already discussed in some detail is Mary the mother of Christ and the church at Saint Mary of Zion in Axum the third sign is the Lion of Judah who represents the return of Jesus Christ in the fulfillment and Biblical prophecy of his coming to rule again since the 4th century AD all Ethiopian sovereigns have given their crown to the church it's and Mary of Zion in traditional adherence and submission to this belief in fact the Ethiopian Imperial crest thus picks an empty throne waiting in expectation for the return of Christ and the rule of the right and justice the Rastafarians is a contemporary monolith one artistic political religious movement which had evolved in the slums of Kingston Jamaica from fundamentally Christian roots and culture in French towns being an overweening environment of poverty depression racism and class discrimination the Rastafarians black pride freedom from oppression and hope of the return to the African homeland had found fertile soil and within this Miller in the 1930s onward that the Rastafarians men developed his own distinctive style of language hair style art and music although popularly believed to have originated on November 2nd 1930 with the investiture of the Emperor Haile Selassie Rastafari has actually been inspired in the 1920s nationalist movement founded by Marcus Garvey a Jamaican publicist organizer and black nationalist considered by his followers as a prophet and the second John the Baptist though there is a significant variation within the Rasta movement there is certainly no formal one singular organization undeniably some Rastafarians she Rastafarians as a way of life more than a religion rustlers do not claim sex or denominations but encourage one another to seek faith and inspiration within themselves the central and uniting theme however of this highly diverse movement are the enduring belief in the divinity and Messiahship of it have been emperor haile selassie the influence of Jamaican culture resistance to oppression and pride in this African heritage for Rastafarians Haile Selassie is considered to be Jah o God and is seen in both the incarnation of Christ and the lion mentioned in the Bible's Book of Revelation he is therefore referred to as the Lion of Judah beyond biblical allegory and metaphor Rasta also seen see the lion as being the symbolic symbolism of strength against oppression that they have endured over time thus for Rastafarians the lion is both symbolic and iconic the lion can be found the Rastafarians flag and on many other items associated with the Rastafarians fate they name itself Rastafari derives from the pre regnal title given to emperor haile selassie literally meaning head or leader Tafari before he he took on the name Haile Selassie adopting from the heraldic lion symbol of the biblical Lion of Judah from which detail pian Solomonic dynasty is descended Rastafarians believe that the lion represents Emperor Haile Selassie as the King of Kings and reveals the improvin lineage of the Emperor from the twelve tribes of Israel the most famous Rastafari Bob Marley through his unique Rasta perspective and music style painted compelling utopian pictures of how life should be lived and how the world could one day become the lake CS Lewis the famous atheist who subsequently became a renowned compared to Anglican Christianity was an accomplished contemporary author Lewis has made marvelous inspired use of traditional religious symbols and allegory to produce his iconic seven book and movie series written between 1949 and 54 The Chronicles of naam Narnia Lewis has said that the entire entire Narnia story is about Jesus Christ and that he had offered the lion as a lamb as an answer to the question what would Christ the Son of God be like had he been born in the land of Nerina instead of being born in Bethlehem the Anglican Lewis has richly infused his Narnia series with very Christian beliefs for instance the team the voyage of dawn trader the third of his books that had been made into film employs very Christian Christian themes of temptation sin and redemption through the intricate tapestry of Lewis's and rolling fiction and theatre we are provided content interpretation of ancient religious symbols and allegory which even uniquely perhaps provide the perfect example of Joseph Campbell's thesis that simples are simply vehicles of communication in concluding I would like to tell you that I have tried to tread lightly and carefully as possible while engaging with and conveying my personal appreciation for these cherished and venerable symbols of tradition traditional religious allegory I understand and agree that I have done no serious or repairable damage indeed it is my fondest desire that at least some of you will be motivated to continue to explore these profound and transcendent mysteries for they are undeniably inspiring and worthy of further consideration and study for Christian Ethiopians are transcendent religious symbols are links to our constant and constant reminders of our rich judeo-christian and Islamic heritage and past as such these precious religious icons in deal with us today in the Imperial iconography and within the holy sanctuaries of the many Japan Orthodox churches and serve as constant and enduring reminders that we are all spiritual kinsmen with a universal duty and obedience to God after all it is myth that awakens in us to the mystery of the universe and presents us a consistent image of the order of the cosmos it is also myths that validate and support a specific moral order inform us of the proper proper governance and calm and conduct of our lives and transport us through the passages and crises of life ultimately we must each find our own path through the forest and reach for our own transcendent personal spirituality by studying the poetry of life it is only in this way that we come to personal contentment and understanding the heart as Joseph Campbell has reminded us is the beginning of humanity in his comments on spiritual kinsmen ship my late grandfather had once said in the mystic tradition of the different religions we have a remarkable unity of spirit whatever religion that they may profess they are spiritual kinsmen while the different religions in their historic bones 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 mystic of the ages gone by no one should question the faith of others for no human being can judge the ways of God I would that I would like to add that unless and until we begin to internalize these wise precepts of crisp spiritual kinsmen ship loyalty unity of spirit and lightened governance and leadership would forever remain an illusory and unattainable reality thank you again for your kind and generous attention and I'll be very happy to entertain any questions thank I think His Royal Highness can take you to your questions we have plenty of time so any questions or now be back I I think the line of Judah symbolism is probably one of the most misunderstood icons that has reached us in his rich in his rich tradition from ancient times it has also come into popular culture but very few understand its true meaning or what it the wisdom it holds my perspective on your question would be that people should really study and try to understand you know the richness of these symbolisms and ultimately maybe have that to reflect as a mirror to themselves and to their own spirituality we live in very troubling times and anxious times and I think it's up to us to find our own spiritual way at least to have a grounding and a foundation and a realization that this is an inhale and you have an inheritance that has come from generations past that can be a very useful guiding tool for today's multi-faceted problems it's an excellent question I think perhaps it didn't come clearly in the paper presentation but the crown was one of the pillars alongside with the tip in Orthodox Church that had manifested the line of Judah as its symbolism in etfs civilization unfortunately since the Revolution of 1974 the Ethiopian crown was abolished but thank God despite this a significant test during the Communist period from 74 to 92 our church is a living one and is an active one and hopefully a keeper of these traditions my hope is that in the future the terpene will realize the value of their history and the importance it has is connected to its faith and give the crown is the rest special reverence where it could begin to service people again yes yes up to 1972 so I was about 14 when the revolution happened yes I have been very privileged to have also traveled throughout the Caribbean and what inspired me really the most has been that the monarchy is not seen as an elitist institution but one that identifies with the oppressed and the masses and to see the youth in the Caribbean especially espouse these beliefs and find pride in an institution like what the Ethiopian monarchy had stood for it stand against foreign invasion it stand against discrimination these are really remarkable and inspiring thoughts that I've encountered and it's also been really largely through the Rastafarians that the Ethiopian history has now become part publice eyes to a new generation of people's perhaps who wouldn't in no other way have learned more about it there then through popular culture and music I little bit off the subject but the line of Judah is very much a nice little concept and yet it is it is is there a feeling involvement symbol there's none that descends but the reverence given to Mary as part of being the three science and had been coming the vessel for Jesus's birth as had been prophesized is what keeps also a big reference to Mary and hence the the Saint Mary of Zion in Axum which is the most revered of all churches in Ethiopia so outside of Queen of Sheba there had been not many Queens but a few great ones Queen Judith comes to mind Queen mento up but unfortunately it's been a rule of the male descendants belonging to the Salah Electra yes it's fascinating me I think it speaks highly to our common heritage mostly and the fallacious are the traditional Jews that had come in ancient times and preserved their religion despite its many tests and complications had managed to keep their faith and are now living in Israel but my sense is they are part and parcel of our historical package and that you know I don't foresee there will be any problem except it's just a question of identity they have awakened more than perhaps we have back in Ethiopia since you're the president what is counsel doing that's the history behind formation good question Ethiopia has changed a great deal since the revolution of 1974 and we're cognizant of that fact we understand that it repair today despite it being traditionally the one of the oldest Christian countries in the world is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious Society and as such we accept the European Constitution and the rule of law the position of the Ethiopian crown nevertheless looks at DT open church our heritage preserving our culture and we are now in talks with the government as to how we can become more actively involved in ATF as future development many have mistaken the movement to seem that it's the movement to reinstate back the monarchy no it's simply a movement that is screaming that our heritage must be respected and that the younger generation just have as much right as the ones preceding them to learn about their glorious history questions is for coming this has been a presentation of the Library of Congress visit us at loc.gov

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Keywords: library, congress, ethiopia

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Length: 46min 6sec (2766 seconds)

Published: Fri Mar 04 2011