Part 7 - Understanding the Essence of Betä ƎsraʾelMonasticism through a Comparison with Ethiopian Orthodox Monasticism

Summary

NOW THAT WE have examined both the way of life of BetäƎsraʾel monks and their dwelling places, and before wesummarize our findings, the stage is set for addressing an issueever-present in the background: the Betä Ǝsraʾel andtheir Ethiopian Orthodox neighbours have an extensive shared heritage. Butthe Betä Ǝsraʾel established and shaped institutionsuniquely suited to their needs and Jewish identity. So, by comparingBetä Ǝsraʾel and Ethiopian Orthodox monastic practices,one can not only better understand shared aspects, but also identify uniquefeatures, and thus understand how Betä Ǝsraʾelmonasticism was uniquely shaped to serve the needs of the BetäƎsraʾel community.

As we have seen above, many of the unique features of BetäƎsraʾel monastic compounds reflect the purity laws observed byBetä Ǝsraʾel monks, and of the twofold role ofBetä Ǝsraʾel monks as both ascetics withdrawing fromthe secular world and supreme community leaders, with the spiritual welfareof the laity defined as their primary charge. As such, priority was givenamong the Betä Ǝsraʾel to establishing monastic centreswithin or near villages rather than in truly remote locations in thewilderness. The basic architectural plan, both of monastic compounds and ofprayer houses, was shared by the two communities (with BetäƎsraʾel monastic compounds lacking some of the communalstructures present in Christian monasteries). However, the purityrequirements of Betä Ǝsraʾel monks necessitated theclear delimitation of pure monastic space. Hence, though a boundary markeris a common but not mandatory element in Ethiopian Orthodox monasteries, inthe case of Betä Ǝsraʾel monastic compounds, it is areligious necessity. The location of prayer houses at the border of puremonastic space and the extension of this space into a portion of thestructure is a true Betä Ǝsraʾel innovation.

An additional substantial difference between Ethiopian Orthodox andBetä Ǝsraʾel religious communities has to do with theresources at the disposal of each group. As we have seen, Christianmonasteries in Ethiopia were often supported by the Christian state, endowedwith extensive land rights that were a source of wealth for the religiouscommunity, and contain several manuscripts and ritual objects.