Part 1 - Introduction: The Ascetic Religious Communities of the BetäƎsraʾel (Ethiopian Jews)

Summary

THE BETĀ ƎSRAʾEl (Ethiopian Jews) have a unique historyand religious tradition, which has been a source of fascination sincecontact was first established between this community and the West and MiddleEast. One of the most fascinating aspects of BetäƎsraʾel religious life is the institution of themäloksewočč, commonly referred toas monks in scholarly and popular literature. Themäloksewočč served as the supremereligious leaders of the Betä Ǝsraʾel, dedicated theirlives to the worship of God and were charged with the education andinitiation of Betä Ǝsraʾel priests. They lived inseparate compounds and observed severe purity laws which prohibited physicalcontact with the laity.

Ascetic Jewish groups such as the Nazirites,Essenes, and Therapeutae, are known tohave existed in Antiquity, and certain types of asceticism were permitted byRabbini-cal (Orthodox) Jewish religious law. However, this unique traditionof Jewish ascetic religious communities, withdrawing from the secular worldand dedicating themselves fully to religious life, is without parallel inthe medieval and modern Jewish world.

While the Betä Ǝsraʾel have been the subject of numerousstudies, this remarkable phenomenon has remained relatively obscure. A fewkey studies on Betä Ǝsraʾel history and religious lifehave examined the roles of themäloksewočč in the development ofthe Betä Ǝsraʾel religious tradition and liturgy.Though some Betä Ǝsraʾel monastic centresare mentionedin scholarly literature, they have never been examined in detail before.This study is the first comprehensive study to focus on the material cultureand way of life of the mäloksewočč. Aspart of this study, an archaeological survey was conducted in Ethiopia, inthe course of which such centres and additional sites associated with themäloksewočč were pinpointed withaccuracy and examined for the first time.

How did Betä Ǝsraʾelmäloksewočč live? What asceticpractices did they observe? How did they interact with the lay community?What were the compounds in which they lived shaped like and what componentsdid they contain? Where were these compounds located? In what ways areBetä Ǝsraʾel ascetic religious communities similar toand different from the monastic communities of the Christian neighbours ofthe Betä Ǝsraʾel?