Orthodox Christians across Ethiopia Wednesday celebrated Epiphany, the baptism of Jesus Christ, with an explosion of colour around religious and cultural events.
Clad in all-white Ethiopian dress, hundreds of thousands of Ethiopian Orthodox Christians commemorated Epiphany-locally called ‘Timket’ without any reported security challenges.
A notable absentee at this year’s celebration is the Patriarch of Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOC) Abune Mathias who was taken ill.
In the morning, the faithful attended the masses and the clergymen sprayed the holy waters onto the congregations who gathered in special places of the celebrations remembering the baptism of Lord Jesus Christ by John the Baptist.
The followers along with the students of Sunday Schools and the clergymen have sung songs and chanted religious hymns praising God over the holiday.
In the afternoon, the faithful escorted the Tabots or replica of Ark of the Covenant to the churches from the open places that symbolize the River Jordan with huge processions singing songs marking the holiday.
Senior government officials, members of the Ethiopian Diaspora who have come home as per the #GreatHomeComing Challenge and foreign visitors attended the festival in several major cities and towns of the country.
UNESCO inscribed the Timket festival as world’s intangible heritage in 2019.
MG/as/APA