The Meskel festival honours the finding of the so-called True Cross, which was used to crucify Jesus, in the fourth century.
Meskel, a Christian feast that is recognised by the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia, began on Wednesday, and Orthodox Ethiopians celebrated it.
This occasion celebrates Saint Helena’s discovery of the True Cross in Palestine in the fourth century, which is thought to have been the cross that Jesus was crucified on. According to legend, Helena was led to this holy object by smoke from a ceremonial bonfire, and it is thought that a piece of it finally travelled to Ethiopia.
The primary event took place in front of the nation’s largest church and drew orthodox leaders, diplomats, and government representatives. Thousands of people gathered around a bonfire as the celebrations came to a close, believing that doing so would atone for their sins.
Notably, this year’s Muslim Mawlid holiday, which commemorates the birth of the Prophet Mohammed, fell on the same day as the Christian Meskel feast. Christians and Muslims, who make up large portions of the population in Ethiopia, have a tradition of respecting one another and recognising each other’s important festivals.
Muslim cleric Ahmed Zekaria suggested in a Sunday interview with RT that the African nation may serve as a “good example of tolerance when it comes to living together of these different religions.” In addition to highlighting how mosques and churches “live side by side,” he said it’s a “good sign” that many religions are “coming to reconciliation and having a peaceful future.”
As part of the Meskel holiday celebrations on September 27, a combined choir from the Trinity-Sergius Lavra and the Moscow Theological Academy gave a performance in Meskel Square in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia.
