Legendary Lalibela

“I sing to revive the memories, to dig up the knowledge that the spiral of time erases.”  Les Nubians

                  There are destinations so legendary that they defy imagination and description. They linger in your mind until you feel compelled to add it to your golden bucket list. Lalibela, in Ethiopia, is one such place. It is literally fabulous, “reminiscent of the fables”, and is a site of religious pilgrimage for all “the people of the book,” the Jews, Christians and Muslims. 

                  To better comprehend the Lalibala’s historic significance you can access the story of the Queen of Sheba’s visit to King Solomon as related in the Bible, the Koran and the Kebra Nagast, Ethiopia’s national epic. Each book’s account differs slightly but generally they agree that the Queen of Sheba, Makeda, visited King Solomon after hearing of his wisdom. As a learned woman she is captivated by Solomon and he with her. Her visit extends to six months before she departs, pregnant with the king’s child. 

Once home she bears a son and names him Menelik, “son of the wise.” When Menelik is twenty he makes a trip to Jerusalem where his father acknowledges him and makes him King of Ethiopia and upon the death of Makeda in 950 B.C. Menelik I becomes the first Solomonic Ethiopian Emperor. The empire lasted in an unbroken line until the rule of Haile Selassie ended in a military coup in 1974.

                  Currently there is no archeological proof that the Queen of Sheba ever existed. There is debate about where Sheba was located and some scholars now claim it was in Yemen not Africa. Because of Ethiopian documentary evidence we know that Christianity was practiced in Ethiopia by 300 A.D. and the country was the second in the world, after Armenia, to become a Christian country and the Coptic Church is still the country’s national church. The rock-hewn churches of Lalibela owe their existence to the country’s extensive Christian history. 

                  Ethiopian King Lalibela was born of a governor and a maid in the village of Roha where his mother was exiled. At his birth in 1162 he is swarmed with bees and this was taken as a sign by his mother. She named him Lalibela, “the bees recognize his sovereignty.” It is said that he was always a devout and religious young man. Because he was a perceived threat to the throne he went into a 1,600-mile exile in Jerusalem in the 1100s. Upon his return to his country he learned that Jerusalem had fallen to the Muslims, led by Saladin, in 1187 A.D.

                  Lalibela decided that he would build a new Jerusalem in Africa as a home for Christian veneration and pilgrimage. The center was to be created in north-central Ethiopia on an 8,000-ft. escarpment in the region of the Zagwe Dynasty. He deemed that each structure should be created from a single block of stone, with no mortar, and as a result the structures are carved out of a single piece of soft volcanic rock including doors, ritual passages, windows and pillars.

                  There are a total of eleven churches carved in the hypogean, rock-hewn, architectural style of the country. Workers began by drawing the contours of the church on the stone. They then proceeded to excavate the building using hand tools. Once the church was carved out they began to remove the stone from the interior. The construction took place from 1200-1224. Local lore tells us that the churches were constructed by angels. 

                  The eleven churches are situated in three zones and are connected by hand-carved passageways. Six churches are in the northern zone, four in the southeastern zone and one church, Beta Giyorgis, the Church of St. George, that stands alone. A 5-day ticket for the 11 churches costs approximately $50 (US). I suggest hiring a guide in order to learn as much as possible about the decorations, history and archeology.

Beta Giyorgis is situated on a 72-by-72-foot dais with a 36-ft. deep plaza. The church is in the shape of a cross and is adorned with rooftop Greek crosses. Other architectural highlights include three doors and twelve windows. Beta Maryam, the Church of Mary, is an absolute must see. In the interior of the church there is a pillar that is inscribed with information on the construction of the church and has a replica of Christ’s tomb. Only priests are allowed to touch and read the pillars. Biete Medhani Alem, Church of the Savior of the World, has five aisles and is considered the world’s largest monolithic church. Beta Golgotha, Church of Golgotha, has large paintings of saints on the walls and is believed to contain the tomb of Lalibela. Lalibela ended his life as a hermit after renouncing his title and is an Ethiopia saint. 

The remaining churches are Beta Masqal (Church of the Cross), Beta Danagel (Church of the Virgins), Beta Mika’el (Church of Michael), Beta Emmanuel (Church of Emmanuel), Beta Abba Libanos (Church of Father Libanos), Beta Merkurios (Church of Mercurius) and Beta Gabriel and Beta Rafa’el (the twin churches of Gabriel and Raphael). The various churches are decorated with symbols and paintings. 

The churches were inscribed on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1978.

#unesco.org/en

Tourists need a visa to enter Ethiopia. Once in Addis Ababa Lalibela is approximately 475miles 

from Addis Ababa and airplanes fly to its regional airport. From there it is 17-miles from the town. Short haul buses are outside the airport to take you into Lalibela. Alternatively, you can take a bus from Addis but the ride is minimally 9 hours. Once in town you will have access to accommodations at all price levels and restaurants. Remember this is an international tourist destination. Highlights of a visit are attendance at a Sunday morning mass. Grab your golden bucket and go. #visitethiopia.