Fasica
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Fasica means Easter in Amharic, which is the official language of Ethiopia. In Ethiopia, the main and long standing religion since the times of Queen of Sheba is Orthodox Christianity. Even though the word 'Orthodox' is used to signify tradition, the Amharic and Ge'ez, the language Amharic and Tigrigna (official language of Eritrea) originate from has its original name as the 'Tewahido faith' in which Christ is considered both man and God in relation to the Trinity or God himself in that he is one but three and three but one.
Ethiopian Easter, or Fasica, which takes place in Orthodox Churches throughout the country, follows the eastern method of calculating Easter (see Computus for details), and thus tends to fall after Easter in the Western calendar (some years both fall on the same date). Fasica is a much more important festival than Christmas, since the Death and Resurrection of Jesus is more significant in Orthodox theology than his birth. Jesus' crucifixion which led to his death on a Friday, according to Orthodox thought was for the purpose of fulfilling the word of God, and led to the conquest of death and Jesus' resurrection from the tomb after three days, the third day being the Sunday on which Ethiopian Easter is celebrated.
Fasica is a climactic celebration. Fasting becomes more intense over the 56-day period of Lent, when no meat or animal products of any kind, including milk and butter, are eaten. Good Friday starts off by church going and is a day of preparation for the breaking of this long fasting period.
The faithful prostrate themselves in church, bowing down and rising up 101 times. The main religious service takes place with the Paschal Vigil on Saturday night. It is a sombre, sacred occasion with music and dancing until the early hours of the morning. At 3:00 a.m. everyone returns home to break their fast and a chicken is slaughtered at midnight for the symbolic occasion. In the morning, after a rest, a sheep is slaughtered to commence the feasting on Easter Sunday.
In Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity or the 'Tewahido faith', it is believed the near sacrifice of one of Abraham's loved son Isaac (Genesis 22), which was a test of faith from God to Abraham, was intervened by a voice of an angle from the heavens and the sending of a Lamb for the sacrifice instead. This Old Testament story is said to be a prophetic foreshadowing of God sending his only beloved son for the world as a sacrifice and the fulfilling of Abraham's promise.
Easter in Ethiopia is a day when people celebrate; there is a release of enjoyment after the long build-up of suffering which has taken place, to represent Christ’s fasting for forty days and forty nights. People often have food and locally-brewed alcohol from fresh honey (tej, tella and katikalla).
