Message to the Ethiopian Orthodox Youth
The Tsireha Tsion Kidist Mariam Gedam Project is administered within the auspices of the Bahar Dar Archdiocese of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOTC). The project is a grand vision of His Holiness Archbishop Abraham. The project is currently under construction tapping a huge and beautiful landscape of about 40,000 sq. meter land in the heart of the Bahar Dar, the leading touristic destination in Ethiopia and the current capital of the Amhara Regional State.
The vision includes a modern Cathedral that allows conducting a two-set liturgical service, a head office to the Bahirdar Archdiocese, a Geez university, a training and educational facility for the priesthood, as well as small scale manufacturing industry to produce holy sacred need for the service. Tsireha Tsion is expected to be a grandeur accomplishment that elevates the stature of the EOTC by creating the opportunity to expand the teachings of the church and allowing thousands to learn the history, theology, literature and values of the church.
The major beneficiaries of this project are the young generation who will be inheriting the rich traditions of the church through this project. The project allows the youth to be engaged and create better opportunities for learning and practicing their faith as well as to provide the best environs and facilities to do research about the EOTC teachings. As these projects progress with the construction of the Cathedral underway, it is critical that the Ethiopian-American Orthodox youth take the initiative to support the effort by drawing interest in the project. There are different ways that the Orthodox youth can help in realizing this project.
- The youth can organize themselves and galvanize resources to support the project by tapping different fund-raising mechanisms both through social media and other venues.
- The youth can advertise the project and the church to potential donors and draw the blessings of this noble project to grow and benefit from its untold spiritual wealth.
- Many young professionals can extend their support by offering their expertise in the area of engineering, information technology, finance and other area of specialties as deemed necessary.
It is the collective effort of all children of the Ethiopian Orthodox faith that will bring this project to fruition. We believe the will of the Lord is realizing the project through the agency of His Holiness Archbishop Abraham. It is a great honor and privilege for the youth to be part of this holy, historical and noble project. In the end, it is our Lord who will be glorified with the fulfillment of this project. As the biblical figure Nehemiah said it, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore, we His servants will arise and build,” (Neh. 2:20).
Let the Ethiopian Orthodox youth take this great opportunity to play its part in fulfilling its generational responsibility to inherit, protect and promote the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
