And the Saints come marching in

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" Repent! For the day is approaching when the limbs of mankind will tremble…. Let us love one another…. Money is the source of all evil… And you women, I know that the moment you leave the premises of the church you will start tearing up your friends and relatives behind their backs…. And now let us ask God for forgiveness…." 

Wrapped in white netsela (white flimsy shawl) most of the female congregation make certain sounds from deep down their contrite hearts: mtsz..mtsz..mtsz (hard to spell, isn't?). But do all these women come to church with a bleeding heart? I doubt it. Some might, as the preacher has insinuated, start to backbite the moment they step into the 'sinful world'.

" And now let us recite Abune Zesemayat (pater noster)," comes the divine instruction.

And everyone hums along with the invisible preacher. Alas, only few understand it because it is in Ge'ez.

In the past there were in certain Eritrean villages hermits who appeared from nowhere and climbing the steps leading to the church preached fire and brimstone to all those who didn't heed their warnings: 

" What is the world coming to? Repent before a fiery meteor from heaven turns you into a heap of ash and dust..!"

During the Haile Selassie and the Derg era, some of this fire-breathing preachers who seemed to have stepped out from the Old Testament, were in fact government secret agents. They were mostly sent to the populace on a special mission: 

" Isn't Ethiopia our mother and sustainer… let us not sadden the heart of our Emperor by rebelling against this sacred country…."

The women as usual would make the same sounds emitted from a repenting heart: mtsz…mtsz. Some men would have mixed feelings. However, with the start of the armed struggle for the liberation of Eritrea, the yellow clad would-be hermits evaporated like morning dew. 

But there is always a way to appease the wrath of God and his saints. Just remember these heavenly personages every year with food and drinks. They will wash away part of your sins, and you can go along committing more sins in the hope that it will later be washed away by the provision of suwa and abundant food. 

There is a place beyond our borders where the mighty Angel Gabriel is commemorated each year. Qulubi is the name of the place. I am sure the ancient Babylonians would have felt very much at home in that place.

Barren women went there to fornicate and have children. They carried with them gold and silver to bribe the Angel. At night the pilgrims had orgies. Excess wine and beer. Excess sins and abomination. 

Do you know that the wickedest of sins are committed before a god that connives at your actions? No wonder people from Eritrea flocked to that latter day Artemis of Ephesus. How dare they call it n'gdet? 

Remember that a good n'gdet (local pilgrimage) can soften the hearts of the cruelest of angels.

My friend Teklay takes n'gdet very seriously. He has a portrait of St. Michael and St. George hanging on the wall of his room. From time to time he looks at them with wistful eyes. 

"St. Michael, I want you to give me that girl…"

Teklay hangs two portraits in case one fails to deliver. He is not always at ease with the dragon killer. He has more confidence in the demon killer.

Anyway, who is that girl? Of course her name is Eden, the black eyed beauty who lives in Akhria. 

She has as the Tigrinya expression goes, already stolen the heart of Teklay, who lives in Amba Galiano. Teklay has, as another Tigrinya expression puts it, gone kitcha and table over her. 

" Please St. Michael! Listen to me just this time. I will slaughter a white ram for Michaelmas."

The only time Teklay can meet his love is during n'gdet, when people from various quarters of Asmara flock towards the spot of pilgrimage in one of the various sub-zones of Asmara.

If it were not for n'gdet village adults wouldn't have found it easy to choose their future spouses. And suitors wouldn't have the chance to see the faces of their sweethearts once in a while. 

Almost every month a Saint is commemorated somewhere in Eritrea. People carry various gifts to the host church. These include wax candles, bundles of bulrushes, myrrh or frankincense for burning inside the church. 

Having thus satisfied the Saint, the pilgrim has to think of the people in whose house he will have his lunch. A kilo of sugar wrapped in a conical manila paper, a bottle of araki (anis) wrapped in yesterday's local newspaper. And the deadbeat can always carry half a kilo of banana. Inviting yourself into a house empty handed is a disgrace to oneself and a piece of incivility in the eyes of the society.

Old friends meet for the first time after a yearlong separation. A boy sees a girl after his heart. A girl's heart starts to pound seeing a 'prince with a shining armor'.

The next day, following a sleepless night, the lovelorn will say:
" Who was that girl I saw yesterday talking to aunt Lettu?"
" That's Astier, the daughter of Mr. Malu"
" You know her already?"
" Yes. Why do you ask?"
" I want her for a special purpose (meaning for marriage)"
" I think her boyfriend is coming from America to marry her and take her with him."
" Okay, you did it, no more white ram for you St. Michael! And thank you very much!"

During n'gdet, there is a flow of people to the countryside and vice-versa depending where the pilgrimage is celebrated. New ideas and trends travel along with pilgrims. Women gossip. Men also gossip in their own way. They talk about the rising prices of food and house rent, about their children in the frontlines or abroad, about land distribution, etc. They talk about the money sent by a concerned son or daughter. 

Teenagers arrive by droves to booze. They are welcome as long as they behave. Come in, eat, drink and be merry. The chatting goes on and on.

And one more glass of suwa too many, and the conversation becomes incoherent and incomprehensible. There may be some fights and brawls here and there. But in general everybody is happy that somehow a Saint has been appeased and a remorseful soul calmed until the next n'gdet. 

An expatriate friend of mine once told me that he envied us our n'gdet:

" How can anybody walk into a house and just sits down to eat? I have never seen anything like this in my life." 

" Eat you heart out!" I said under my breath. 

Society and Culture No. 8

During n'gdet, there is a flow of people to the countryside and vice-versa depending where the pilgrimage is celebrated. New ideas and trends travel along with pilgrims. Women gossip. Men also gossip in their own way. They talk about the rising prices of food and house rent, about their children in the frontlines or abroad, about land distribution, etc. They talk about the money sent by a concerned son or daughter.