while churches rose to the sky in Europe in 12th century Africa they were being carved out of the ground these Christian pilgrims in Ethiopia on their way to worship at one of them in these highlands in the 12th century Lalibela a new king from a new dynasty built a new holy capital today lolly Bella's legacy lives on in the physical splendor of the churches and the traditions of their Guardian priests well your idea name a nanny that decides you and my blessed people and congregation yellow churches with no mud no wood and no cement and attareekh how a weather variability tangible you cannot find anything like this in the rest of the world you are all blessed because you are here this place and was built by God Maranatha barakatuhu neuron Coronado every year on st. George's Day pilgrims gather to celebrate a faith that has endured here for sixteen centuries these Christians claimed that God brought the Ark of the Covenant and the tablets of the Ten Commandments to their land on holy days
today priests carry on their heads replicas of the tablets wrapped in gilded cloth the people of Ethiopia have been carving churches out of mountains for more than a thousand years but the 11 churches of lalibela symbolized their achievement to the outside world the king has become a legend his story told by monks even today I know that I did my brother gob on December 1 well there was a city called Roja where lived a man who belonged to one of the most noble of families one of the richest in gold silver garments precious stones servants and maids he had a child who became the mysteriously named lalibela mentor Semyon Mendoza what is aware was until saluted Avila in the legend the King's greatness was recognized at Birth a swarm of bees descended on his cot as if around honey his mother named him Lalibela which means the bee has recognised him as king but these were not bodily bees but angels who took B form in order to announce his reign God sent one of his angels to bring Lalibela to heaven to show him the most holy of churches Lalibela the story goes ordered tools to be made to carve temples like those he'd seen in heaven his craftsman turned the wild mountainside into a New Jerusalem the work took 24 years to carve out the inside the Masons first had to tunnel into the structure through what would become an upper window he embellished the interiors and thus he ended the construction of the churches reproducing everything he had seen from the seventh heaven all carved without wood for the windows nor mortar for the stones all made from a living rock though not the grandest buildings of their time these churches were unique in their construction they embody a perfect typical of the century to transform nature to match a vision but while priests tell of lalibela spirituality he had a more practical purpose a political program to proclaim his legitimacy as the heir of Solomon for Lalibela belonged to a dynasty that had seized the throne the churches were propaganda a political move to legitimize his rule with an army 60,000 strong Lalibela launched campaigns to extend his rule his Christian Empire filled the Highlands grew rich on trade with the Red Sea raised churches on the highest hilltops and kept the surrounding Muslims at lalibela set out to build a religious state a spiritual center that would rival Jerusalem his holy books put new words into the mouth of Christ himself matter from yenna and get it the new mayor ah I blessed this place and from now onwards let it be a holy place as mount a table or as Golgotha the place of my crucifixion or as Jerusalem if man undertakes pilgrimage to it is equal as if he went to my tomb in Jerusalem and if somebody receives my flesh and blood in those churches he will be redeemed of all his sins today lalibela is revered as a saint his shrine attracts a continuous flow of pilgrims they come to kiss the staff he held in life when in the 12th century he and his followers carved these churches from the rock of the African landscape descended on his cot as if around honey his mother named him Lalibela which means the bee has recognised him as king but these were not bodily bees but angels who took B form in order to announce his reign God sent one of his angels to bring Lalibela to heaven to show him the most holy of churches Lalibela the story goes ordered tools to be made to carve temples like those he'd seen in heaven his craftsman turned the wild mountainside into a New Jerusalem the work took 24 years to carve out the inside the Masons first had to tunnel into the structure through what would become an upper window he embellished the interiors and thus he ended the construction of the churches reproducing everything he had seen from the seventh heaven all carved without wood for the windows nor mortar for the stones all made from a living rock though not the grandest buildings of their time these churches were unique in their construction they embody a perfect typical of the century to transform nature to match a vision but while priests tell of lalibela spirituality he had a more practical purpose a political program to proclaim his legitimacy as the heir of Solomon for Lalibela belonged to a dynasty that had seized the throne the churches were propaganda a political move to legitimize his rule with an army 60,000 strong Lalibela launched campaigns to extend his rule his Christian Empire filled the Highlands grew rich on trade with the Red Sea raised churches on the highest hilltops and kept the surrounding Muslims at lalibela set out to build a religious state a spiritual center that would rival Jerusalem his holy books put new words into the mouth of Christ himself matter from yenna and get it the new mayor ah I blessed this place and from now onwards let it be a holy place as mount a table or or as Golgotha the place of my crucifixion or as Jerusalem if man undertakes pilgrimage to it it is equal as if he went to my tomb in Jerusalem and if somebody receives my flesh and blood in those churches he will be redeemed of all his sins today lalibela is revered as a saint his shrine attracts a continuous flow of pilgrims they come to kiss the staff he held in life when in the 12th century he and his followers carved these churches from the rock of the African landscape
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