Addis Ababa Shines with Christmas Eve Ceremony Despite National Challenges

MetroTV, Thousands of Orthodox Christians in white traditional attire celebrated Christmas Eve with a Mass, prayers and hymns during a candlelight ceremony in Ethiopia’s capital.

The public spectacle in Addis Ababa’s Meskel Square on Tuesday evening was to be followed by all-night church service marking the end of a 43-day fasting season.

“The feeling here is absolutely phenomenal. Everyone is happy. Everyone is spiritually joyous," said Estifanos Girma, deacon of Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, in the square.

Ethiopian Orthodox Christians, like many, follow the Julian calendar, which runs 13 days later than the Gregorian calendar, used by Catholic and Protestant churches.

They traditionally celebrate Christmas by slaughtering animals and joining family members to break the fast after midnight.

It has been a troubling year for the nation as it remains engulfed in conflict.

The war in Ethiopia’s Tigray region ended with a peace deal in late 2022, but the country’s two largest regions — Amhara and Oromia — are wracked by ethnic-based insurgencies that threaten internal security.

Insecurity in those regions contrasts starkly with the mood in Addis Ababa, where Abiy has spent billions of dollars on a face lift that has included creating bike lanes, a conference center, parks and museums.

General elections are scheduled for June 2026.


SOURCE: APTN, ASSOCIATED PRESS


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