LEGACY BY Tewolde G. Yohannes

 LEGACY BY Tewolde G. Yohannes

A.  LEGACY

This is neither a sermon nor a term paper. So please read it carefully and try to understand it fully!!!

About two to three weeks ago, Tadd and I had a brief discussion over the phone about how to keep the legacies of the Patriarch.  This happened when I told him that someone had already written a book about the Patriarch with my bidding and that we need to know what he wrote before we endorse it. Tadd’s reply was that the historians have the right to write whatever they want, but we should never endorse any book about him even if it is good. I fumbled and mumbled to explain as unprepared student would before his teacher.  He didn’t even give me a chance to pursue the debate. He overpowered me almost to submission that we should never promote his legacies at all. He did not even use cunning arguments to do so, but he employed his usual imposing broad knowledge and deep convictions in this one, as in any other subject. Out of his love, admiration and respect for the Patriarch, he said it is not wise to even try to do it. He was concerned that if we try to promote his legacies, not only would we go against the principles, wishes and practice of the holy man of God, but we may end up dragging his highly esteemed name in the mud instead of preserving his impeccable record.

I was confounded and remained at a complete loss for words, when Tadd presented his pronouncement against the subject even though I was never convinced.  I was not convinced, because I had totally a different view of the subject. When I mentioned what transpired between Tadd and I, first to Sami and then to Tibe, they both invigorated my spirit to bring up the subject again so that we all can discuss it thoroughly to have a better understanding of what it entails before we decide one way or the other. That consideration led to the production of this long, hurried but hopefully enlightening document.

So what is a legacy and what do you do with it or, about it? 

Synonyms of legacy are: heritage; bequest; inheritance; birthright; patrimony. And Webster’s dictionary defines legacy as “something coming from an ancestor or a predecessor.” Also according to Wikipedia “legacies are, more or less, what we remember about a person or a country…legacy refers to immaterial and cultural inheritance as opposed to material heritage.” 

Obviously we are interested and concerned about what we remember, what we should remember and how to remember the legacies of the holy man of God, His Holiness Abune Paulos I, the fifth Patriarch of Ethiopia. In general, legacies are believed to be important enough to be preserved in order to pass them on to the future generations. Needless to mention, the contemporary generation (that is us) must first and foremost know, appreciate, approve or embrace the legacies of His Holiness Abune Paulos and uphold (i.e. support; sustain; maintain; defend; endorse; advocate; espouse; encourage) them in order to preserve them.

I believe we all, to some degree or another, appreciate and admire at least some of the legacies of the Patriarch that we know about and understand. As a matter of fact, let me tell you that the holy Patriarch himself is the legacy, or legacies that we are talking about, and most of us know him, understand him and appreciate him well enough to keep his memory alive in every possible way, shape or form applicable.

So how do we preserve his legacies?

Since the Patriarch, who is the true legacy is not around the next best things that represent him are the things we remember about him, his legacies. But legacy is the collective term for who he was and what his contributions are. So one of the best ways to preserve his legacies is to remember what we know about him, his qualities as a person, such as his faith, love of God and love, empathy, sympathy, compassion for people, wisdom, integrity, devotion to his calling, uniqueness, his great sense of humor, etc. We also should gather information about his accomplishments, his sermons, his speeches, and what others said about him and put them all in writing before they are forgotten, if possible in one book. Then we must strive to disseminate the legacies now in the present time, in the form of a book or books, videos, audios and pictures to as many people as possible starting with us and our relatives. We must place his legacies in the hands of local or foreign historians, friends or acquaintances. This is very important because the people who know him personally or know about him can easily relate to him and publish his true story now and they might even be able to pass it on later to their progeny as well. 

The second way of preservation would be to build a library and a museum or several of them in stages, where local people and even tourists can casually visit and learn about him through the books written about him, his biography, autobiography, videos and /or audios. The third way to keep his memory alive would be to start a humanitarian organization in his name, such as an orphanage, or the poverty alleviation program, etc. Fourth we must give copies to visitors, churches, other museums, universities (especially to the universities where he studied) and international organizations. Last but not least we must keep the originals and several copies of each item, books, videos or audios not just in safe places, but in a “safe” for future use.

The main question remains however, “can we promote faith legacies (Faith being part of culture, customs or tradition) or not?”

Again the synonyms of ‘promote’ are: (endorse, encourage; help; support; sponsor; uphold; prop up; advance). Therefore not only by definition, but because of the nature of legacy, I personally believe that promotion is part and parcel of its preservation.  However, we must differentiate the different utilization or usage of the term ‘promotion.’ For instance, when we think of faith legacy promotion, it is not the same as commercial item promotion or, political agenda promotion. The latter two can caricature, exaggerate or, even change their stories as many times as they see fit in order to attract or convince as many customers or supporters and electorates as possible.  The only purpose of faith legacy promotion however, is to preserve the truth, nothing but the whole truth, without enhancing it in any way shape or form. On the other hand, not to promote the legacies is the same as not to endorse, support, sponsor or uphold them.  It is tantamount to doing nothing. However if we believe the legacies are true and worthy of preservation, then we have no choice, but to promote them in order to preserve them.

I understand that the term ‘promotion’ has also the implication of enhancement in its meaning. But in our case there is no need to embellish or modify the Patriarch’s legacies. He already has a good name; only the enemies of truth are trying to tarnish it. Therefore it is imperative that the whole truth be told fully right now, including the ones that were never mentioned before. Otherwise we will not do justice to his legacies. If we do not get out the truth we know and others know  about him now, in one way or another, we would be considered the accomplices of the false accusers and haters of the truth.  

Yes it is true that the Patriarch never ever defended himself even against false allegations. Neither did he employ a public relations officer to diffuse or assuage the false accusations and enhance his unjustly tarnished image or, reveal the truth about himself and about what he was doing. Rather, the Patriarch focused on the things that needed to be done amidst internal opposition and external rumor because, he knew, whom he had believed and was serving faithfully and earnestly. He never wasted any time or effort trying to exonerate himself against any form of false charges.  Even when close friends told him that he should try to defend himself, he used to say “who am I to do that? Even, the omnipotent Lord Jesus Christ, who spoke the universe from non existence into existence, sustains it and came to save it and for whom nothing is impossible, never defended himself when accused falsely.” 

The Patriarch never retaliated against his antagonists either, because he knew vengeance belongs only to God. So without being bitter or vengeful, he lovingly and patiently did everything according to the will of God.  In this regard, as in many others, the Patriarch should be applauded for ignoring the denigration and false accusations leveled against him. His patience amidst false charges and persecutions are indeed the very testimony, that he is a man of God, honoring his calling and truly walking or performing according to the perfect will of God and not according to his whims or ambitions. And that is what holiness is all about. The Holy Apostle Peter writes, “For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing. For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God (1Pe 3:17-18)…Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy,…(1Pe 4:12-13).”

The truth is that a righteous and holy man never defends himself. The Holy Bible is replete with many such examples. But that does not mean that the legacies of a holy man should not be protected by others who know him and the misrepresentation and false accusations against him. I know it is God who vindicates, but eye witnesses and people who know the truth should speak out and testify about righteous and holy people in order to reveal the truth so others could learn from their life. The Lord Jesus Christ said to Nicodemus, “Verily, verily I say unto thee, We speak that we do know and testify  that we have seen (John 3:11).” We know him, therefore together with other people who know him, we can and we should speak and testify the truth about the legacies of the Patriarch without understating it or overstating it. Even if we have to disclose some things for the first time,we are obliged to do it because our focus should be on the seekers of truth and not on those who deliberately have decided once for all not to know or acknowledge the truth.

The Lord also said “Whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my father, which is in heaven (Mt 10:33).” But this declaration teaches us to always tell the truth about ourselves, about other people or situations and not just to confess who Jesus Christ is.

By the way, do we know that the Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ, the good news, or “the good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people (Lu 2:10)” is the legacies of Christ later put into writing and bound in one book by his disciples and followers? At first the culture, customs or holy Tradition of the Church preserved the legacies orally. The teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ, his story, deeds and miracles, the understanding of him by his apostles and disciples, the theology and the whole doctrine of the Christian faith, including the negative comments and denials by the opponents which circulated orally for many years was later written into the Gospel that we know today. They were trying to keep his memory alive or preserve his legacies. Guess what? Not only has it been preserved, it has withstood the test and scrutiny of atheists, skeptics and resentment of other religions above and beyond any other book in the history of mankind and survived the burning, defamation and change and it will continue to do so until the end not just because it is true, but because that is the only TRUTH. That Gospel has been written, preached, preserved, promoted and passed down to the generations by the eyewitnesses and followers of Christ, for the last two millennia beginning at Christ’s Resurrection as the legacy or legacies of God’s Salvation Economy.

The Evangelist Saint Luke describes in unequivocal terms that the Gospel is obtained from the legacies passed on from eyewitnesses.  At the beginning of his gospel, he writes “ Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus , That thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou hast been instructed (Lu 1:1-4).”

The Holy Apostle Paul also agrees with Luke and reiterates the same fact in his first Epistle to the Corinthians, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory…For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures… (1COR 15:1-8).”

The Holy Apostle and Evangelist John writes even more tangibly and brings it down close to home in his first epistle when he wrote, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;…That we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full (1John 1:1-4).”

Again the Good News is the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Hence the true legacy or legacies is Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ himself. But, since his ministry on earth ended at his ascension two thousand years ago, the next best thing we have to his physical being or presence here on earth is his legacy or legacies. The legacies being, the narration of who he was before and after incarnation, his divinity, humanity, incarnation, crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection on the third day and ascension to heaven after forty days, his mission and his accomplishments and his return or second coming.

Mind you during his ministry on earth, the Lord Jesus Christ not only did not defend himself against his false accusers and opponents, but he also prohibited his disciples from doing so. For example, after he asked them, “whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And, “whom say ye that I am?” they answered him what the people say wrongly about him and Simon Peter answered correctly saying, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God… Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ (Mt 16:13-20; 17:9; Mk 8:30; Lk 9:21).” He did not want to disclose himself fully untimely and in an arrogant manner risking head on collision with the opposition, who also needed to be saved.

The apparent contradiction is that he taught his disciples to always tell the truth saying, “No man when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light. For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither anything hid, that shall not be known and come abroad (Lu 8:16-17; see also Mt 10:26-28).”  He also said, “If the world hates you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you… If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father… They hated me without a cause… But when the Comforter is come, he shall testify of me: And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning (Jn 15:18-27).”

All the Lord was saying is that there is appropriate time for everything.  Even the Gospel has to be preached in a proper time and manner so that the audience would receive it and benefit themselves from it.  In like manner, this is the appropriate time to tell the lagacies of the Patriarch, and not when he was alive because it would have hampered his ministry more stringently than what came to light.

Therefore, after his death and resurrection (i.e., after he finished his work of salvation) Our Lord and Savior commissioned his apostles and disciples to preach him everywhere and all the time, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen (Mt 28:18-20).” The legacies of the lord were not only upheld by the eyewitnesses and followers of Christ, but they were also uplifted by the Holy Spirit.

I am also aware and cautious that God’s saving work cannot be the proper analogy to a man’s work, or vice-versa.  But since there is only one truth, which is God, anyone who imitates God in his life and work is credited to be described even by the most sacred and powerful name of God, that is “holy.” And without a doubt, the Patriarch is the only holy man of God that I know of closely, who all of his life imitated Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Therefore I am neither ashamed nor afraid to witness about his legacies candidly. And we all can give our testimony to how he lived, loved and died.

The holy Apostle Paul himself, to whom the Patriarch was likened by many people and in many ways, (someone even wrote a book comparing and contrasting them), was concerned all his life about the legacies of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, his Gospel and Church.  The “Church”was not just a concern for the Apostle and for the Patriarch, it took a toll on their life daily. The Apostle writes as could easily have the Patriarch, “And besides other things, I am under daily pressure because of my anxiety for all the churches (2 COR 11:28.” Towards his exit, the Apostle described how difficult his journey as an apostle had been, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the Faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing (2 Timothy 4:6-8).”  Most definitely this truth applies to the Patriarch as does to many other believers who walked rightly before God, that is, who fought a good fight, finished their course and kept the Faith. 

The Apostle was also concerned about his own legacies as and had to entrust them to someone he trusts, Timothy, whom he called “my dearly beloved son… like minded, etc.” saying, “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the Gospel according to the power of God:…Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus…That good thing which was committed unto thee keep…And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also (2Timothy1:1-2:2).”

On the other hand, we all know that the Patriarch neither defended his own legacies nor delegated them to anyone. By default we inherit his legacies, whether we like it or not. So we can either ignore it altogether, or make the best of it. There is no middle ground and we cannot abstain or be indifferent about it. We have to do everything we can to secure and publish his legacies wholeheartedly, even aggressively when necessary.  The Lord Jesus Christ through the angel writes to one of the ancient churches, “I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth (Rev 3:14-16).” This as everything else the Lord said is absolutely true. Try drinking lukewarm water for your thirst,you will know what he meant exactly. I am glad the Patriarch was not only hot, but he was always on fire. He believed anything could be achieved with faith in God, courage, patience and determination.  And that is what he did all his life. Now we have to choose either to be hot or cold, not lukewarm. Therefore it is incumbent upon us, nobody else but us to protect and promote the Patriarch’s legacies.  

The amazing thing is,the Patriarch had been defending the legacies of others all his life. He had been promoting, preserving or at least initiating the legacies of people that were before him or those that he bid farewell. Just to mention a couple, he had a biography of His Holiness Abune Theophilus , the second Patriarch of Ethiopia written, a museum and a statue built, his remains placed in the church he built with all the dignity and honor that befits a true hero and a martyr of the church, who was not only incarcerated and persecuted like himself but summarily executed or strangled by a godless regime.

Second, the Patriarch himself wrote the legacies of Abba Gabre Silassie G. Yohannes, saying, “ every one will be remembered either by his children or by the edifices he erected. But Abba has neither, so I must witness the truth about his legacies, otherwise the truth will rebuke me if I do not do it for him having done it for many other people.”

The Patriarch has spoken on funerals of many prominent officials, including Emperor Hailesilassie, His Holiness Abune Theophilus, Archbishops, ministers, his beloved sister Wro Tekaa, beloved brothers Abba and Memhir GG, beloved uncles, beloved aunts, beloved cousins and in general any relatives and friends that he had opportunity to say good bye, stating their legacies. He had even started the family tree by collecting pictures of deceased relatives and told me that we should all bring our pictures and that of our relatives after I asked him how he got ato Yayneshet’s and ato Haileselassie Yalew’s portraits.

B.Legacies in the form of a book

I have also a good news for all of us. The book written by Memhir Melaku Asmamaw Besetegn,which testifies the truth about who His Holiness Abune Paulos was and his works of faith is complete and ready for printing. I took some time off from work, went to WDC and read it carefully as per Tibe’s mandate. It could not have been written any better by anyone. The title itself, “Living Legacy by Living Witnesses” says it all. To begin with, he did not write anything negative about anyone in all the pages. He was able to draw some conclusions without actually comparing the legacies of the five patriarchs item for item. He just stated the condition of their ascendancy to the throne, their individual contributions to the The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church (EOTC) and to the people of Ethiopia and the world at large during their respective tenure, and the recognition they were able to muster both nationally and internationally. As expected, the fifth Patriarch stands out clearly and outshines them all. But he does not write even a positive comment about anyone, unless it is substantiated with a document or a valid eyewitness that can be quoted. He has two versions: One about 400 pages, full color, standard size that can include color pictures of the family as well if we submit them quickly.  The second version is about 300 pages, which he edited to save printing costs. I love and recommend the longer version in full color.

Memhir Melaku is an award winning writer and poet, who is well versed in Geez, Amharic and the English languages. We are lucky he is the one who wrote it, because he loves the truth and is not afraid of anyone to tell it like it is. He is a church scholar and also church historian and, believe me he knows what he is doing. He even wants to be a member of our legacy foundation. Let us endorse the book and have it printed soon and start our work without delay.  We are already in the eighth month since we agreed to do something about the legacy. Time is running out, let us do it.

In light of the above, I believe that not only should we promote, uphold and preserve the legacies of the patriarch, I promise you that this is the most appropriate way and time to launch it with the book that is ready for print. My only request is that all of you including the lovely Lishan be on my side just for this one time, even if this eight page support document does not convince you. Only if we unite and fight Tadd tooth and nail might we have a chance to beat him. I assure you, we have a difficult undertaking ahead of us because Tadd very well knows the Scriptures as well as anyone and he may fight back with it. I know he is not going to give up easily and you never know what he is going to come up with?  Our only hope is, if Lishan, his better-half is with us, Tadd will have lost more than half of the case already. But we are still going to need God’s help.

Hoping everybody else is on my side, and assuming Tadd concedes, our next step is to agree with one of the author’s terms and conditions offered below:

1.Price for one book: if printed in USA, $30 (thirty dollars). If printed in Ethiopia, 30 Birr.

2. If we pay the author his cost all at once before we even print one book, he will give us the right to print any amount, anywhere including Ethiopia and sell it at any price we wish.

3. If we want to print between 5,000 and 24,000 and if we pay him ahead of time he will charge us 25%. That amounts to 37,000(USD), or 37,000(Ethiopian Birr) depending where it is printed. But if we pay him after the books are sold he will charge us 40%.

4. If we print between 25,000 and 49000, and pay him ahead of time, he will charge us 15%. If we pay him after the books are sold he will charge us 30%.

5. If we print between 50,000and 99,000, and pay him ahead of time, he will charge us 10%. If we pay him after the books are sold he will charge us 25%.

6. If we print 100,000 or more and pay him ahead of time, he will charge us 5%. If we pay him after the books are sold he will charge us 20%.

7. The author warned that he is giving all this different discounts and offers for only one reason: only if the money obtained from the book is solely used for the legacy foundation.

8. The author also suggested that the Legacy foundation be incorporated here in the USA, so that it gets international as well as national recognition and assistance. What do you all guys think?

 Please all of you read it carefully and respond quickly, because if we do not act quickly, the author will have the shorter version printed and we will not get any benefit or incentive to buy it at retail price in order to distribute it and build up the foundation. And remember that is more advantageous for him.

I also think this precedes the family association, which can be launched as part of the legacy later. I have something to say about its name, etc. some other time.

May the love, truth, grace, mercy, protection and guidance of the Lord Jesus Christ be with us all Amen.

Affectionately yours,

Tewolde G. Yohannes