The Likeness of H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie In The Pantocrator at St. Catherine's Monastery ⛪ A Reasoning
The Pantocrator, or Christ in Majesty, are the earliest depictions of Christ developed by the church, and of these depictions located at St. Catherine's Monastery in the Sinai peninsula is considered to be the oldest known.
🛑 Before We Start
I should start by disclosing that this is a very biased post, as I see H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie I as divine, and I am known by some as a "Rastafarian." Although I personally dislike this label and labels in general, I opt for "Nazarite" when someone is trying to cram my spirituality into a simple box and give my livity a title.
The term Nazarite isn't something the general public are overly confident in their knowledge of, and this leads to much more of a serious spiritual dialogue than flying under the "Rasta" moniker, and it's also a better bridge when reasoning with Christian brethren and sistren.
With this in mind, know that I choose to accept an Ethio-centric history of Christianity and general human history.
Pantocrator, St, Catherine's Monastery, Sinai Peninsula (6th-7th century)
What is the Pantocrator? 🤷
Simply stated, it's the most iconic and oldest detailed representation of Eyesus Kristos (Jesus Christ). The word pantocrator itself is derived from two ancient Greek words; pantos (all) and kratos (strength), approximating the word almighty in English.
The Christ Pantocrator features Jesus holding a book in his left hand while his right hand portrays a blessing type guesture. In most depictions, the book held in the left hand is the New Testament.
The oldest known Christ Pantocrator dates from the sixth or seventh century, and is housed within St. Catherine's Monastery in the Sinai Peninsula, modern-day Egypt.
Compared With Haile Selassie I 🤷
Christ Pantoctrator in St. Catherine's
H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie I
It's hard not to immediately notice the likeness in these two images. H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie is the 225th King of a Solomonic Dynasty in Ethiopia, having descended from Menelik, the child of King Solomon and Queen Makeda.
If you're not familiar with Haile Selassie I, a thorough study of World War II's true origins will lead you to the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, where Mussolini attempted to colonize the only nation in the world to never have been colonized, but only with the blessings of the Vatican and Pope Pius XI, whom perceived the Solomonic Dynasty of Ethiopia and it's 225th King/Emperor as a major threat to the legitimacy of the Vatican.
Don't Let Babylon Fool Ya' 🙅♂️
In this post I have taken a very small piece of history as just one example of the many mystical revelations unfolded when studying the livity of H.I.M Emperor Haile Selassie I. I by no means intend for my personal study of history to be your truth, and I only aim to share the world as viewed through my eyes.
Let's End It With Some Conscious Music 🙏
There is no better song to compliment this post than the tune "Gather Them In" by the "Wordsmith" Vaughn Benjamin. This likeness of His Majesty at St. Catherine's has been known by Rastafari scholars for a long time, but stories like these don't exactly find their way into the mainstream media.
Below is an excerpt from this song where elder Vaughn makes reference to this important cultural, religious, and spiritual relic.
Well look at the image and the Christ likeness in the monastery
At Saint-Catherine the very image and likeness of Haile Selassie
Inna Mount Sinai is where dem make this discovery
YES
It is he who was the beloved of Magdaline
From second century compare the images to be seen
Gather dem in
🙏 THANKS FOR READING 🙏
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With this said, are you still open for some free-minded reasoning?😉
I love & respect Rastafari, but i am not a "Haile Selassian"...what i use to say...
First of all i wanna recommend the HipHop Song "He's us" from KRS-One (& True Master).
It comes from hebrew "He's us"=Jes-us
I believe Christ is and was a consciousness and many men stood out & represented this
Christ consciousness. In Astrology it is "just" the big month of Pisces (2150 years) and our lifetimes are actually on the transition into the next big month of Aquarius.
One full circulation of our solar system around the central sun Alcyon is 26.000 years.
I am just mentioning this to show you how limited the timeline of all
biblical stories are...
And explain this pic to me Justin:
The "King of Kings" with a machine gun!?
And you did write a blog about the next point yourself:
How can the "King of Kings" be called a "Cowardish lion"
by the prophet himself, Marcus Garvey.
Nothing against Haile Selassie, i think the believe of the Rastafarians
put him into this position/role. Did he ever accept his role publicly?
But i think Garvey was right...you don't leave your people in war against
Italy & flee to London...! C'mon son. I can just agree with Marcus Garvey.
And even though the picture you found got similarities to Haile Selassie, i gotta tell you, yes you are biased and you see what you want to see..😉
Fly a little higher,Rasta & get the big picture...
It's time for Rasta 3000!😀
1 Love
Marcus Garvey was no prophet to me at all, for I favor biblical scholars like Leonard Howell, Archibald Dunkley, and Robert Hinds who truly prophesized H.I.M.'s divinity.
Of course I'm always up for free-minded reasoning brother, and I wouldn't disagree with you that this is your reality, and that is the beauty of life. While I personally don't deal with astrology nor does it affect my life, I do keep it in mind when studying I-ncient history, and know that it played a big role in their understanding of the world around the them.
I am heartbroken at the words I see above, sounds like it came straight from the playbook of Mengistu Mariam and the Dergue. I would say that we are unable to reason on this issue because you've chosen your position to be one of "right" and mine to be one of "wrong".
When you choose to use phrases like "fly a little higher" and "get the big picture," you've killed any attempt at reasoning brethren. I agree with you that you think Garvey was right, but that is not my truth. I once had questions like yours, so I studied history, and more revelations kept unfolding.
I think I stated clearly that I am only sharing my views with this post, and I actively discourage you to see the world through my eyes, because if it is written for you it shall be. Your words and reaction are a reminder to me why my Rastafari journey is a personal one I am often reluctant to share with others, because all too often human beings rush to judgement.
No hard feelings from me brother, but as you long as you see me not getting your "big picture," you're not open to a true reasoning.
Selah!
!ENGAGE 100
ENGAGEtokens....because you've chosen your position to be one of "right" and mine to be one of "wrong".
Where did you read this?
...your "big picture," you're not open to a true reasoning.
My big picture?🤔
"Fly a little higher,Rasta & get the big picture..." = I am referring to the last 26.000 years, your bible is how old? Just more years Justin, don't take it personal...but i think you did, it's all good.
I am most definitely always open to real free thinking, but not to religious
prophecies that can't be questioned.
Peace
Brother, with this post I am sharing a historical discovery for which a "Rasta" was not the first to notice the likeness, and anything I mention about my spiritual livity is only to show you a small glimpse of the world through my eyes, definitely not asking you to partake in this vision.
You're making too many assumptions that makes reasoning not possible, using terms like "your bible." I don't need any book to justify the divinity of H.I.M., for I am free soul, and I find the essence of my existence embodied in the livity of Alpha & Omega.
I don't where to go with this, just feels like a communication breakdown, and you must understand my whole life I've kept my spirituality very secret, because even sharing a tiny little tidbit such as this likeness of H.I.M. in Mt. Sinai, always elicits challenges and negative reactions from my fellow human beings.
You've posed a lot of questions about H.I.M., but they're all framed in biased mindset. If you really wanted answers to those questions, you would study it for you own sake. His Majesty's autobiography and attempt to prevent WWII are all well-documented, but of course people like Mussolini, Hitler, and Mengistu Mariam like to call that "fleeing," and seek to rewrite history.
His Majesty's autobiography and attempt to prevent WWII are all well-documented, but of course people like Mussolini, Hitler, and Mengistu Mariam like to call that "fleeing"...
But also Marcus Garvey...hmmm...
Do you know the book "Babylon Must Fall" ("Babylon Muss Fallen") from
Girma A.Gebre-Selassie?
My mindset is not biased, but what is far away to resonate with me, is any story about any "one person" being the "chosen one"...ain't that centralization to the fullest?
That being said on the decentralized blockchain 😀...
So Girma A.Gebre-Selassie dedicates his book to his grandfather
Kaiser Iyassu Menelik, who was killed by Haile Sellassie
on the 28 of April 1935 for equally acceptance of the islam...so he writes.
Is he lying, Justin?
The King of Kings kills people??
If you can't clearly see your bias on this topic, a reasoning is impossible,. I stated I am biased on this topic because of my self-awareness. Human beings are products of their history and environment, and you are cramming your opinion of what a "Rastafarian" is and "believes in" down my throat with based on your own bias which you refuse to accept.
Look, people of other movements or faiths here on Hive are sharing their thoughts on yoga, Islam, the Bhagavad Gita, astrology, and so on. I would guess the overwhelming majority of them don't have to specifically mention in every post that they are biased towards "yoga's benefits" or their "prophet's words." The reason I do it is because so many fellow humans in my life have feigned interest in trying to understand my spirituality to better understand me, only to ask a few sleighted questions, not even allow me to answer, then proceed to tell me their higher truth and how my trod is inferior to their livity, and my "God" couldn't possibly be the one.
What you possibly seem to not understand is that if I proclaim H.I.M. Haile Selassie I and H.I.M. Empress Menen Asfaw as the essence of my existence in this dispension (which I did not do in this post), how does that threaten your livity? I actively discourage people from partaking in my world view, and I think this post was clearly not asking you to do that, that's why I stated it's biased and a tiny view of the world through my eyes.
Your bias even assumes "Marcus Garvey" is somehow important in my acceptance of His Majesty as divine. He is merely a legendary Pan-Africanist that despised Haile Selassie I, so I've never found him to be a major part of my trod.
Your heap of questions would takes hours and hours of reasoning if you really wanted to "overstand," and that can't be typed on the blockchain my friend. But here's the thing, I came from a Christian upbringing, and because of this, I discovered His Majesty through a theological journey, later discovering that some "Rastas" use astrology to justify His Majesty's divinity. My problem was I used to feel the need to justify my livity when attacked by using examples Jews or Christians could relate to, I guess because I wanted to feel legitimate somehow.
That was so many years ago when I was just scratching the surface of what would be my journey to His Majesty, and I had all the questions you've posed and more. I studied history for myself and answered these questions, and this path led more and more to His Majesty, realizing Babylon's desire to paint Ethiopia, its history, and its 225th Emperor in a negative light. There is always another perspective because everybody has their own experience, research, and conclusions.
If you want the answers to your questions, you can freely study history for yourself, and you will come to your own conclusions. Perhaps you already have (seems like it), and that would certainly mean accepting Haile Selassie I and Empress Menen I as divine is not the right choice for your livity, but luckily for you, I never asked you to do that, and in your case, I actively discourage it.
I think it's quite okay for you to have your truths and for me to have mine, but if we try to reason with me accepting my bias and you not accepting your own, how could we hold a meditation? What I've learned is that my spirituality is very personal, and also with many of my fellow humans.
I am always the one to come to the defense of another's livity being attacked, especially if it infringes on no one else. I have so many friends of different trods and faiths, and one thing I always do is come to their defense when someone is berating them. I have many Atheist friends who give my religious friends a hard time, and I am always there to level things.
The point of a reasoning is to learn from the other one, and I have learned a lot about your beliefs in my post. An example:
I can't and won't discount statement, although it is not my personal belief, I don't see why that can't be your truth, and I wouldn't dare try to pose with you with questions to try and make you doubt this belief, mostly because that would kill a potential reasoning.
Here's how I learn so much from my fellow humans....If we were truly reasoning, I would ask you
You would be eager to answer a question like that straight from your heart without holding back, but if I phrased the same question like this...
This would be a terrible way to try and reason with another human being, and it's not dissimilar from your tactics. My trod is a one-away-trod, and I have no aim of making anyone see the world through my sight, I only want to understand what makes others tick, and that's why personal Nazarite trod has led me to live among those who very different views than my own, and I feel I grow the most from this.
Although a bit let down at your noncondusive-to-reasoning styled questions, I find myself only wanting to know more about your livity and what makes you tick? This is how His Majesty guides me. I am sorry if this post threatened your livity in any way.
The simplest thing I can say is for each and everyone to follow their heart and a path that makes them the best person they can be, and if my brethren wants to make Spongebob Squarepants his God incarnate, he or she need not justify it to me, so long as they feel this belief makes them the best person they can be.
I've spent whole adult life outside the Rastafari community, among mostly Buddhists and Muslims, and I've learned I no longer to biblically or astrologically justify placing Alpha & Omega as the essence of my existence, because now that I've found them, their livity serves as example enough for me. I am not here to live up to your expectation and neither are you here to live up to mine. If, for you Selassie "fled" and for me he "tried to warn the world of WWII", I think these truths can exist alongside each other.
As elder Vaughn Benjamin has said..."Even make-believe is a manifestation."
Now, if this was a real reasoning, some questions for you, and perhaps you could share them in a post instead of this comments section...
These are just three quick questions I drummed up, but you can see how I've framed them in a conducive to reasoning style.
Bless up yourself, full apologies for this post, was just sharing a light-hearted archaeological curiosity that I am not the first one to notice the likeness of.
It's all good Justin 👍
Thank you for this history bit. I was told one time that I should read the Orthodox Ethiopian Bible version, because that was/is supposed to be one version that has less lost in translation. So the version most to the original scriptures.
Give thanks, yes I wish I could read Geez so that I could understand it more properly, but I have collected all the Ethopian Orthodox Canon in English, book by book. The Book of Enoch , The Kebra Negast, and The Book of Maccabees are all powerful books that the Europeans were afraid of, so were left out King James and other canons.
When I teach the Khmer language to my students online, I realize hardly any words translate word-for-word from Khmer to English because there are such great historical, linguistic, and cultural differences. I keep this in mind when I study the Ethiopian bible in English.
Some scholars have noted the English word "virgin" was used in the Bible to replace a Geez word which actually means "naive." If this is true, then Mary was not a virgin, but a young naive girl who got pregnant perhaps a little too early in life.
Using Christianity's own logic, Joseph is the descendant of David, so if he didn't get Mary pregnant, then there is no way Jesus fulfills the prophecy. It's question like this that made me study deeper into history. I now make a distinct difference between pale Euro Jesus that walked on water and had a virgin birth and the inspiration for Jesus, Eyesus Kristos, which should be studied from an Ethiopian viewpoint.
I have many books if you ever want to borrow, just let me know...
!ENGAGE 25
Wow... very interesting and informative indeed. It was a theologian who told me about the Ethiopian version, who converted to Islam which is also another story in itself hihi
I also knew about a part which was written by a woman (forgot which disciple that was) who also got left out of the European version Bible, because it would "confuse" the people.
Thank you for that offer. I will let you know if ever I have time and if you're still here hihi
ENGAGEtokens.Interesting. I had no clue about that Christ Pantoctrator in St. Catherine's, but I will tell you this. All Ethiopians have a distinct look, you ever realize that? So that could be a part of it.
But to tell the truth I don't know what to think about all these things these days but it is good to hear the perspectives and know the history so I can build my knowledge. My only hope is that when we die form this physical realm, something can tell us all of the truths. If not it would be a shame 😄
Half the story has never been told. I think His Majesty was right when he he recommended praying for guidance before studying scripture and history. The other half of the story is written in us, and we must our intuition to steer things a bit. Particularly the Amhara people look like the oldest depictions of biblical characters.
His Majesty's lineage can be traced all the way back to Menelik I, so the bloodlines are there, and that receding hairline is on point. I got an Irish ancestor from another fork of my family that looks like a carbon copy of me, and he lived 150 years ago, full-on ginger, but my parents look like Latinos.
Bless up, more time! !ENGAGE 45
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