"Holy Orders" is the Sacrament through which an ordinand receives authority to administer the sacraments and conduct other religious services.
Ordination is a sacred sign, accompanied by solemn ceremonies, with which the bishop, by the imposition of hands, confers on the fit chosen
persons a portion of grace convenient for the ecclesiastical office to which they are raised. The episcopate, priesthood and diaconate were instituted
by Jesus Christ and delivered to us by the Apostles and their successors; a man not ordained according to that institution cannot celebrate the Eucharist
or perform any office of a priest. As to the validity of the Ethiopian Church Orders, in 1730 Josef Simen Assemain, a converted Marionite who had received
a Western education, was selected by the Congregation of Propaganda in Rome to examine the whole question and give a full form used in Ethiopian
Ordinations. With sound theological arguments Assemain declared that Ethiopian Orders were valid. A canonical ordination can never be repeated.
There are degrees of the Holy Orders: the major orders are the episcopate, priesthood and diaconate, the minor ones include subdeacons, deaconesses
who assist in the baptism and confirmation of females, anagnosts or masters of ceremony, singers, door-keepers and others. Much care is taken in the choice
of a bishop; his character, age and absence of obstacles are thoroughly considered before an appointment is made, according to the epistle of St. Paul to
Timothy ( 1 Tim. ii. 1-7 ) . A bishop is consecrated by the laying on of the hands of three bishops or two, saying the required prayers of consecration and
being blessed as an ordinand.
The bishop's jurisdiction is over the faithful, the priests, the deacons and all ministers. In particular
the bishop has the right to ordain candidates, try the clergy, consecrate holy oil, holy vessels, celebrate
all the church sacraments and manage the general affairs of the church. When the Tabot is accidentally
touched by a deacon or a layman it is the bishop who purifies and blesses it. He says the prayer of
admission when candidates seek monastic seclusion and makes the sign of the cross on the skull-cap which
each monk wears. Requirements of education and age for admission to the diaconate and priesthood are not
severe. Anybody who desires to enter the service of the church goes to a church school or any other institution
for ecclesiastical studies. He learns the syllabary and then the "Fidal Hawaria", the first seven verses of the
Epistle of St. John, then he reads books such as the Gospel, the Tamira Maryam, the Miracles of Mary, the "Gabata
Hawaria" i.e. seven Epistles, one of James, two of Peter, three of John, and one of Jude, Psalter and a portion of
St. John's Gospel. All these documents are in Geez, the church language. When the boys are ready they receive the
diaconate from the bishop before marriage and later the priesthood after acquiring the technical knowledge of the services.
The duties of the priest are to baptize and confirm, to conduct Mass and the daily services of the Church, to solemnize
marriage, to hear confessions, to perform the rite of Unction and to hold funeral services. A priest must not engage in
other gainful occupations, he gives his services at all times and to every one irrespective of rank or wealth. Purity of
life is essential for deacons. During the divine service the deacon acts as acolyte. He bakes the Eucharistic bread in the
oven of Bethlehem and makes fresh wine before each Mass. During the services he directs the actions and responses of the
congregation. He is not allowed to touch the Tabot or to baptize or to say any benediction and is only permitted to marry
before ordination.
The clergy have binding obligations, which they either meet or are deposed. Before ordination the candidates must be sure
that the call comes to them from God, they must be blameless in order to be a good example to the congregation, they must be
well acquainted with the Bible and church teachings. After ordination they should serve not as hired men working merely to
get their wages, but as good shepherds who know that the sheep are theirs and that they are responsible for keeping them
from beasts and for feeding them, ready to offer any sacrifice for their sake. Priests and Deacons may marry before ordination,
Bishops never. Monks also are not married, they keep celibate for life. Priests are ordained on feasts of the Lord or of Mary
or Sunday. The hierarchy finally is: Patriarch, Archbishop, Bishop, Episcopos, Archimandrite, Priest, Deacon, Subdeacon and Debteras.
