About
Vince L. Bantu is a Pastor at Beloved Community Church in St. Louis, MO. Vince is the author of Gospel Haymanot: A Constructive Theology and Critical Reflection on African and Diasporic Christianity (Urban Ministries International) and Those for Whom the Lamp Shines: The Making of Egyptian Ethnic Identity in Late Antiquity (University of California Press).
Outline of The Book of Mystery of Giyorgis of Sägla
Chapter 1: On the distinction of the persons (gaṣṣ) of the Trinity
Chapter 2: On the unity of the Trintiy
Chapter 3: On the divinity of Christ
Chapter 4: On the eternal deity of Jesus
Chapter 5: On the shared essence (həllawe) of the Son and the Father
Chapter 6: On the equality of the Father and the Son
Chapter 7: On the divinity of Christ during His earthly ministry
Chapter 8: On the divinity of the Holy Spirit
Chapter 9: A homily (dərsan) in commemoration of Simeon (Luke 2:25-35)
Chapter 10: On the equality of the Trinity at the final judgement
Chapter 11: On the perpetual virginity of Mary
Chapter 12: A homily (dərsan) in honor of Palm Sunday
Chapter 13: A homily (dərsan) in honor of the washing of the Disciples’ feet
Chapter 14: On the passiblity of Christ
Chapter 15: That Jesus died by His own will
Chapter 16: That Jesus had a fully human soul and mind
Chapter 17: That Jesus had a fully human body
Chapter 18: That Jesus’ body was incarnate
Chapter 19: That the body of Jesus did not descend into Sheol
Chapter 20: That Jesus is one nature (həllawe)
Chapter 21: The human and divine natures (fəna) of Jesus are one
Chapter 22: That Jesus was crucified bodily
Chapter 23: That Humans receive the Breath of Life at birth
Chapter 24: That Adam and Eve had true flesh
Chapter 25: On the real presence in the Eucharist (Qʷərban)
Chapter 26: That the Old Testament is not nullified by the New
Chapter 27: On the immortality of the soul
Chapter 28: On the full unity of the nature (hǝllawe) and person (ʾakal) of Jesus
Chapter 29: That the Holy Spirit is superior to all other spirits
Chapter 30: On the resurrection of the body
Excerpts from The Book of Mystery
On the role of Creation in worship
“In the name of the Holy Trinity (Śǝllus),
United in His essence (hǝllawe),
Who cannot be separated or confused,
Who is jointly worshipped and who is jointly glorified upon the Chariot of the Winds,
Which veils the solar disk,
Which causes it to rise in the gateways of Heaven while the force of the wind blows and scatters the flame of the sun,
Who adds light every morning to the lunar circuit, the moon, until it fills up at each rising until the day of the full moon,
which draws raindrops from the womb of the clouds as the radiance of the lightning breaks forth and the melody of the thunder howls.
Glory to Him who is the overseer of all the creatures, forever and ever. Amen and Amen."
(Chapter 2)
On God’s elevation of the churches of Africa and the Middle East over those of Europe
“The king of Rome together with the Chief Bishop of Constantinople said: ‘Our doctrine (haymanot) is better.’ Then, the king of Ethiopia with the Chief Bishop of Alexandria said: ‘Indeed, our doctrine (haymanot) is better and more beautiful. You Roman people, you fabricate a difference between His humanity and His divinity; you divide the indivisible, you have split the inseparable.’ And the quarrel went on and on by means of polemic, discussion and the word of the Scriptures; for the transmission of their books of the Old (Testament) occurred when the Queen of ʾAzeb (Ethiopia) returned from Jerusalem. And the transmission of their books of the New (Testament) occurred when the Roman saints returned. And the teachers of Ethiopia conquered the teachers of Rome, for their books were more powerful than the books of all the ends of the earth. For this reason, Isaiah says: ‘They will bring books from the rivers of Ethiopia.’ It was an embarrassment for them, but they increased the apostasy.”
(Chapter 5)
On the humanity and divinity of Jesus
“There He existed at the right hand of His Father; here He existed in the womb of His mother. There He was only invisible power; here He is intangible power with His tangible body. There He stretched out the four animals in the form of fire; here he stretched out the forces of human nature. There He has a Father without a mother; here a mother without an earthly father. There Gabriel stood in fear; here he announced good news in joy. There is the glory of the begetting from the invisible and wondrous Father in the palace of the Most High; here is the glory of the begetting from the wondrous Virgin in Bethlehem. There, the fragrance of incense is offered in a golden chalice by the heavenly priests; here gold, myrrh and incense were offered by the Magi. There the Cherubim and Seraphim tremble at His majesty; here Mary embraced Him and Salome served Him. There lightning sparkles and flickers before Him and flames of fire come out from His palace; here a donkey and an ox warmed Him with their breath. There a throne of fire; here a manger of stone. There a road of heaven of crystal stones; here a cattle stable. There the Jerusalem which is in the Heavens, the place of the Watchers; here a cave which was the home of the shepherds of animals.”
(Chapter 5)
On God’s preferential option for the poor
“Behold, Mary lacked a lamb in her hand, for she was not able to (get) a lamb. Therefore, she brought two young doves—one for the sacrifice and one for sin. Why then, was there a lack of a lamb in the hand of the Virgin? Because the goodness of her Son was not for the wealthy of the earth but, rather, for the poor. Only to keep His humanity away from the rebuke of family, He was born of the line according to human flesh. He does not bring Himself into the pleasures of the world. If He loved the riches of the world, He would have been born from Herod’s daughter, for he too is of the line of David. He did not enter the royal place and He did not long for the beauty of the daughters of the kings of Galilee who (have) long necks and wink their eyes and pull up the hem of their dresses which are of purple garments and fine material and silk. He chose an orphan who was left by her father and mother before their death and after their death she had no brother or sister.”
(Chapter 9)