Kahen (or Kohane) ( gez, ካህን ''kahən'' "priest", plural ''kahənat'') is a religious role in

Beta Israel The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...

second only to the

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

or ''falasyan''. Their duty is to maintain and preserve the

Haymanot Haymanot ( gez, ሃይማኖት) is the branch of Judaism which is practiced by the Beta Israel, also known as Ethiopian Jews. In Geʽez, Tigrinya and Amharic, ''Haymanot'' means 'religion' or 'faith.' Thus in modern Amharic and Tigrinya, it ...

among the people. This has become more difficult by the people's encounter with the modernity of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, where most of the Ethiopian Jewish people now live. The high priest ( ''liqa kahən'', plural ''liqanä kahhənat'') is the leader of the priests in a certain area. An aspiring kahen must spend time studying as a

debtera A debtera (or dabtara; Ge'ez/ Tigrinya/ Amharic: ደብተራ (''Däbtära)''; plural, Ge'ez\Tigrinya: ''debterat'', Amharic: ''debtrawoch'' ) is an itinerant religious figure among the Beta Israel and in the Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox Tewa ...

before being ordained. As a debtera, he will be closer to the laypeople and serve as an intermediary between them and the clergy. Upon becoming a kahen, he will no longer perform the services of a debtera, though he may take them up again if he gives up his position or is deposed.Isaac Greenfield, "The Debtera and the education among Ethiopian Jewry until the arrival of Dr. Faitlovitch" in Menachem Waldman (ed.), ''Studies in the History of Ethiopian Jews'', Habermann Institute for Literary Research, 2011, pp. 109–135 (Hebrew). The term ''qäsis'' ( gez, ቀሲስ, am, ቄስ ''qes''; ti, ቀሺ ''qäši''), which refers to married priest in the

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

and

Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church The Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( ti, ቤተ ክርስትያን ተዋህዶ ኤርትራ) is one of the Oriental Orthodox Churches with its headquarters in Asmara, Eritrea. Its autocephaly was recognised by Pope Shenouda III of Alexandr ...

es, is a synonym for kahen, an unmarried priest, among the Beta Israel.Emmanuel Fritsch, "Qäsis" in Siegbert Uhlig (ed.), ''Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: O-X'', Harrassowitz, 2010, , pp. 262-264. With the aliyah of Beta Israel to Israel, the Amharic "qes" Hebraized was translated as Kes ( he, קס or , plural or ''Kesim'').

Notable priests

*Liqa Kahenat Berhan Baruch (1910–1984) – main leader of the Beta Israel from the Italian occupation until his death. *Liqa Kahenat Isaac Yaso (1892–1997) – main leader of the Jews in Tigray. *Liqa Kahenat Raphael Hadane (1923–2020) – religious leader of the Jews in Ambover. *Kes Avihu Azariya – head of the council of Ethiopian High Priests.

References

{{reflist Jewish religious occupations Haymanot * Religious leadership roles Jews and Judaism in Ethiopia Levites

Notable priests

See also

References