The Kebra Nagast seems very similar to the bible. Just in the way it is structured like "And then this happened. And then this was a result. And then something else took place." There were also aspects of the Kebra Nagast that reminded me of the bible like how all of the queen's slaves, servants, and court fallowed her on her quest for wisdom, to Israel, was sort of like Jesus and his apostles.
The Kebra Nagast seems to serve a clear function; justifying the worship on a monotheistic god. The original religion is depicted as sloppy and unorganized with no set rules or gods. Solomon can easily persuade the queen to have her people worship the "god of Israel" because he is wise and respected with a clear cut religion. Solomon also throws his power around when he tricks the queen into having sex with him thereby producing a child. Christianity is then imprinted on Ethiopia not only by the queens word, but also by her lineage. Basically, this story is an explanation why Christianity is a more suitable and "smart" religion than the previous disordered one.
McKenzie - In a sense the servants and others following The Queen of Sheba to Solomon is like the story of the apostles; however I would say that is not the greatest comparison in the way that Jesus was the source of wisdom for the disciples–the Queen was not the source of wisdom. Also, yes this is similar to the bible and I think that is a good point because this story is a more complete version of this same story which appears in the bible. This is, as you mention a way that christianity in Ethiopia can be explained.
ReplyDeleteI think there is more to be said about what you say about Solomon. You say, "Solomon also throws his power around when he tricks the queen into having sex with him thereby producing a child." I think there is much to be said about how immorally christianity was spread to Ethiopia through her lineage.