H.I.H. Princess Aster Sellassie

On Rastafarianism: Part VII
"Restoration"
H.I.H. Princess Esther Sellassie Antohin,
The Imperial House of Sellassie of
The Solomonic Dynasty in
The African Diaspora
[Editor's Note: In the following series of articles by H.I.H.
Princess Esther Sellassie Antohin, of the Imperial House of
Sellassie, great granddaughter of H.I.M. Haile Sellassie I, we
continue to present her responses to some of the most frequently
asked questions on the Haile Sellassie Family Web:
www.sellassie@angelfire.com
Conclusion: What is our view of the Rasta concept of a "Restoration?"
Carl Jung, the Swiss psychoanalyst, carried out extensive research on
the phenomenon he called "synchronicity," the co-occurrence of events
or ideas seemingly unrelated and separated by distance. He found that
great ideas do seem to simultaneously originate in diverse places and
fan out through large segments of the world's population.
The concept of an imminent, final Restoration seems to be just such a
worldwide idea here and now. The theme of a Restoration is presently
recurrent in many societies and ethnic groups as we enter Y2K.
We, the Imperial House of Sellassie, are committed equally to the
advancement of all our Ethiopian peoples, Ethiopian Christians,
Ethiopian Moslems, Ethiopian Jews, and with profound appreciation of
their distinctive languages and cultures, be they Tigrean, Oromo,
Sidamo, Amhara, Shoan, Harari, Gurage, or our many others, and be
they at home in Ethiopia or in the greater African Diaspora. As in
the case of India's unity within her great diversity, I envisage the
educational and linguistic future of all Ethiopians in the Third
Millennium to be an integral part of the greater world community,
with English as the international language. The democratic
Constitution of modern Ethiopia is well-conceived. My grandfather
H.I.M. Asfa-Wossen Haile-Sellassie, eldest son of H.I.M. Haile
SellassieI, who was possessed of a truly democratic spirit, would
have been proud of Ethiopia's modern Constitution, for it encompasses
all of the advances he and his father had so wanted to bring about
for our country. Yes, there are always present those pessimists whose
personalities tend to complain about everything, and there are others
who would seek to exploit the dynamic, social tensions inherent in
every new undertaking for their own elitist self-aggrandizement. We
do not share their views. On the contrary, we are optimistic about
the democratic future of Ethiopia. Step by patient step, the problems
will indeed be worked out, all in God's good time. The unity of our
many Ethiopian peoples is bound up with the unity of all those of
African heritage, wherever they may live. We must dedicate ourselves
not to magic political solutions but to the Restoration of the
Biblical core values of Tawahedo, "Oneness," and the practice of
overflowing loving kindness, one with another. At every moment we,
the Imperial House of Sellassie, stand ready to help our modern,
democratic Ethiopia in any way that we can. We stand equally with
you, with all of you in the African Diaspora, in your struggle for
human dignity and a better life for your families in the future. We
march shoulder to shoulder with you, in authentic, loving Tawahedo,
in the redemptive work to be done. And we will not abandon you.
Within the world view of the Ethiopianist Congregations of Jamaica,
there is an expectancy that many mistakes of historic Christendom
will be corrected and that there will ensue a Restoration of pure
worship, reflecting the early relationship between God and all His
children, as it was in the days of the Bible. This purified Walk with
I and I is such a burning hope for all Ethiopianist Congregations
that it has become the subject of considerable discussion outside of
Reggae and Rasta circles. It is of interest to many of the churches
originally inspired by Marcus Garvey's Ethiopianist vision, including
the Ethiopian Baptist Churches, the Ethiopian Methodist Churches, and
the many Abyssinian Apostolic and Charismatic Churches.
We have looked into this phenomenon and what we have found is
amazing. In point of fact, there is a broad and deep interracial,
international, trans-denominational Restoration movement in almost
every church group, Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox. It has awesome
potential for true reconciliation and flourishing Tawahedo between
all races and all denominations and promises finally to actualize the
visions of Marcus Garvey, John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.
The Imperial House of Sellassie strongly encourages this Restoration
movement and all denominations associated with it. I myself have
agreed to publish an essay in every future issue of the movement's
quarterly, Restore!, and I urge the readership to write for a
complimentary copy of the August 1999 issue, which will carry the
first of my essays. The objective of the Restoration movement is to
reclaim the Hebraic roots of all Christianity and since our Ethiopian
Orthodox Tawahedo tradition is the living example of an authentically
African church that was never Europeanized, a historic church that
never lost her Hebraic foundations, it was only natural that the
Restoration Foundation with international headquarters in Atlanta,
Georgia, should contact us and request our assistance. This truly
interracial, international, interdenominational movement comes as a
strong voice of confirmation for the Rastafarian Messianic
expectation of their own Restoration. At last, we will all see
our "Rasta brethren and sistren" join the inner circle of our
brothers and sisters world wide, the children of our heavenly Father,
within the long-awaited Kingdom of God.
Notes:
The interested reader may enter the Sellassie Community via:
http://members. linkopp.com/sellassie/list.html, "How to use the
Sellassie Website."
http://members.linkopp.com/sellassie/doc/secretar.html
http://sellassie.ourfamily.com/academics/orthodoxy.html
http://www.angelfire.com/ak/sellassie
http://sellassie.ourfamily.com/rasta/rastafi.html
www.RestorationFoundation.org
Princess Edjigaheu Sellassie-Antohin, Registrar
The Imperial House of Sellassie
115 Kelsan Way
Fairbanks, AK 99709
1. For information on the Restoration movement see the web-site:
www.RestorationFoundation.org
2. For a complimentary copy of the quarterly Restore! (request the
August 1999 issue) or to order the Manifesto of the Restoration, Our
Lost Legacy ($15.00) written by our brother, Dr. John Garr, write:
Sir Leon Mohammed II, KdB, FSAI
Chancellor for the African Diaspora.
The Imperial House of Sellassie
P.O. Box 421218
Atlanta, GA 30342
3, Ask also for information on Sir Leon Mohammed II's forthcoming
book, We Were There, the African Presence in the Bible, (in press) to
be published by the Restoration Foundation.