Maskal (redirected from Meskel)

Maskal

September 27

Maskal ia a Christian festival in Ethiopia to commemorate the finding of the True Cross, the cross on which Christ was crucified. ( Maskal means "cross.") The celebration comes at the end of the rainy season in the Ethiopian spring, when fields are blooming with yellow flowers known as the maskal flowers. In communities throughout the nation, a tall pole called a demara is set up and topped with a cross. Families place smaller demaras against the big one, and in the evening they are made into a huge bonfire. Religious ceremonies are performed around the bonfire, with songs and dancing. The ashes of the burned-out fire are considered holy, so the people place the powder of the ashes on their foreheads.
See also Exaltation of the Cross

CONTACTS:
Ethiopian Embassy
3506 International Dr. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
202-364-1200; fax: 202-587-0195
www.ethiopianembassy.org
Ethiopian Tourism Commission
P.O. Box 2183
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
251-1-517-470; fax: 251-1-517-533
www.tourismethiopia.org

SOURCES:
AnnivHol-2000, p. 161
BkHolWrld-1986, Sep 27
FolkWrldHol-1999, p. 569
GdWrldFest-1985, p. 75

Celebration day: Sep 27