An admirable summary of the Falasha form of Judaism by M. Wurmbrand is to be found in Volume 6 of the Encyclopaedia Judaica on which the following remarks are largely based. The central feature of their religion, common to Jews everywhere, is the belief in the one and only God, the God of Israel, who has chosen His people and who will send the Messiah to redeem them and return them to the Holy Land. As in the days of the Temple, the Falashas do not have rabbis - who are essentially teachers - but priests (Cahenat) who conduct religious ceremonies and claim descent from Aaron. In practice, every Falasha who is of good character and from a respected family can assume the priestly functions if he is well versed in the prayers and the Bible. In every region the priests elect a high priest from their midst who becomes the spiritual leader of the community and is empowered to ordain candidates into the priesthood. In all religious affairs the priest is assisted by the dabtara or cantor. The Falashas also have monks and nuns who live in abstinence and consecrate the whole of their lives to the service of the Creator. Some of them live together in monasteries, while others live in seclusion in the deserts or in the vicinity of the villages. The simple folk have the greatest respect for these monks.

The centre of religious life is the mesgid(1) or synagogue which is found in every village. It is in most cases a round tukul, or wood and thatched hut, but there also are some square stone structures. If the synagogue is large enough it is usually divided into two rooms, one of which is known as 'the holy of holies'. In the courtyard of the synagogue there is a stone altar for the offering of the paschal sacrifice. It appears that formerly sacrifices were also offered on the new moons and on other occasions. In the mesgid seven prayer services are held daily (cf Ps. 119, verse 164), but most Falashas content themselves with the participation in the morning and evening prayers, which are said in Ge'ez. Among the observant - and one must recognise that strictness is no longer universal - on the Sabbath and Festivals most of the day is spent in prayer at the mesgid. The sanctity of the Sabbath is rigorously observed. Work ceases on Friday at midday when all purify themselves by immersion and the wearing of their Sabbath clothes. The lighting

(1) According to Leslau (Coutumes et Croyances des Falachas, p. 64) the word mesgid comes from the similar Arabic word meaning mosque but is originally derived from Aramaic.