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{{Short description|Itinerant intellectual religious figure in the Orthodox Tewahedo Church}}
[[File:Yared.jpg|thumb|right|200px|According to Christian tradition, the debtera's music was developed by Saint [[Yared]].<ref name="Munro-Hay p52-53">[https://books.google.com/books?id=NWNTfztz5KoC&lpg=PA306&ots=gpPFia1E0v&dq=famous%20dabtaras&pg=PA53#v=onepage&q=dabtara&f=false Ethiopia, the Unknown Land: A Cultural and Historical Guide, by Stuart Munro-Hay, I.B.Tauris, 3 May 2002, p.52-53]</ref>]]▼
{{Oriental Orthodox sidebar|expanded=practices}}
A '''debtera''' (or '''dabtara''';<ref name="Finneran">[
== Official education and duties ==
▲[[File:Yared.jpg|thumb|
[[File:Ethiopian Painting 2005 SeanMcClean.JPG|thumb|left|250px|A painting of performing debteras
Debteras are usually chosen from families of other debteras, and are trained from childhood<ref name="Kaufman">
Priests (Beta Israel equivalent ''Kahens'') and ''debteras'' are two separate professions,<ref name="Munro-Hay p47">{{cite book|last=Munro-Hay|first=Stuart|authorlink=Stuart Munro-Hay|title=Ethiopia, the Unknown Land: A Cultural and Historical Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NWNTfztz5KoC&pg=PA47|year=2002|publisher=I.B.Tauris|isbn=978-1-86064-744-4|page=47}}</ref> though it is possible to pursue both roles.<ref>{{cite book|last=Crummey|first=Donald|title=Land and Society in the Christian Kingdom of Ethiopia: From the Thirteenth to the Twentieth Century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Di0w6h0qHGMC&pg=PA174|year=2000|publisher=University of Illinois Press|isbn=978-0-252-02482-5|page=174}}</ref> The [[Orthodox Tewahedo]] churches see the division between a priest and a debtera as following the model used by the ancient Israelites.<ref>{{cite book|last=Milkias|first=Paulos|title=Ethiopia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Iu9mnXhvSswC&pg=PA175|year=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-59884-258-6|page=175}}</ref>
=== Among the Beta Israel ===▼
Among the Beta Israel, the status of debtera is a milestone in the study to become [[Kahen (Beta Israel)|Kahen]]. Unlike fully-fledged Kahens (who perform none of the functions of ''debtra''), debteras are closer to the laypeople, often serving as intermediaries between them and the clergy. A Kahen who gives up his position or is deposed may serve as a ''debtera''.<ref name="Greenfield">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 of Literary Research, 2011, pp. 109-135 (Hebrew)</ref>▼
===
During Lenten services, ''debteras'' tap prayer sticks to keep the rhythm.
▲=== Among the Beta Israel ===
▲During Lenten services, ''debteras'' tap prayer sticks to keep the rhythm. The Ethiopian Church condones the performances of ''debteras'', citing the story in [[2 Kings]] of [[King David]] dancing at the temple and {{Bibleverse||Psalm|47:1|KJV}} ("clap your hands") for Biblical examples. These performances also feature symbols connected to [[Passion (Christianity)|the Passion of Jesus]]: the ''sistrum'''s swaying and the beating of the drums represent Christ's swaying while enduring beatings, and the tapping of the prayer sticks represent the [[Flagellation of Christ]].<ref name="Munro-Hay p47" />
▲Among the Beta Israel, the status of debtera is a milestone in the study to become a [[
== Religio-
Debteras participate in liturgy as singers and musicians and, outside the Church religio-magical healers by performing as herbalists, astrologers, fortune-tellers etc. Some Ethiopian authors consider these healers as ‘spiritual healers’ whereas, they are purely religio-magical healers.<ref name="Janetius, S.T 2016">Janetius, S.T. Abyssinia in the New Millennium (Revised Edition), 2016. {{ISBN
Some Debteras traditionally manufacture [[
A debtera may charge a fee for his charms, exorcisms, and astrological practices, but not liturgical activities.<ref>
Not all of the Debteras duties and cures are [[supernatural]]. Debteras place [[scarecrow]]s in farm fields to protect them and shave heads to prevent [[
On the other hand, the priests or kahens use the practice of confession, fasting, penance and Church attendance as a means of healing together with some sort of advice and guidance. The soul-father, called ''yenafs abbat'', is a kind of family spiritual-doctor, common in many places makes frequent visits to the home and performs services as required.
== See also ==
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== References ==
{{
[[Category:Beta Israel]]
[[Category:Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church]]
[[Category:Exorcists]]
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