Did the Holy Virgin Mary Have Original Sin (ጥንተ አብሶ)? The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Perspective: Part 2

 

The question of whether the Holy Virgin Mary was affected by original sin (ጥንተ አብሶ) touches the heart of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church’s teaching on her purity and holiness. In this second part, we turn to the Church’s official statement of faith, Holy Scripture, the writings of the Fathers, and the sacred hymns of Saint Yared to understand how the Church presents Mary as specially chosen, purified, and sanctified by God for the mystery of the Incarnation.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church’s official statement of faith, “የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን እምነት፣ ሥርዓተ አምልኮትና የውጭ ግንኙነት,” compiled by scholars and bishops of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, approved by the Holy Synod, and published in 1996, states the following on page 49 regarding the purity and sanctity of Our Lady, the Holy Virgin Mary:

…አምላክን በድንግልና ጸንሳ በድንግልና የወለደች እመቤታችን ድንግል ማርያም ከአዳም ዘር የተላለፈ ኃጢአት (ጥንተ-አብሶ) ያላገኛት መርገመ ሥጋ ፣ መርገመ ነፍስ የሌለባት ገና ከመወለዷ አስቀድሞ በአምላክ ሕሊና ታስባ ትኖር የነበረች ፣ በሰው ልማድና ጠባይ ከሚደርሰው ሥጋዊ ሀሳብና ፈቃድ ሁሉ የተጠበቀች ከተለዩ የተለየች ንጽሕት ቅድስተ ቅዱሳን ናት። (መኃ 4፡7) ። እመቤታችን በውስጥ፣ በአፍኣ ፣ በነፍስ ፣ በሥጋ ቅድስት ስለሆነች እግዚአብሔር ለልጁ ማደሪያ መርጧታል። ማኅደረ መለኮት እንድትሆን አድርጓታል። አምላክን ለመውለድ ያስመረጣትና ያበቃት ድንግልናዋ ፣ ንጽሕናዋ ነው። (አባ ሕርያቆስ፣ መዝ 132፡13)። ንጽሐ ሥጋ ፣ ንጽሐ ነፍስ ፣ ንጽሐ ልቡና ለእመቤታችን ገንዘቦቿ ናቸው።

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, through its Holy Synod, has clearly affirmed that the Holy Virgin Mary is free from all forms of impurity, including original sin (ጥንተ አብሶ). This is the established teaching of the Church.

As Solomon declares in the Song of Solomon, “ወዳጄ ሆይ ሁለንተናሽ ውብ ነው ነውርም የለብሽም” (Song of Solomon 4:7), the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, based on Holy Scripture and the teachings of the Church Fathers, understands these words as prophetically referring to the Holy Virgin Mary. Thus, the wise Solomon, in his great song, praises her beauty and purity, declaring that there is no blemish in her. The Church therefore teaches that the Holy Virgin Mary was not afflicted by original sin (ጥንተ አብሶ / ድቀተ ባሕርይ).

The Holy Virgin Mary, although born of a mother and father who were subject to the fallen nature (ድቀተ ባሕርይ), was herself a seed preserved from the womb. This is understood in the prophetic words of Isaiah: “የሠራዊት ጌታ እግዚአብሔር ዘርን ባያስቀርልን ኖሮ…” (Isaiah 1:9). Our Lord took this pure flesh from her and united it to Himself (ጌታችንም ይህን ንጹሕ ሥጋ ነው የተዋሐደው).

The Preface to the Miracle Book of Mary (የተአምረ ማርያም መቅድም) states, “እመቤታችን ማርያም ዓለም ሳይፈጠር በአምላክ ሕሊና ታስባ ትኖር ነበር,” indicating that, according to God’s eternal purpose, she was chosen and preserved in purity for her unique role in the mystery of salvation. Likewise, Saint Severus (ቅዱስ ሳዊሮስ), in Haimanote Abew (ሃይማኖተ አበው), states: “መንፈስ ቅዱስ በእናቷ ማኅፀን ጠበቃት።”

These testimonies affirm the same truth: the Holy Virgin Mary was chosen according to God’s eternal purpose and preserved by His grace for her unique role as the Mother through whom the Savior entered the world.

Saint Yared, in his liturgical hymnary known as the Dəggə, states: “ማርያም አስቀድሞ በአዳም አካል (ባሕርይ) ውስጥ እንደ ዕንቁ ታበራለች።” — “Mary shines like a pearl (ዕንቁ) in the body/nature of Adam from the beginning.” This affirms that she was chosen and prepared by God in advance to be the dwelling womb of the Incarnate Word, for the Holy One dwells in what is holy and pure.

In another hymn within the Dəggə, St. Yared writes:: “አንጺሖ ሥጋሃ ቀዲሶ ኪያሃ ኀደረ ላዕሌሃ” — “ሥጋዋን አንጽቶ፣ እርሷን ቀድሶ፣ በእርሷ ላይ ዐደረ” (ድጓ ዘፍልሰታ ኪዳነ ምሕረት).

The words “አንጺሖ ሥጋሃ ቀዲሶ ኪያሃ ኀደረ ላዕሌሃ” convey the profound holiness of the Virgin Mary: God purified her flesh (አንጺሖ ሥጋሃ), sanctified her (ቀዲሶ ኪያሃ), and dwelt in her (ኀደረ ላዕሌሃ). In this sense, St. Yared presents the Virgin as one who was specially purified, sanctified, and set apart as the dwelling place of the incarnate Word.

Thus, “ሥጋዋን አንጽቶ” is understood theologically as referring to God's special purification and sanctification of her humanity, setting her apart for the divine indwelling. This supports the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church’s understanding of the Virgin Mary as uniquely pure and holy, from the womb of her mother.

Saint Heraclas, the third-century Bishop of Alexandria, explaining the mystery of the betrothal of the aged Joseph to the Holy Virgin, states that Joseph did not know that she had been created from pure dust (seed) to become: “የእግዚአብሔር መቅደሱ ፣ ማደርያው ትሆነው ዘንድ ከንጹህ አፈር (ዘር) የተፈጠረች መሆኗን አላወቀም።” (Haimanote Abew, Chapter 48, verse 31).

Of course, the aged Joseph did not initially understand why he had been betrothed to the Holy Virgin Mary. Nor did he fully understand that she was the one whom the prophets had foretold would conceive and give birth to the Lord while remaining a virgin, and that she had been set apart from the curse inherited from Adam and Eve. He began to understand these mysteries after the angel reassured him, saying, “ከእርስዋ የተፀነሰው ከመንፈስ ቅዱስ ነውና እጮኛህን ማርያምን ለመውሰድ አትፍራ።” (Matthew 1:20), and after witnessing the various signs surrounding her.

For this reason, Saint Heraclius states, “የእግዚአብሔር መቅደሱ ትሆነው ዘንድ ከንጹህ አፈር (ዘር) የተፈጠረች መሆኗን አላወቀም።” This expression emphasizes the purity and holiness of the Holy Virgin Mary from the beginning of her existence. Before Joseph understood the mystery concerning her, he did not know that she had been set apart from the effects of Adam’s sin. Heraclius therefore describes her as having been created “from pure dust—ከንጹህ አፈር,” highlighting her purity and sanctity.

Conclusion

The testimony of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, together with Scripture, the Fathers, and the sacred hymns of Saint Yared, presents the Holy Virgin Mary as uniquely purified and sanctified by God and preserved from original sin (ጥንተ አብሶ). Her purity was not accidental, but part of God’s providential preparation of the holy dwelling place of the Incarnate Word. In the next part, we will examine this mystery more deeply through the Church’s understanding of Adam’s fallen nature (ድቀተ ባሕርይ) and Mary’s sanctification.

Did the Holy Virgin Mary Have Original Sin (ጥንተ አብሶ)? The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church Perspective: Part 1

To understand whether the Holy Virgin Mary was subject to ጥንተ አብሶ (Original Sin), we must first understand ጥንተ አብሶ and ድቀተ ባሕርይ (Fallen Nature) according to the teaching of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. The Fall of Adam and Eve changed the condition of human nature and brought profound consequences upon humanity. What, then, did humanity inherit as a result of the Fall, and how do these consequences relate to the Holy Virgin Mary? This first part lays the foundation for exploring these profound questions.

The term “Tente Abso” (ጥንተ አብሶ) means “Original Sin,” literally referring to “የቀደመው በደል፣ የቀደመው ኃጢአት.” It refers to the consequence of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God’s command—namely, the degradation (መጎስቆል/ድቀት) of human nature—which was subsequently inherited by their descendants. Thus, ጥንተ አብሶ does not mean the inheritance of Adam’s personal sin itself, but rather the consequences of that sin, particularly the degradation of human nature.

Because Adam broke God’s command and became separated from God, sin entered the world, bringing death and corruption to humanity. Scripture explains this mystery: “ኃጢአት በአንድ ሰው ወደ ዓለም ገባ በኃጢአትም ሞት፥ እንደዚሁም ሁሉ ኃጢአትን ስላደረጉ ሞት ለሰው ሁሉ ደረሰ፤” (Romans 5:12). Therefore, humanity inherited the consequences of Adam’s disobedience—most fundamentally, a fallen and mortal condition—rather than Adam’s personal guilt for his transgression (መተላለፍ).

There is a clear difference between Adam’s condition before he broke God’s command and his condition after he sinned. After his transgression, he came under the consequences of sin: his human nature became fallen, he was separated from God, and he became subject to sin, the devil, and death. Since Adam was the head of humanity, the consequences of his fall extended to all who would be born of him. Thus, humanity inherited from Adam and Eve a fallen human condition, together with the consequences of their disobedience.

What Are the Consequences of Original Sin (ጥንተ አብሶ) and Fallen Nature (ድቀተ ባሕርይ)?

As recorded in Genesis 3:1–24, the following consequences came upon humanity as a result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience and the judgment that followed their sin:

• Separation from God – Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden and separated from the presence of God: “ስለዚህ እግዚአብሔር አምላክ ከዔደን ገነት አስወጣው።”  (Genesis 3:23–24). Scripture further teaches that sin separates humanity from God: “ነገር ግን በደላችሁ በእናንተና በአምላካችሁ መካከል ለይታለች፥ እንዳይሰማም ኃጢአታችሁ ፊቱን ከእናንተ ሰውሮታል” (Isaiah 59:2).
• Mortality and Death – God declared to Adam, “አፈር ነህና፥ ወደ አፈርም ትመለሳለህና…።” (Genesis 3:19). Paul confirms that “ኃጢአት በአንድ ሰው ወደ ዓለም ገባ በኃጢአትም ሞት፥ እንደዚሁም ሁሉ ኃጢአትን ስላደረጉ ሞት ለሰው ሁሉ ደረሰ።” (Romans 5:12).
• Pain and suffering – The Fall brought pain and suffering into human life, including the pain of childbirth: “በፀነስሽ ጊዜ ጭንቅሽን እጅግ አበዛለሁ፤ በጭንቅ ትወልጃለሽ፤” (Genesis 3:16). Scripture further describes creation as suffering under the consequences of the Fall: “ፍጥረት ለከንቱነት ተገዝቶአልና…” (Romans 8:20–22).
• Labor and hardship – Because of Adam’s sin, the ground was cursed (መረገም), making human labor difficult and burdensome: “ከእርሱ እንዳትበላ ካዘዝሁህ ዛፍም በልተሃልና ምድር ከአንተ የተነሣ የተረገመች ትሁን፤ በሕይወት ዘመንህም ሁሉ በድካም ከእርስዋ ትበላለህ” (Genesis 3:17–19).
• Corruption and bondage to decay – The Fall subjected creation to decay, perishability, and mortality, affecting the creation as a whole. Paul writes that creation itself awaits freedom from the bondage to corruption: “ተስፋውም ፍጥረት ራሱ ደግሞ ከጥፋት ባርነት ነፃነት ወጥቶ ለእግዚአብሔር ልጆች ወደሚሆን ክብር ነፃነት እንዲደርስ ነው።” (Romans 8:21).
• Universal experience of sin – Adam’s transgression (መተላለፍ) affected the entire human race, and humanity came to experience the reality of sin. Scripture declares, “በአንዱ ሰው አለመታዘዝ ብዙዎች ኃጢአተኞች እንደ ሆኑ፥ እንዲሁ ደግሞ በአንዱ መታዘዝ ብዙዎች ጻድቃን ይሆናሉ።” (Romans 5:19). Scripture further states, “ሁሉ ኃጢአትን ሠርተዋልና የእግዚአብሔርም ክብር ጎድሎአቸዋል።” (Romans 3:23).

The Fall of Adam and Eve brought death, corruption, suffering, separation from God, and the fallen condition of human nature. These became realities that marked the human condition after the Fall. Yet God, in His divine plan of salvation, prepared and sanctified a dwelling place for the Incarnation of His Word. The question, therefore, arises: What was the condition of the Holy Virgin Mary, whom God chose to become the Mother of the Incarnate Word?

Conclusion:

The curses and their consequences described above remained upon humanity until our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ came in the flesh, paid the debt of our sin, and delivered humanity from the curse. But was the Holy Virgin Mary subject to these consequences of the Fall, or was she preserved from them from the womb of her mother? Stay tuned as we explore this profound subject in the upcoming parts.