Enda Mariam Coptic Cathedral, Coptic cathedral in Asmara, Eritrea.
Enda Mariam Coptic Cathedral is a Coptic Orthodox cathedral in the center of Asmara, Eritrea, and is part of the city's UNESCO World Heritage Site. The building has white outer walls, colored glass windows, and a bell tower that rises above the surrounding streets.
The cathedral was built in 1938, during the Italian colonial period, when Asmara was being developed as a modern city. Its design reflects an attempt to bring together local Coptic traditions and the rationalist style that shaped most of the city's buildings at that time.
The cathedral is the main church for the Coptic Orthodox community in Asmara and fills with worshippers on religious feasts. Inside, the wall paintings and icons follow the Ethiopian-Coptic tradition, which looks very different from Western religious art.
Modest clothing that covers shoulders and knees is expected when entering the cathedral. Visiting outside of service times makes it easier to look around the building without interrupting worshippers.
The liturgy inside the cathedral is celebrated in Ge'ez, an ancient Semitic language no longer spoken in everyday life but still used in Coptic and Ethiopian Orthodox worship. This living use of an old language connects the congregation to a practice going back over 1,500 years.
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