The Life and Struggles of Our Mother Walatta Petros: A Seventeenth-Century African Biography of an Ethiopian Woman

Description

The first English translation of the earliest book-length biography of an African woman This is the hardcover scholarly edition of the award-winning English translation of the earliest-known book-length biography of an African woman, and one of the few lives of an African woman written by Africans before the nineteenth century. As such, it provides an exceedingly rare and valuable picture of the experiences and thoughts of Africans, especially women, before the modern era. It is also an extraordinary account of a remarkable life--full of vivid dialogue, heartbreak, and triumph. The Life and Struggles of Our Mother Walatta Petros (1672) tells the story of an Ethiopian saint who led a successful nonviolent movement to preserve African Christian beliefs in the face of European protocolonialism. When the Jesuits tried to convert the Ethiopians from their ancient form of Christianity, Walatta Petros (1592-1642), a noblewoman and the wife of one of the emperor's counselors, risked her life by leaving her husband, who supported the conversion effort, and leading the struggle against the Jesuits. After her death, her disciples wrote this book, praising her as a friend of women, a devoted reader, a skilled preacher, and a radical leader. One of the earliest stories of African resistance to European influence, this biography also provides a picture of domestic life, including Walatta Petros's life-long relationship with a female companion. Richly illustrated with dozens of color illustrations from early manuscripts, this groundbreaking volume provides an authoritative and highly readable translation along with an extensive introduction. Other features include a chronology of Walatta Petros's life, maps, a comprehensive glossary, and detailed notes on textual variants. Cover Title Copyright CONTENTS Abbreviations Chronology Preface Acknowledgments Introductionto the Text An Exemplary Woman, Not anException The Text’sSeventeenth-Century Historical Context The Text and Ḥabäša Noblewomen’s AnticolonialRole The Text’s ReligiousContext The Text’sAuthorship The Text’sGenres The Text’s Genres and ItsHistorical Value Other Gǝˁǝz Texts about Walatta Petros The Text’s Genre and Female Saints Scholarship on theText New Directions for Scholarship on theText The Text’sImages TheBiography of Walatta Petros TheBiography of Ǝḫətä Krəstos Conclusion Manuscripts of the Text andEarlier Translations Introduction to the Translation of theText ManuscriptComparison PhilologicalAnnotation Translation Principles and Procedures The Ethiopian Script andIts Transcription The Translation of the Life-Struggles of Walatta Petros (Gädlä WälättäP̣eṭros) Introduction Chapter 1: The Author’sWorthiness Chapter 2: The Author’sPetition Chapter 3: Our Mother’s Conception andBirth Chapter 4:Our Mother’s Baptism and Childhood Chapter 5:Our Mother’s Marriage and Children Chapter 6: Our Mother Tries to Take up the HolyLife Chapter 7: Our Mother’s Husband Hunts HerDown Chapter8: Our Mother Returns to Her Husband Chapter 9: Our Mother Leaves Her HusbandAgain Chapter 10: Our Mother Leaves Her Brother’s House to Become aNun Chapter11: Our Mother Finds a New Servant Chapter 12: Our Mother Meets Her Lifelong Companion EhetaKristos Chapter 13: Our Mother and Eheta Kristos Decide to Live Together and BecomeNuns Chapter 14: King Susinyos Establishes the Filthy Faith of the Europeans Chapter 15: Our Mother Preaches and Incursthe King’s Wrath Chapter 16: Our Mother Appears Before KingSusinyos Chapter 17: Our MotherEscapes Ras Silla Kristos Chapter 18: Our Mother Moves from the Zagé MonasticSettlement to a Waldeba Monastery Chapter 19: Our Mother Assists the Wicked OldWoman Chapter 20: Our Mother receives Food and a Message from HerMother Chapter 21: A Righteous Monk Predicts Our Mother Will FoundCommunities Chapter22: Our Mother Commands the Animals Chapter 23: Our Mother Debates with Jesus Christ and Receives HisPromise Chapter 24: Our Mother Agrees to Found SevenCommunities Chapter 25: Our Mother Discusses Christ’sPromise Chapter 26: Our Mother Preaches and WorksMiracles Chapter 27: Our Mother Again Incurs the King’sWrath Chapter 28: The Europeans Try to Convert OurMother Chapter 29: King Susinyos Banishes Our Mother toZhebey Chapter 30: Our Mother in Exile Earns the Fear ofHer Guard Chapter 31: The Queen Helps Eheta Kristos to Rejoin OurMother Chapter 32: Our Mother and the Miracle of theSerpent Chapter 33: More Disciples Join Our Mother inZhebey Chapter 34: Our Mother Disobeysthe King Chapter 35: Our Mother Is Freed and Returns fromExile Chapter 36: Our Mother Starts Her Second Community, atChanqwa Chapter 37: Our Mother’s Community Suffers a ViolentIllness Chapter 38: Our Mother Looks for a New Placeto Live Chapter 39: Our Mother Sees the Icon of SaintMary Chapter 40: Our Mother Founds Her Third Community, on MitsilléIsland Chapter 41: Our Mother is Persecuted by RasSilla Kristos Chapter 42: King Susinyos Renounces the Filthy Faith of theEuropeans Chapter 43: Our Mother Celebrates the Return of theTrue Faith Chapter 44: King Susinyos Dies and Our Mother Remainsat Mitsillé Chapter 45: Our Mother Is Healed of an Abundant Flow ofBlood Chapter 46: Our Mother Is Challenged by aMonk Chapter 47: Our Mother Establishes Her Fourth Community, atZagé Chapter 48: Zagé Male Leaders Work AgainstOur Mother Chapter49: Our Mother Escapes an Epidemic Chapter50: The Mother of Our Mother Dies Chapter 51: Our Mother Raises the Monk Silla Kristos from theDead Chapter 52: The Monk Silla Kristos Sees aVision Chapter 53: Our Mother Saves Her Followers from anEpidemic Chapter 54: Our Mother Is Blessed by the EgyptianPatriarch Chapter 55: Our Mother’s Community Flees aLeopard at Zagé Chapter 56: Our Mother Founds Her Fifth Community, atDamboza Chapter 57: Why Our Mother Prayed for the Faithful toDie Chapter 58: Our Mother Orders the Separation of Monks andNuns Chapter59: Our Mother Suffers a Secret Affliction Chapter 60: Our Mother Repairs the Church on RémaIsland Chapter 61: Our Mother Founds Her Sixth Community, at AferFaras Chapter 62: Our Mother Establishes an Order ofCommunal Life Chapter 63: Praise for the Nun Qiddista Kristosand Our Mother Chapter 64: Our Mother Has a Vision of AbbaAbsaadi Chapter 65: Our Mother Drives Demons Away from a RoyalWoman Chapter 66: Our Mother Cripples the DisobedientNuns Chapter 67: Our Mother and the Miracle of the Righteous NunIlarya Chapter 68: Our Mother Lives inAusterity Chapter 69: Our Mother Speaks with Our Lady Mary at AmbaMaryam Chapter 70: Our Mother’s Brother YohannesDies Chapter 71: Our Mother Converts Walatta Giyorgis Back to the TrueFaith Chapter 72: Envious Monks Attack Our Mother’sAuthority Chapter 73: Our Mother Provides the Miracle ofFlour Chapter 74: King Fasiladas Enables Our Motherto Complete the Church on Réma Island Chapter 75: Our Mother Sees an Angel in ZhanFeqera Chapter 76: Our Mother and the Miracle of Butterand Cheese Chapter 77: Why Our Mother Loved to Move EveryYear Chapter 78: Our Mother Goes to the Royal Capital and FallsIll Chapter 79: Our Mother’s Friendship with WalattaMaryam Chapter80: Praise for Our Mother’s Humility Chapter 81: Our Mother Longs to Become a Hermit But Is Toldto Stay Chapter 82: Our Mother SurvivesDrowning Chapter 83: Our Mother Establishes Her Seventh Community, atZambowl Chapter 84: Our Mother and the Miracle of theCandle Chapter 85: Our Mother and the Death of Amata Dinghil’sSon Chapter 86: Our Mother Sees Nuns Lusting After EachOther Chapter87: Our Mother and the Restless Nun Chapter 88: Our Mother Falls Ill and Is Visited by Angels andDemons Chapter89: Our Mother Prepares for Her Death Chapter 90: Our Mother Is Visited by Christ and MadeArchdeaconess Chapter 91: Our Mother Appoints Eheta Kristos HerSuccessor Chapter92: Our Mother Departs to Eternal Life AlternateEnding of the Gädlä Wälättä P̣eṭros The Translation of the Miraclesof Walatta Petros (Täˀamərä Wälättä P̣eṭros) The First Miracle: How Our Mother Replenished theBatter The Second Miracle: How Our Mother Healed a Monk ofParalysis The Third Miracle: How Our Mother Protected the Fields fromLocusts The Fourth Miracle: How Our Mother Healed the Boy and Replenished theAle The Fifth Miracle: How Our Mother Recovered the LostCandles The Sixth Miracle: How Our Mother Rescued the Singing Monk from theStorm The Seventh Miracle: How Our Mother Recovered the Stolen Book of Poems from theFisherman The Eighth Miracle: How Our Mother Recovered the Stolen Book of Poems from theConvert The Ninth Miracle: How Our Mother Repaired the Broken Jar and Healed theBoy The Tenth Miracle: The Vision of the Making of ThisBook The Eleventh Miracle: How Our Mother Stopped the Sun, Rain, andAle Ending and Colophon of the Conti Rossini PrintEdition Summaries of Additional Miracles of Walatta Petros (Täˀamərä WälättäP̣eṭros) The Twelfth Miracle Summarized: How Our MotherHealed the Man’s Swollen Leg (in MS I only) The Thirteenth Miracle Summarized: How Our MotherSaved the Sick Baby (in MS I only) The Fourteenth Miracle Summarized: How OurMother Restored the Stolen Jar (in MS I only) The Fifteenth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Saved People from Fire and with Earth (in MS Ionly) The Sixteenth Miracle Summarized: How Our Motherhealed a Paralyzed Man (in MS I only) The Seventeenth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Protected theRebels against King Bakaffa (in MSS H and I only) The Eighteenth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Took Vengeance on King Iyasu II for PillagingHer Monastery (in MSS H and I only) The Nineteenth Miracle Summarized: How Our MotherSaved the Celebration Provisions (in MSS H and I only) The Twentieth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Took Vengeance on King Iyoas for PillagingHer Monastery (in MSS H and I only) The Twenty-First Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Saved a Man from Woodage Asahél (in MSS H and Ionly) The Twenty-Second Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Protected Her People from Ras Mikaél (in MSS H and Ionly) The Twenty-Third Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Saved a Lying Fisherman (in MSS H and Ionly) The Twenty-Fourth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Cured a Lame Man (in MSS H and Ionly) The Twenty-Fifth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Retrieved Her Stolen Book (in MS Ionly) The Twenty-Sixth Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Healed Another Lame Man and a Sick Woman (in MSI only) The Twenty-Seventh Miracle Summarized: How Our Mother Protected Her Community during the Years of Kings Yohannes, Takla Giyorgis, and Tewodros (in MS Ionly) Summary of the Short History of Walatta Petros’s Community (in MSS I and Jonly) The Translation of the Poem Portraitof Walatta Petros (Mälkəˀa Wälättä P̣eṭros) The Translation of the Poem Hail to Walatta Petros (SälamtaWälättä P̣eṭros) Colophons Appendix: Manuscript Folio Missing fromthe Conti Rossini Print Edition (from MS J) Glossary: People, Places, and Terms in the Text Works Cited Index