Priestly ordination of Abebayehu Tefera Atara in Haro Wato

A large crowd braved the strong sun and gathered in the mission football field, seeking solace under the shade of the adjacent trees, to witness the first priestly ordination celebrated in the parish. The ceremony lasted over three hours.

Two dozen priests concelebrated, including Comboni missionaries, members of the local clergy and of other missionary institutes. Also present were numerous Comboni Missionary Sisters, some Handmaids of the Church (a local institute of Hawassa) and Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Mary (FMM). Solemnising and animating every moment was the large parish choir. Deacon Abebayehu chose as his ordination Gospel Peter’s triple confession of love (John 21: 15-19). In his homily, Bishop Seyoum praised the work of the Comboni missionaries over the past 29 years in Haro Wato. He added: “The ordination of Abebayehu is one of the first fruits of this missionary work”. Referring to Jesus’ missionary mandate, the bishop told the future priest: “Go, therefore, everywhere, proclaim the Good News and celebrate the sacraments. The Lord who has called you will always be with you”.

There was great emotion and prolonged trills of jubilation when the ordinand’s father, Tefera, and mother, Alemitu Gedeccho, ‘handed over’ their son to the Church, accompanying him to the altar for ordination. At the end of the Eucharistic celebration, Father Asfaha Yohanes, provincial superior of the Comboni missionaries in Ethiopia, after thanking all those present, announced that the newly ordained will soon travel to Mozambique, where he has been assigned for his first missionary ministry. He added: “A priest is a servant of the Gospel with the strength of God. Pray for him.”

The celebration ended with a meal offered to all.

Fr Abebayehu is 36 years old. He is the eldest of nine siblings: six boys and three girls. He did his novitiate in Namugongo, Uganda, and concluded his theological formation in Nairobi, Kenya. After his ordination as a deacon on 28^th August 2023, he exercised the diaconate in his home parish.

Father Abebayehu said: “For me, being a priest is not just about performing the typical duties of religious authority. It is a journey of spiritual development, selfless service, and communion with the community and the Almighty. Ultimately, being a priest is a holy and complex vocation that requires a strong sense of social responsibility, constant commitment to one's own spiritual development, and total willingness to give unreserved love and compassion.”

Brother Desu Yisrashe, vocational animator of the Province, prepared the first priestly ordination in Haro Wato with a week of meetings with young people.

The Mission of Haro Wato was started in 1995 by the Comboni missionaries, as an offshoot of the mission of Qillenso, in the Uraga Mountains, among the Guji and Ghedeo ethnic groups. They opened a secondary school there. The Comboni Sisters arrived here two years later, to open a dispensary and to start a programme for women. They also run a school, from kindergarten to eighth grade, in the nearby town of Sollamo.

The mission in Haro Wato has 49 external stations, grouped into eight zones. The baptism register contains over 19,000 names.

Fr. José Vieira, mccj