I've always wondered if there was any authenticity at all to the way the Mass at the Ethiopian Church was portrayed. In particular, I was struck that the Host (altar bread representing the Body of Christ) was bread baked into the shape of a little man. Is that something that the screenwriter made up for the sake of the film (like the silly portrayal of shamanism), or do Ethiopian copts really use a man-shaped Host?
shareI haven't found any reasonable facsimiles either at
https://www.google.com/search?biw=1435&bih=992&tbm=isch&sa =1&q=coptic+eucharistic+bread&oq=coptic+eucharistic+bread& gs_l=img.3...18788.24927.0.25961.17.10.0.7.7.0.157.544.9j1.10.0...0.0. ..1c.1.12.img.OmqbL2c9feg
or
https://www.google.com/search?biw=1435&bih=992&tbm=isch&sa =1&q=coptic+altar+bread&oq=coptic+altar+bread&gs_l=img.3.. .102449.104301.0.106625.5.5.0.0.0.0.120.285.4j1.5.0...0.0...1c.1.12.im g.r8NDackoJhk
However, in The Heretic the Coptics were _monks_, not "parish priests" so maybe closed groups like monastics have a different form of Host (?)
I was curious about this as well. I myself am Russian Orthodox, and for various theological reasons that are two boring to go into, we are not in communion with the Ethiopian (tewahedo/Ge'ez) church. i am not familiar with their liturgy. one day when igo back to church I want to ask a priest if he knows. It seems unlikely because the process of consecration of the bread is very detailed and this wouldnt lend itself to it.
shareI could swear that back in 1997 when Joe Bob Briggs hosted the movie on his Monstervision show, he said Linda Blair told him that Boorman was able to have access to a Coptic (?) ceremony - and that they usually never let just anyone witness a ceremony.
share