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A while back, an Oromo friend forwarded to me an excellent paper, a theological rather than historical analysis of Waaqeffannaa, the genuine Oromo religion. The text was written by one of Oromia´s foremost intellectuals whose vast knowledge, academic methodology, sociopolitical approach, and spiritual values are a great advantage for the entire Oromo nation.
Mr. Getachew Chamadaa Nadhabaasaa´s text under the title ´Waaqeffannaa
Testimony of an Indigenous Religion of the African Past and Present´ had earlier been published in a forum, posted on Tuesday, August 31, 2004, 3:05 am, by Cancuu. Two brief enthusiastic comments had been added in Afaan Oromo without further discussion, although the text offers the possibility of extensive analysis, substantial commentaries, and rich exchange of ideas and viewpoints
In the beginning, I thought to republish the text integrally and then comment extensively; soon I realized that this would be counter-productive. My comments will go far beyond the limits of one or two articles, as Mr. Nadhabaasaa´s text covers a wide range of subjects from the possible origins of Waaqeffannaa, the Kushitic Antiquity and the Kushitic religions, the differences existing between Waaqeffannaa and the so-called ´three monotheisms´ (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), the essence of Monotheism, and the great cultural chasm that separates the Kushitic Oromo Ethiopians from the Semitic Amhara and Tigray Abyssinians to the interrelationship between religion, society and politics, the originality of the African Democracy, and the revelation of the reasons for which the English colonialists so deeply hated the Oromo nation and attempted to totally destroy it by using the Abyssinians. I do not mean that Mr. Nadhabaasaa´s text analyzes all these issues; however, his text sheds light on many points that inaugurate polarizations around, initiate a better understanding of, and instigate further research on, all the aforementioned issues.
In addition, Mr. Nadhabaasaa´s is a text of its own, outstanding, value that deserves distinct treatment and independent publication. I would even consider it as a turning point in the History of Waaqeffannaa, the subject that it describes! Very little has been published so far about the genuine, historical Oromo religion; even less has been published about the future of Waaqeffannaa, the challenges the historical Oromo religion currently faces, in what Waaqeffannaa is necessary to all the Oromos, and eventually other people as well, and how it can survive.

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