This article presents a look at contemporary research on Orthodox Christianity in Ethiopia while specifically examining the controversial debtera. The debtera, who figure among the Ethiopian Orthodox Church clergy preforming both Orthodox and occult services, are a telling societal phenomenon. This article should not be read strictly as a summary of the academic literature of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, but rather it introduces a new category—“debteric studies”—in the hopes of expanding the limits of existing research in the field as well as by calling attention the cultural relevance of the duality that the debtera embody. While tracking the trajectory of “debteric studies”, a discourse on secrecy, knowledge, and ambivalence also emerges. Studying the debtera reveals that he both incites rules and the transgression of those rules. He is considered to be on the margins of Ethiopian society, but, at the same time, his presence and the need for his capabilities remains ubiquitous. This article argues that furthering “debteric studies” may also contribute more generally to the study of ambivalence within religious structures.

中文翻译：

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晦涩的神：埃塞俄比亚东正教的矛盾心理

本文介绍了当代对埃塞俄比亚东正教基督教的研究，同时专门研究了有争议的德伯特拉。在埃塞俄比亚东正教教会神职人员中进行东正教和神秘服务的Debtera是一个有说服力的社会现象。本文不应严格视为埃塞俄比亚东正教学术文献的总结，而是引入了一个新类别——“债务研究”——希望扩大该领域现有研究的局限性，并通过提请注意德伯特拉所体现的二元性的文化相关性。在追踪“债务研究”的轨迹的同时，也出现了关于保密、知识和矛盾心理的话语。学习Debera透露他既煽动规则又违反这些规则。他被认为处于埃塞俄比亚社会的边缘，但与此同时，他的存在和对他能力的需求仍然无处不在。本文认为，进一步的“债务研究”也可能更广泛地有助于研究宗教结构内的矛盾心理。