For centuries, young men and boys have climbed the steep mountainsides of Tigray, Northern Ethiopia, to reach ancient churches carved into the side of the jagged rock faces.
Believed to have been built over a thousand years ago, churches in these remote mountains have been a place of worship and study for Orthodox Christians in the region.
Hoping to get closer to God literally and figuratively, the young students risk their lives on a daily basis as they scale the cliff-sides to get to the churches where teachers have spent decades studying holy scriptures.
Dedicated young men and boys have risked their lives for over a millennia to study the churches' texts, written in ancient Tigrinya - the language spoken in the region - in order to become deacons and priests in the church.
Most of the children that attend the churches have been brought there by their family hoping that it will give them a better life, away from the hardship of farming life in a region that has been subjected to devastating droughts in recent years.
Asher Svidensky, 26, who documented their life after a 10-day stay said: 'Some teachers have lived in the mountains for over 40 years and the kids who climb up there every day for their lessons sleep up there since they have no place to go.'
'Most children move to the school as they are looking for a better life or their families wish them to have a better lifestyle than they can provide.
'There is a serious drought in Ethiopia, and while more and more farmers fail to earn enough to survive they are still expected to donate food to the church, making becoming a deacon the only way to stay away from hunger in the area.
'Some kids go back to help their families on the weekends and some don't.'
Source: Daily Mail
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