The title of this post ‘How Would Evangelicals React If Our African US Citizens Were From the Lost Tribe of Israel” is reflective of a hypothetical intellectual exercise only.
I started this exercise because I’ve been completely baffled about how 80% of White Evangelicals who comprise about 35% of the GOP’s base continue to back President Donald Trump who is morally challenged from his habitual lying and cheating ways along with his misogynist, racist, Xenophobic and bullying cruel impulses.
Over time, I have noticed that many of these Evangelicals are into ‘end time’ scenarios. In the bible, there is a section that predicts some of the events in the ‘end times. ‘There is this depiction of His angels separating out the wheat from the chaff. I have wondered how this would be done. I’m thinking that one way would be for the angels to separate out racists, anti-immigrants and Xenophobes from the rest of society. In this section, God’s followers are warned about not following false Gods by looking at these impostors’ fruit. President Trump’s fruit stinks to high heaven.
It has upset me that many of the folks who call themselves Evangelical Christians have been mum on the republican President Donald Trump’s racial animus.
Part of the Evangelicals’s blindness towards the president’s racist bias may have to do with those policies in favor of Israel which are in sync with their ‘end times’ beliefs.. For example, they were strong proponents of the president’s decision to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
I escalated my thinking hypothetically only to ask the question, what if Evangelicals were to find out in the ‘end times’ that our Black brothers and sisters are from “the lost tribe of Israel?
As per Wikipedia, “The ten lost tribes were the ten of the Twelve Tribes of Israel that were said to have been deported from the Kingdom of Israel after its conquest by the Neo-Assyrian Empire circa 722 BCE. These are the tribes of Reuben, Simeon, Dan, Naphtali, Gad,Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Manasseh and Ephraim.”
Then of course, I started to do a bit more research. I bet that our Evangelical brothers and sisters aren’t aware that there are Black Ethiopian Jews living in Israel. People forget that there were Black Jewish peoples as described, as in the bible in Songs of Solomon 1:5, where Solomon describes his physical appearance; He says “I am black and handsome, O daughters of Jerusalem.”
See: The History of Ethiopian Jewry | My Jewish Learning
See: Ethiopian Jews | The Times of Israel
See: They didn’t want Ethiopian Jews in Israel, either – Opinion – Israel/ Haaretz
It seems the existence of black Jews or the “The Hebrew Israelites” who could be considered to be the “lost sheep” of Israel, is based on the list of curses found in the Bible verses of Deuteronomy Chapter 28. This Chapter 28 describes how the Israelites who did not obey God would be disbursed through-out many lands to live the life of slaves. (It is my opinion that this is theory only.)
What if these same Evangelicals who have been condoning racism were made aware that they could be held accountable by God for messing with Blacks who could be “The Hebrew Israelites?”
There is this bible verse somewhere that ‘if anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother or sister, he’s lying. For anyone who doesn’t love his brother or sister, whom he has seen, can’t love God, whom he hasn’t seen.’ Another verse says something like, ‘If anyone claims to be in the light but hates his brother or sister, he is still in the darkness.’
The nexus between racism and antisemitism in the USA is for real. The republican Party faithful cannot continue to play footsies with the racists within their ranks without also condoning the White Supremacists’ animus towards those who practice their Jewish faith.
There are communities in existence which call themselves the “Hebrew Israelites.”
Here is the rest of the story…(from a prior post)
On August 29, 2016, Sam Kestenbaum of Foward penned the following report, “Who Are The Hebrew Israelites?”
Excerpts:
“Their story rarely finds its way into the mainstream news. When it does, readers are surprised.”
“A cousin of First Lady Michelle Obama is a black rabbi in Chicago? Generations of African Americans — not religious converts — who observe the Sabbath and read the Torah? A star NBA player decides to move to Jerusalem on a spiritual journey, calling himself the descendent of an “ancient tribe of the Hebrew Israelites?” What does it mean?”
“Parallel to the American Jewish story, another complex spiritual tale has been unfolding for over a century — that of the Hebrew Israelites.”
“Hebrew Israelites are people of color, mostly African Americans, who view the biblical Israelites as their historic ancestors. For Hebrew Israelites, the transatlantic slave trade was foretold in scripture and they understand those Africans who were enslaved in the Americas as Israelites, severed from their heritage. Now they are returning.”
“Israelites of all stripes today point to specific scriptures as prophetic proof of their ancestry, particularly Deuteronomy 28. For Israelites, the chapter describes a foretelling of slavery and servitude in the Americas: “The Lord will send you back in ships to Egypt on a journey I said you should never make again.” The chapter also describes those Israelites being made to serve false gods and lose knowledge of their true identities.”
HOW OLD IS THE MOVEMENT?
“Over a century. There is no one “founder” of the movement, instead an entire generation of patriarchs who shared related beliefs. These figures were commonly called Black Jews in their lifetimes, but later generations carrying on their traditions have gravitated towards Hebrew Israelite or simply Israelite.”
“These patriarchs include a former runaway slave named William Saunders Crowdy, who gained a following in the 1890s, teaching that blacks were the “lost sheep of Israel” and that they should return to the ancient ways of the Hebrews as described in the bible.”
“In NY, a Barbadian musician named Arnold Josiah Ford founded a Harlem congregation in 1924 and also taught that blacks should take on the Hebrew faith. Ford was an associate of nationalist leader Marcus Garvey and led a small group of followers to Ethiopia in 1930 where he lived until his death.”
“Arguably the most influential leader was another Caribbean-born rabbi named Wentworth Arthur Matthew, who was ordained by Ford. Matthew founded an influential congregation in Harlem known as the Commandment Keepers in 1919. That congregation became a hub of high-profile activity for decades, visited frequently by Jewish journalists (including reporters from the Yiddish Forverts). Matthew formed a rabbinical school and taught an entire generation of spiritual leaders.”
More details about the formative years of these groups can be found in the book “Chosen People,” by Jacob Dorman, a professor of history at Kansas University. For a perspective from the Israelite Board, Rabbi Sholomo Ben Levy maintains a website, with many pages of insider history, about “people who identify as Black Jews or Israelites.”
WHY ‘ISRAELITES’ AND NOT JEWS?
“From around the the 1890s to the mid 1960s, the leaders mentioned above were most commonly called Black Jews. Beginning in the mid 1960s, a younger generation of community members ushered in the term Hebrew Israelite.”
“The term Hebrew Israelite, or often simply Israelite, is used today by members to distinguish themselves from the religion practiced by Ashkenazi, Sephardi or Mizrachi Jews. Israelites maintain that they are practicing their ancestral way of life, not coming into a foreign religion.”
“And categories are never static. Hebrew Israelites may also identify as Jews and move fluidly between Israelite and Jewish prayer spaces or organizations. Take, for example, Rabbi Capers Funnye, who holds an Israelite ordination and also attended the mainstream Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership. Funnye has said that, to him, the terms Black Jew, Hebrew Israelite and Black Hebrew are all synonymous — and simply mean “Jew of African descent.”
WHAT ARE THOSE BIGGEST GROUPS TODAY?
“The International Israelite Board of Rabbis was founded in 1970 by a group of Rabbi Matthew’s students. The newly-elected chief rabbi of the board is Funnye, a cousin to Michelle Obama and a well known cleric from Chicago.”
“The Church of God and Saints of Christ, organized by Crowdy, is another very large group which also teaches the New Testament and calls Jesus Christ a prophet. A new chief rabbi has recently been named for this organization, which is based in Virginia.”
“A third well-known group, originally based in Chicago, Illinois, is the African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem, formerly led by a man known as Ben Ammi. This group caused international headlines when they left America and ultimately settled in Dimona, Israel, starting in 1969. The have had a fraught relationship with the Israeli government for decades, but relations have improved in recent years.”
ARE THEY ‘RECOGNIZED’ BY OTHER JEWS?
That depends on what “recognized” means. Most Israelites are not looking for validation or recognition and in fact may not identify as Jews. Still, some Jewish American groups have sought to bring Israelites into the fold — but often suggest conversion, which many Israelites object to.
Some of those early efforts at outreach also failed to distinguish the Israelites from Jews of color who belong to mainstream denominations. And some African American Jews have been among sharpest critics of the Hebrew Israelites, both historically and in recent months.
Read more: https://forward.com/news/ who-are-the-hebrew-israelites/
See: African Hebrew Israelites | My Jewish Learning
See: Tracing the Ties that Bind Blacks and Jews in History and Myth/ Harvard Press
See: Nigeria’s Igbo Jews: ‘Lost tribe’ of Israel? – CNN – CNN.com
Gronda Morin 
I’d guess many evangelicals would pass right by Jesus if he was standing on a walkway and not even know who he was. They often picture him as blond and white. If he told them they would probably scoff. They have sight but see not. We’re also told to see him in the stranger who needs help. In other words, Trump is not allowing Jesus to enter the U.S. He’s calling Him dangerous and a threat. I read some years back the white Jews in Isreal were not thrilled about black Jews wanting to come and settle there. 😦 — Suzanne
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Dear Suzanne,
Prejudice keeps raising its ugly head. Antisemitism and racism seem to be inextricably linked. Those who suffer from the one form of hate, inevitably succumb to the other. It also seems to be aligned with those who exhibit anti-immigration sentiments.
President Trump resorting to catering to the racists and those who are anti-immigration in his base, will by default add fuel to antisemitism feelings in the country.
Jesus was Jewish, of darker coloring and he was not wealthy. President Trump and his cronies would have called him a loser.
Jesus preached the ‘good Samaritan’ parable for a reason. Evangelicals need to review this part of their bibles.
One cannot practice ‘hate’ while calling themselves ‘Christians.’
Mistreating the refugees at the border who are simply requesting asylum which is legal by US and International law, is not a Christian act. The death of 2 children because of US mistreatment of these refugees is a mark on the consciences of all Americans. This evil cannot be allowed to continue, unimpeded.
Hugs, Gronda
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