A Delicate Issue

I read an article recently from the New York Times. The issue was on a particular African American Jewish Synagogue's efforts to reach out to the larger Jewish community.

This article was of personal interest to me because the history of the African American Jewish community in America has indirectly shaped who I am. I will speak to that a little bit further on in the blog. But first I want to speak about origins.

The introduction of Judeo-Christian culture into the communities of slaves is a commonly accepted starting point when addressing this issue. Slaves who were taught the narratives of the Hebrew Scriptures began to identify with the plight of the Israelites they read and were taught about. Themes of hard bondage, captivity, a greater hope, freedom, and a promised land were markers that were familiar to their own experiences. Slave songs (later called Negroe Spirituals) are a result of this early affiliation.


In particular, William Sanders Crowdy, and Wentworth Arthur Matthew (both in their respective times) were the harbingers of the teachings and ideologies that were given to slaves and their descendants that would go on to birth an identity movement amongst black people in the United States and abroad. This movement grew and reformed into the various denominations and subgroups that exist today.

Also noteworthy; in the early stages of these movements there was a shift, very similar to that of normative Judaism in that, there were branches that held to Orthodoxy, while others branches held to a Messianic view embracing the Christian Scriptures as a part of their devotion.

Aside from the various expressions that came from these early teachings, there are two distinct differences that encompass them all.

On one side, there are those who identify with the greater Jewish community; often converting and or placing themselves up under Rabbinic Authority.

And on the other side there are those who deny the authenticity of the greater Jewish community and claim a personal connection to the legacy, heritage, and culture of the Hebrew Scriptures.

The first is thought by many to be the origin of the latter.


The latter is identified by many labels including; Hebrews, Israelite, and Black Hebrew Israelite, respectively.

Individuals in this movement come to faith in God, and take upon themselves a self imposed identity of being descended from the tribes of Israel. Taking on a biblically observant lifestyle that is shaped by the particular faith community that they are a part of.

In addition to taking hold of this identity they deny the greater Jewish communities connection to the people of Israel; in most cases boasting that they alone are the true descendants of Israel.

This is where the issue gets delicate for me personally. The greater part of my life, (until recently) has been spent in communities that are a part of the Black Hebrew Israelite movement. It was through this movement that I came into a greater faith in God, and a life dedicated to Him; trying as best I could to live a life in faith and obedience to the things conveyed in the Bible. Based on what I was taught and my nurtured convictions I grew to hold certain world views about myself, and others; holding for a time the same views that I am expressing here.

In time though I began to reexamine past notions, and convictions and eventually broke away from that movement.

I do not wish to speak for my brothers and sisters in the Black Hebrew Israelite movement, nor am I in a position to do so. Faith is personal to the individual and I do not intend on judging God's grace in another's life.

I will only state my personal observations and objections to certain beliefs.

My personal objections are against the BHI movement's denial of the authenticity of the greater Jewish community. I also object to the notion that African Americans are descendant from the people of Israel, and the emphasis placed on accepting that belief. I strongly believe that these teachings are uneducated, unnecessary and ultimately irrelevant.

Here is why.

The Jewish people collectively share a communal memory that is both global and historic. There is continuity in their existence; ethnically and culturally as attested to throughout the Hebrew Bible. I choose to honor these things, rather than speak against it. God has done it; and nothing is against His Will.

In regards to African American descent from Israel, one must consider that the reality of our ethnic make up is more complex than meets the eye. By some estimates there were close to two hundred and fifty ethnic groups taken out of West, Central, and South Africa during the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.

Further more, the tribes and people groups that make up this great ethnic diversity were themselves of Muslim, and or Indigenous African faiths. Of note, many in the BHI movement hold to notions of racial superiority, especially in regards to skin color, boasting that the ancient Israelites were black, and or of a dark/swarthy hue.

And in objection to this I ask the reader to consider that King David, King Solomon, Esther, and the Nazarites mentioned in the book of Lamentations are all described as being ruddy. (1 Samuel 16:12, 1 Samuel 17:42, Song of Solomon 5:10, Esther 5:1 Septuagint, Lamentations 4:7) Indeed, as Lamentations 4:7 specially says, "more ruddy in body than rubbies"

In contrast the Shulamite woman of the Song of Solomon makes a contrast between her beautiful dark skin to that of the daughters of Israel (Song of Solomon 1:5). The question posed in Jeremiah 13:23 appears to make a similar contrast; in regards to Ethiopians.

There is so much I feel I can say on this subject, but I believe I will end here. At the end of the day, my peace of mind comes in knowing that the God of Heaven and Earth, accepts a person based on a repentant and faithfully obedient heart. This is a truth that transcends all blood ties. I thank you blog reader for your time. This has taken alot of prayer and thought for me to convey. I am imperfect, I am a sinner, and I am nothing. Yet my hope is in the One that I stand in need of each passing day. The One sent from the God of Israel to be her Savior, the one who atones for Israel and all mankind.

Shalom to whomever reads this. Remember God in all that you do. Take Care.