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Note: A new Editorial Board is currently working to give this site a badly needed makeover and therefore this site is currently under construction. We are hoping to unveil new and more in-depth articles as well as online classes in the near future. This new look, new articles, and new features will make it the place to go for Black Jews, Hebrew Israelites, and people of color who are seeking the God of Israel.
If you would like to help with this project as a web designer or write articles for our readers, return the information requested in this Application to Rabbi Sholomo Levy immediately.
| Welcome to this place of meeting, sharing, and learning for Black Jews, Hebrews and interested friends. While everyone is free to read the information contained on these and participate in the discussions that take place here, this site was specifically created as a gateway for people of color who wish to connect with others who share their faith and can identify with their experiences. If you are a friend, enter and explore. Here you can learn a lot about our history, meet many of our Rabbis, visit a few of our synagogues, study Torah and interact with us and each other in a variety of ways. We greet you with Shalom! |
This page is dedicated to the memory of our beloved leaders and teachers.
Black Rabbis, Harlem, New York circa 1967 |
When one speaks of Black Jews, Hebrews, or Israelites, one could be referring to any number of groups. Each is unique, has its own history, and follows its own set of traditions. The best, yet most problematic, generalization that can be made about us is that by the prevailing standards of "race," we are usually considered to be black. We exist both within our own congregations and in predominately white congregations. Some of us have converted to Judaism, others are products of intermarriages, and yet others have been in this way of life for generations. Like Jacob's gift to his son Joseph, we a coat of many colors. The paucity of information about communities like ours has contributed to the monolithic (and monochromatic) image that many people have of Judaism. We are attempting to correct that through education. We hope that our efforts will enlighten visitors to this site and ultimately help to create more unity and dialogue among interested individuals.
The following pages and links will introduce you to our history, leaders, organizations, and congregations. There are essays that describe our beliefs, religious practices, and cultural traditions. You will be able to interact with others at several of the forums, discussion boards, and chat rooms. Finally, you will be able to subscribe to our community newsletter The Hakol and enroll for online courses at the Israelite Academy.
How Could People Of African Descent Have Jewish Roots?
Was the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade that brought upwards of 12 million people from the African continent to various locations around the world part of God's plan?
Could the slave trade have been one method by which God punished and scattered the Children of Israel?
What does the Torah and prophecy say about this subject?
The Bible is our history. It explains what happened to our people, why, and how we shall return to our God.
Deuteronomy 28:30 Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes thereof.
Deuteronomy 28:32 Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thine hand.
Deuteronomy 28:36 The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
Deuteronomy 28:37 And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee.
Deuteronomy 28:41 Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.
Deuteronomy 28:64 And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.
Deuteronomy 28:68 And the LORD shall bring thee into Egypt [slavery] again with ships....
“My people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge.” - Isaiah 5:13
Isaiah 11:12 "He will set up a banner for the nations, And will assemble the outcasts of
Israel, And gather together the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of
the earth."
Jeremiah 46:27 "Do not fear, O Jacob my servant; do not be dismayed, O
Israel. I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from
the land of their exile. Jacob will again have peace and security, and no one
will make him afraid."
Deuteronomy 30:3 "That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have
compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations,
whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee."
Isaiah 43:5-6 "Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the
east, and gather thee from the west; I will say to the north, Give up; and to
the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from
the ends of the earth."
Deuteronomy 4:27-31 And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye
shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall
lead you. And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and
stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. But if from thence
thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him
with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
Deuteronomy 32:8-12 “When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance,
when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people
according to the number of the children of Israel. For the LORD's portion is
his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in a desert land,
and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him,
he kept him as the apple of his eye. As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth
over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them
on her wings: So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange
god with him.” |
WHO IS GOD
Hosea 11:9 “I am God and not man”.
Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he
should change his mind.”
Exodus 33:20 “Thou canst not see my face: for there shall be no man see me,
and live.”
Exodus 4:22 “Israel is My Son, My firstborn”.
GOD’S LAW AND GOD’S ETERNAL COVENENT
Psalms 19:7-10 “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony
of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are
right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening
the eyes. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter
also than honey and the honeycomb.”
Exodus 31:16-18 “Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe
the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a
sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD
made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day [Saturday] he rested, and was
refreshed. And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing
with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with
the finger of God.”
Exodus 19:5 “'Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My
covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the
earth is Mine.”
Genesis 26:4-5 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will
give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the
earth [all races] be blessed; Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my
charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.” |
© 2002-2007. Legal Notice. Use of photographs, audio, or text from this site is strictly forbidden without written permission. No links or references may be made to this site or our organization that does not promote peace and understanding among all people. If referring to information on this site, keep all quotes in context and provide proper attribution to its source.
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Slavery & God’s Prophecy