Judah Will Not Believe without Brit-Am! Neither will Joseph!
Contents:
1. Letter from Mark Williams concerning Jewish Acceptance (and lack of it) of British Israelism.
2. Universal Opposition to Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations.
3. British Israelism: Wikipedia. Extracts.
4. The Real Attitude of Jews.
5. Maimonides [Probably] Did not write on the subject!
6. Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations is the ONLY Jewish Authority on the Ten Tribes Subject at Present!
7. What Direct Rabbinical Evidence is There?
1. Letter from Mark Williams concerning Jewish Acceptance (and lack of it) of British Israelism.
Not all Jews acknowledge the Lost Ten Tribes to be amongst Western Nations. There are different reasons for this. There is no school of Jewish experts or Rabbis that finds the Ten Tribes in the West. There is only Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations and its interpretation and explanation of Rabbinical and Hebrew Biblical Sources.
Duration ca. 40 Minutes. For continuation of article please SCROLL DOWN!
Mark Williams wrote:
Shalom!
Is it true what Wikipedia says in their article on
British Israelism; that most Jews aren't fans of the Two-House theology?
I think that'd be a major barrier to acceptance. Even if
incontrovertible proof of the claims of Brit-Am, and other like-minded
organisations, was found tomorrow. I imagine you're quite open in
expressing your opinions to others (being an ex Aussie). What are
reactions from your fellow Jews (not including the ones who already
believe in the LTTs being in the West) usually like? Or have I asked
that before? I mean. Without Jewish support the whole thing kind of
falls apart on a prophetic level (no Israel and Judah walking hand in
hand out of the lands of the North, because Judah doesn't believe
Israel, the nation, is anywhere other than Israel the land, already). I
guess the fact that there are Jewish scholars and rabbis (sorry for the
redundancy), both past and present, who believe(d) the ten tribes
migrated to the North and West of Europe shows that it's not just a
"crazy" British thing :D
Anyway. I've wittered on enough. Take care
Aleikum Shalom
Mark
2. Universal Opposition to Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations.
Shalom,
Mark in the above letter quotes from a Wikipedia article about British Israelism. The article mentions Brit-Am as a kind of Jewish version of British Israel.
It also quotes from different Jewish persons and sources. It gives the impression as if there exists a whole school of Jewish thought that identifies the Lost Ten Tribes with Western Nations. There is no such thing. There is ONLY Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations! There are Jewish sources that we use. We use these sources together with Biblical passages, historical evidence, and numerous other proofs. Each field of evidence needs the other. Brit-Am pulls the different pieces together and shows how they interlock to creat a composite picture that is almost incontrovertible! Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations proves the case. No-one else does, neither from a Jewish point of view or any other!
Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations deserves more recognition than it receives.
Sometimes it seems as if everything and everybody is against us.
The Google Search Engine refuses to even register any of our thousands of articles and entires on hundreds of subjects of interest. Other Search Engines do register us, often prominently, BUT Google has 80% of the market. All our rivals receive coverage from Google but we do not.
Ephraimite groups go out of their way not to recognize us. They do not allow us to speak at their gatherings concerning the Lost Ten Tribes even though they invite everybody else (Jews and non-Jews) and our crowd-drawing abilities are at least as good as any of the others. For some reason they are afraid of the Truths we propagate. They would rather leave the Ten Tribes identity unproven. They do not want proofs from the Hebrew Bible and Rabbinical sources. This is despite the fact that these days we go out of our way not to offend Christian sensibilities.
Anti-Semites hate us because of our Jewish associations.
Academics link us to British Israel and discriminate against us.
The Media usually ignores us.
The list goes on.
It could change but that is the way it seems to be at present.
Some Jews also are much reserved about us.
We have a handful of sympathizers and supporters who buy our publications and send us offerings. We struggle to get by and keep promoting the truths we believe in. They are of potential importance to the Jewish and Ten Tribe Israelite Nations.
We will discuss this a little more but first let us look at the Wikipedia article. It is quite interesting. It is liable to be changed and information lost therefore we shall quote a little more of it than would strictly be necessary.
3. British Israelism: Wikipedia
Quote Extracts:
##
The idea that the British descend from the ten lost tribes of Israel can be traced to various works from the early modern period (c. 1500 - 1800). Adherents of British Israelism claim that earlier sources exist, such as ancient or medieval manuscripts,[12] but these are disputed.
The earliest known advocates of British Israelism include M. le Loyer, an early 16th-century French Huguenot magistrate; Adriaan van der Schrieck, a Flemish scholar (d. 1621); Vincenzo Galilei; the English antiquarian Henry Spelman; Jakob Abbadie; and John Sadler.[13][14][15][16]
Some modern scholars have proposed that British Israelism grew out of earlier schools of thought, in particular various schools of "Phoenicianism" or "Orientalism" that developed from the 18th century.[17] In the early 20th century, the archaeologist R. A. Stewart Macalister said that it was "very popular" for earlier writers to ascribe a Middle Eastern or Central Asian genealogy to the peoples of Ireland or Britain .[18] Charles Vallancey, for example, published a work in 1772 attempting to prove that the Irish language was Phoenician, while John Pinkerton's A Dissertation on the Origin and Progress of the Scythians or Goths (1787) attempted to show that the Scots were Scythians who had originated in Central Asia. The historian Sharon Turner later used Pinkerton's research and identified the Saxons as being Scythian.[19] Other works such as Eastern Origin of Celtic Nations by James Cowles Prichard attempted to prove a Far Eastern origin for the Celts. In Ireland there also developed a popular school of "Phoenicianism" in which some historians, such as Joaquin Lorenzo Villanueva (1837). attempted to link the Irish to ancient Phoenician settlement. Early British Israelites relied on such literature for historical evidence, but also used the Bible as support.[20]
Brit-Am is a vehicle for Yair Davidy (founded ca.1993), based in Israel, who also identifies the Lost Ten Tribes with the British and related peoples. Yair Davidy mostly uses literal biblical explanations to justify his beliefs, supplemented by highly subjective interpretations of mostly ancient literary sources.
Jews
Many Jews reject Two House Theology, and therefore strongly oppose British Israelism.[31] There are very few Jews who support British Israelism.[86]
Several early Jewish sources are used to support Two House Theology, which is a key tenet of British Israelism. However these sources do not state where the ten lost tribes of Israel are located, neither if they were really lost. ....
Most Jews have never subscribed to Two House Theology, and continue to reject this doctrine and therefore oppose British Israelism.[31] Despite this, there have been few historic Jews who talked about "lost tribes". Several Medieval Rabbis and Jewish Torah scholars began to locate the ten lost tribes, but the location greatly varied. Modern British Israelites often quote from Maimonides who wrote:
...I believe the Ten Tribes to be in various parts of Europe.[88]
Brit-Am has compiled many more of these Rabbinic sources, including the testimony of Nahmanides who placed the lost tribes of Israel in France and Northern Europe.[89][90]
Moses ben Isaac Edrehi
Moses ben Isaac Edrehi (1774-1842), a Moroccan-born Rabbi and Kabbalist believed the lost tribes of Israel were also located in Europe, writing in his Historical Account Of The Ten Tribes (1836):
...Orteleus, that great geographer, giving the description of Tartary, notices the kingdom of Arsareth, where the Ten Tribes, retiring, succeeded [other] Scythian inhabitants, and took the name Gauther [Goths], because they were very jealous for the glory of God. In another place, he found the Naphtalites, who had their hordes there. He also discovered the tribe of Dan in the north, which has preserved its name. ...They further add, that the remains of ancient Israel were more numerous here than in Muscovy and Poland - from which it was concluded, that their habitation was fixed in Tartary [ie Scythia] from whence they passed into neighbouring places ... it is no wonder to find the Ten Tribes dispersed there; since it was no great way to go from Assyria, whither they were transplanted, having only Armenia betwixt them.[91]
Elieser Bassin, a 19th century Russian Jew of aristocratic origins and a convert to Christianity, in his British and Jewish Fraternity (1884) equated Britain with the Israelite tribe of Ephraim:
...The Hebrew Scriptures point to the British Isles as the home of God's first-born (i.e. Ephraim, the collective name for the Ten Tribes, Jeremiah 31:9)...It is my conviction that Britain is the nation with whom God has from first to last identified Himself. I, an Israelite of the House of Judah claim you as Israelites of the House of Ephraim (Le. the House of Israel). As believers in the faithfulness of our covenant-keeping God, I call you to awake from your sleep.[93]
After Bassin's publication more Jews began to embrace British Israelism from the late 19th century.[94]
The Jewish Encyclopedia, although not supporting the British Israel teachings, noticed: "The identification of the Sacae, or Scythians, with the Ten Tribes because they appear in history at the same time, and very nearly in the same place, as the Israelites removed by Shalmanesar, is one of the chief supports of the theory which identifies the English people, and indeed the whole Teutonic race, with the Ten tribes" (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1901, Vol. 12, p. 250).
In 1900, SJ Deutschberger, a Jew and head of 'The Industrial Mission to the Jews' became General Secretary of the British-Israel Association.[95]....
The Anti-Defamation League, and most other modern Jews do not consider British Israelism to be antisemitic, only its offshoot Christian Identity. There are even modern Jewish proponents of British Israelism, and modern British Israelites usually cite these authorities or sources to refute the often confusion between British Israelism and Christian Identity regarding antisemitism.[78]
##
End Quoted Extracts.
More relevant extracts will be given and perhaps discussed in a separate article or in a coming posting of our BARS feature.
Let us examine a few of the above points:
4. The Real Attitude of Jews.
The article said:
# Many Jews reject Two House Theology #
This is misleading.
Orthodox Jews on the whole concentrate on practical issues such as how to correct keep the Shabat etc.
Interpretations of Prophecy are treated warily. I do not blame them. Every year or two someone or other comes up with a source (or sources) proving that "this year" is to be the year of Redemption!
Jews usually do not know much about the Lost Ten Tribes and are not usually interested in them. They accept however Rabbinical Opinion on the matter.
Rabbinical Opinion (as found in Commentaries on the Bible and other sources) on the whole say that the Lost Tribes are lost and will return.
A minority opinion (e.g. the Natziv) seems to say that the Ten Tribes have already returned and are now amongst the various Jewish communities. This opinion however is that of a minority.
Another notion is that the Ten Tribes were lost and will not return. This is based on a quote from Rabbi Akiva in the Talmud.
See:
Akiva and Ephraim by Alexander Zephyr
The opinion of Rabbi Akiva was however not accepted by his peers and is not considered authoritative. Whatismore Rabbi Akiva is also alternatively interpreted (by Rashi) as referring to the Ten Tribes in his generation as not returning even though in the End Times they will do so.
Every now and again newspaper articles etc publish sensational articles saying that certain tribes in Afghanistan or elsewhere believe they descended from Israelite and keep Jewish customs. From the Jewish perspective it is the degree of actual or potential adherence to the Jewish Religion that is important.
We have dealt with these issues elsewhere.
See:
Other Claimants to being the Lost Ten Tribes
5. Maimonides [Probably] Did not write on the subject!
The article said:
# Modern British Israelites often quote from Maimonides who wrote:
...I believe the Ten Tribes to be in various parts of Europe.[88]
[88] British-Israel Identity Foundation Truths #
Maimonides, as far as I can tell, never wrote anything of the sort. If he did, it has since been expurgated from published sources. [There were however Rabbis such Rashi, Nachmanides, Abarbanel, Hatam Sofer, and others, who wrote words that could be undersatood to place the Lost Ten Tribes in Western Regions.
Moses ben Isaac Edrehi Who?
The article said:
# Moses ben Isaac Edrehi (1774-1842), a Moroccan-born Rabbi and Kabbalist believed the lost tribes of Israel were also located in Europe, writing in his Historical Account Of The Ten Tribes (1836):
...Orteleus, that great geographer, giving the description of Tartary,...
We have never heard of this personage. The quote from Ortellius who traces the Ten Tribes to Central Asia though it could be extrapolated as indicating they later moved to the west. We have quoted from this source in The Tribes.
The other sources quoted are Jewish converts to Christianity, subject to Christian influences, and not immersed in Jewish sources.
This does not mean that they had nothing to say only that whatever they did say was not particularly Jewish.
6. Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations is the ONLY Jewish Authority on the Ten Tribes Subject at Present!
You (i.e. Mark Wlliams) said:
# I guess the fact that there are Jewish scholars and rabbis (sorry for the
redundancy), both past and present, who believe(d) the ten tribes
migrated to the North and West of Europe shows that it's not just a
"crazy" British thing :D #
This is not so. The Wikipedia article was misleading. Brit-Am itself may inadvertently have also been misleading in the past!
What do the Jewish Sources Say?
Jewish sources as explained by Brit-Am help prove the Ten Tribes to be amongst Western Nations through
[1. Direct Evidence. Commentaries (such as those to the Biblical Book of Obadiah) that expressly equate certain Western Nations with Israelites.
[2. Indirect Evidence. Commentaries that say the Ten Tribes were in certain areas or had peculiar characteristics that historically help identify ancestors of Western Peoples with the Ten Tribes.
[3. Corroboration of Biblical Verse Application.
See:
More Brit-Am Rabbinical Sources
We also show how the Jewish sources correspond with and complement secular evidence from ancient history, mythology, archaeology, etc. In these fields we have also merited to reveal new information, important insights, and confirming reference of proofs.
Of the Three Headings above (i.e. 1. Direct Evidence. 2. Indirect Evidence. 3. Corroboration of Biblical Verse Application) Direct Evidence is what we are considering at present. The other two depend on the subjective explanation of our ourselves.
It should be noted that whatever we say on the subject is liable to be greeted with hostility. Attempts by us to present objectively the evidence we have are often met with prejudice, bias, lack of patience, fear of intellectualism, fear of Fundamentalism [I have entered academic forums and spoken of the Ten Tribes and they have replied with a defence of Darwinistic Evolution as if there was some connection], fear of hidden agendas, anticipated association with hidden agencies [Jews sometimes suspect us of being secret Christians while Christians fear we are trying to destroy Christianity and make them all Jews], and so on. What is more we are often struggling for our own existence with no independent funding or backing.
This means if we want to get a word in we have to sometimes take AN AGGRESSIVE APPROACH. We need to present our case as strongly as possible and to disregard any reservations that might exist.
Nevertheless for the sake of intellectual honesty the reservations need to be stated.
Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations is the ONLY Jewish Authority on the Subject at Present! All available evidence NEEDS Brit-Am explanations, correlations of evidence, linkage of sources, etc, for its relevance to the subject to be appreciated.
This does not mean the evidence is not good.
It is very good.
It also does not mean that the proofs depend on subjective interpretations.
Our interpretations are correct.
It does mean that for the present Divine Providence enabled us to be the means whereby these truths be enunciated.
In future the situation may change but this is how it is for now.
You may not like us.
Or you may like us a lot.
What matters is the truths we have and how successful we shall be in promoting them.
Note that in addition to Rabbinical and Secular Sources we also have a List of 122 Brit-Am Biblical Proofs.
Each Proof is linked to an article or explanatory notes. Some of the proofs owe their potency and proof of their relevance to Rabbinical Commentary.
We stated:
Brit-Am/Hebrew Nations is the ONLY Jewish Authority on the Ten Tribes Subject at Present!
It may be objected that there are other Jewish groups and individuals who have studied the issue.
First of all, there are not that many. Of those that are it may be said:
None of them concentrate on the Ten Tribes now being amongst Western Peoples.
None of them use Biblical Proofs as we do.
None of them use Rabbinical Sources as evidence like we do.
None of them use genuine Secular Evidence from History etc as we do.
None of them can claim to be an Authority as we can!
All this may sound boastful and bombastic and maybe it is. It is also how we understand things to be.
7. What Direct Rabbinical Evidence is There?
Rashi (Rabbi Solomon ben Isaac, 1040 1105, Champagne, France) on Obadiah 1:20 says:
"The first exile of the children of Israel who were exiled from the Ten Tribes to the land of Canaanites unto Zarephath... The exegetes say that Zarephath means the Kingdom called `France' in common language.."
There are those (e.g. Kountrass) who understood Rashi to be referring to the Jews of France or Germany as being descended from the Ten Tribes.
Rashi is BEST understood as referring to the Ten Tribes as Brit-Am understands them to be.
Collating and Comparing other Great revered Commentators (Iben Ezra, Radak, Abarbanel, etc) we compiled the following Composite explanation that encompasses all major opinions of the Commentators and is consistent with the spirit of their approach and with Scripture:
[Obadiah 1:20]
AND THIS FIRST EXILE OF THE TEN TRIBES OF ISRAEL [Rashi] WHO DWELL FROM GERMANY [=CANAANITES, Iben Ezra] AND HOLLAND [Jewish sources quoted by Calvin], EVEN UNTO FRANCE [=ZAREPHATH, Rashi, Iben Ezra, Radak, Abarbanel, Daat Sofrim] AND ENGLAND [= ZAREPHATH, Abarbanel] ....
See:
Brit-Am Commentary to Obadiah
THE LOST TEN TRIBES AND TSEREFAT
Britain, France, and Northwest Europe in Explicit Prophecy
Without Brit-Am bringing the sources together the explanation does not exist.
Brit-Am brings the sources together and shows how they interrelate to each other in a way that isc acceptable and understandable both to those familiar with the sources and to those who are not familiar with them.
This applies to all such evidence.
We are not saying that without us it cannot be done. Once it is done it is open for anyone. It is in the public domain.
Anyone can do it BUT for the present it needs to be done as shown.
Things do percolate down. Brit-Am however is needed to bring it all together.
Recently we met a Christian minister who believes in the Ten Tribes. He began to give us all kinds of insights of his own.
One of the tings he said was that the two shoulder pieces used by the Hight Priest in the Temple Service to attach the Breast plate both bore the precious stone of Joseph as found on the breast plate.
This shows, he said, that Joseph carries all the other Tribes.
The minister presented this idea as one of his own.
It was in fact very similar to an idea we had received from a Rabbinical source and written about on our web-site.
See:
Joseph Unifies the Tribes
The Shoham (translated as "onyx") TWO SHOULDERPIECES stone on which the names of the twelve tribes were engraved was also the special stone of Joseph in the breastplate in which each tribe had its own stone. The Commentary "Sefath Emeth" ("Sefas Emes", Rabbi Yehudah Leib Alter, 1847 - 1905, Poland) says on the significance of the Shoham stone being that of Joseph:
"The main point of the Memorial [Exodus 28:12 above] concerns Joseph and that is why on the Ephod [shoulder-piece of the High Priest] there was only the Shoham which is the stone of Joseph. By means of the stone of Joseph all the twelve stones are unified at their roots".
This is the same idea. It may be that the Minister had read our article or been given the information by someone who had or it may be that it was a genuine insight of his own.
It does not really matter. The concepts trickle down.
Rabbinical sources can help strengthen and confirm Biblical Proofs. They also help us with our studies based on secular information.
Brit-Am/Hebrew nations is the organism that at present merits to bring the different pieces together.
Help Brit-Am and you will be willing the Jewish People and the Lost Ten Tribes in the West including the USA , the UK, and all their kinfolk elsewhere.
Joseph Needs Judah!
Sefat Emet (Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib Alter, 1847 - 1905, of Gur, Poland).
Year 5 643
Judah said to Joseph. "OH MY LORD, LET THY SERVANT, I PRAY THEE" [Genesis 44:18]. The expression I PRAY THEE in Hebrew is "Bi Adoni" which literally means "Please, My Lord". In Hebrew the word "Bi" translated as "please" can also mean "in me". The "Sfat Emet" links the expression "in me" to "My Lord". He says that Judah was hinting to Joseph that his power of overlordship was "in me" i.e. in Judah. In other words Joseph was able to rule by virtue of the exertions of Judah.