Are blacks the original Jews?

It has long been said that Jews are "God's chosen people," that blacks developed the Jewish religion, and Jesus, with his sheep-like hair, was black. If true, African Americans would be heirs to God's blessings and prosperity, not the inheritors of poverty and mis-education.

Perhaps the best known black Jew was the late Sammy Davis, Jr., an entertainer. Photo credit: Alan Light- 1989.

According to the Jewish Virtual Library, the late Chief Rabbi Wentworth Arthur Matthew, who founded the Commandment Keepers Congregation in Harlem, N.Y. in 1919, believed blacks were the original Jews.

Are we religious cousins of Adelson, Abramovich, Bloomberg, Ellison, and Zuckerberg? How does an African American trace his lineage back to Abraham, and why would it be important to do so?

"The possible origins of these Hebraic traditions could be traced to West Africa where a number of tribes have customs so similar to Judaism that an ancient connection or maybe even descent from one of the 'ten lost tribes' is believed," said Rabbi Sholomo Ben Levy in an article on the Library's website.

And when one can trace their linage several generations, a sense of community and contributions to humanity can be valued. Because of the slave trade, this human connection to history has been lost and our contributions denigrated.

Perhaps if we could prove a connection, that we are indeed God's people and follow his commandments given to Moses, we can reclaim our heritage and stature in the world. Maybe the veil can be lifted. Maybe white Jews would embrace us and let us into banking, mining, and diamond industries.

Wikipedia states, "American Jews are disproportionately represented in business, academia and politics. Forty-five percent of the top 40 of the Forbes 400 richest Americans are Jewish." Of those listed, none appear to be African American.

If you are African American and wish to research your Jewish ancestry, you can start with the JewishGen Family website at http://www.jewishgen.org/family/. You can also get information on well known Jewish families who built world finance, like the the Klabins, the Rockefellers, and the Rothschilds.

We need not follow, though, in the footsteps of high financial mismanagement and greed exhibited by the Maddoffs and the Lehman Brothers. We should use our religion, knowledge and connections to uplift and save our people while worshiping and giving honor and glory to God.

©2011 Tomi Johnson. All rights reserved.