Ron Ramsey :
The Black Hebrew Israelite (BHI) movement began in the late 19th century in the United States, not in ancient Israel or biblical times. Historians generally trace its origins to two African American religious leaders:
* Frank Cherry, who founded the Church of the Living God, the Pillar Ground of Truth for All Nations in 1886.
* William Saunders Crowdy, who founded the Church of God and Saints of Christ in 1896. Crowdy taught that African Americans were descendants of the ancient Israelites.
Over time, many different Hebrew Israelite groups emerged, each with its own beliefs and practices. Some groups are relatively moderate, while others teach doctrines that mainstream Christianity and Judaism reject. The movement is not a single organization but a collection of different sects and camps.
It is also important to distinguish between:
* The broader Black Hebrew Israelite movement, which began in the 1880s–1890s, and
* The African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem, founded by Ben Ammi Ben-Israel in Chicago in 1967, whose followers later moved to Liberia and then Israel.
From a historical perspective, there is no evidence that the modern Black Hebrew Israelite movement existed before the late 1800s. It is considered a modern religious movement that arose in America during that period. The Black Hebrew Israelite (BHI) movement is diverse, so beliefs vary from group to group. However, there are some common differences between many BHI groups, mainstream Christianity, and mainstream Judaism.
1. Identity of Israel
Many Black Hebrew Israelite groups teach:
* That Black Americans, and often other people of African descent, are the true descendants of the ancient Israelites.
* Some groups also identify certain Hispanic, Native American, or Caribbean peoples as descendants of Israel.
* Many teach that modern Jews are not the primary descendants of biblical Israel.
Mainstream Christianity teaches:
* Salvation is available to all people through faith in Jesus Christ, regardless of ethnicity (Galatians 3:28).
* While ethnic Israel has a unique role in biblical history, being God’s people is not based on race.
Mainstream Judaism teaches:
* The Jewish people are
2026-06-26 13:01:34