India's 'lost Jews' wait in hope

BBC News ^ | August 18th, 2003 | Geeta Pandey

[missyme]

A team of senior Israeli rabbis is due to rule soon on whether thousands of Indians who say they are members of one of the lost tribes of Israel can settle there.

Only 5,000 of the Benei Menashes have converted to Judaism Shlomo Amar recently led a delegation of rabbis to the north-eastern Indian states of Manipur and Mizoram where members of the Benei Menashe tribe live and practise Judaism.

At the Beith-el Synagogue in the Manipur capital, Imphal, nine men wearing knitted skull caps read silently from the Old Testament.

Four others stand on a wooden platform in the centre of the room as a young man reads from the holy book under the supervision of an elderly priest.

These people claim to be one of the lost tribes of Israel.

Recent discovery

Tongkhohao Aviel Hangshing is the leader of the Benei Menashes in Imphal.

We found that the stories, the customs and practices of the Israeli people were very similar to ours

Tongkhohao Aviel Hangshing "We are Benei Menashe, because we belong to the Menashe tribe," he says.

"Menashe is the son of Joseph, who was one of the 12 sons of Jacob. So we are the lost tribe of Israel."

Mr Hangshing says for thousands of years they did not know they were lost.

"We found out only 27 years ago," he says.

"When the Bible was translated into our language, in 1970s, we studied it.

"And we found that the stories, the customs and practices of the Israeli people were very similar to ours. So we thought that we must be one of the lost tribes."

Saturdays are observed by Jews the world over as the Sabbath, the day of rest, and the members of the Benei Menashe community meet for morning prayers at the synagogue in Imphal.

A lamb-skin scroll of the Torah, is unrolled and then rolled up again as each reader finishes his part.

Hope

There are more than 300,000 Benei Menashes in Manipur but most of them follow Christianity.

Only about 5,000 have converted to Judaism, most of them during the 1970s.

Mr Hangshing says although India has treated them quite well, they do not consider it their home.

Lucy Vaiphei (right) is hoping to join her family in Israel The recent visit by a delegation of rabbis from Israel has given new hope to the members of this community.

Caleb, a 24-year-old college student, wants to go to Israel because he says it is the land of his forefathers.

Amram is studying to be a lawyer. He says Israel is the promised land, for him and the others too.

"In Israel it will be easier for us to practise our religion."

In a chamber partitioned from the main prayer hall, about a dozen women join in the Sabbath prayers.

Lucy Vaiphei is the caretaker of the synagogue.

Her parents and six siblings have emigrated to Israel in the last few years and she is now looking forward to making the move herself.

Michael Freund, director of Amishav - an organisation that helps Jews move to Israel - says he firmly believes that Menashe is one of the lost tribes of Israel.

"We have brought over 800 of them to Israel," he says, "and the remaining people also want to emigrate".

Mr Freund says that last year the new Israeli interior minister, Avraham Poraz, suddenly declared his opposition to bringing the Benei Menashes into Israel.

"But I'm confident that if the chief rabbi issues a ruling saying that the Benei Menashes are indeed descendents of the Jewish people and should be allowed back home, then he will have no choice but to let them in."

So while the rabbis in Israel take a decision on whether or not to grant the right to emigrate to Israel to the Benei Menashes, this community here is waiting with bated breath - and praying.

[Cronos]

Actually, BOTH of us are wrong: from here THe number of Jews in the world is 14 million

[William Terrell]

The prophecy DOES ring true and most important -- it is an OLD TESTAMENT prophecy, with complete closure with the Resurrection. The prophecies of the OT are closed once and for all with Christ's death, the OT ended with his Birth. Any prophecy concerning our times would be contained in the NEw testament

The prophecy rings true; the fulfillment doesn't.

One has to either show it fulfilled or one has to assume God is a piker and cancels his prophecies and promises. From my understanding, the coming of Christ canceled all the rituals necessary in the past to atone for sins, nothing else.

[Cronos]

The prophecy rings true; the fulfillment doesn't.

I would differ and say that the fulfillment rings true as well and that GOd has completed his prophecies

[Right Wing Puppy]

Oh no! More Kerry supporters!

[William Terrell]

I don't believe there are 24 million Jews, and certainly not 24 million hereditary Jews. Still, can you honestly say, outside the necessity for holding up your end of the debate, that the number Jews draw from you a a "sands of the sea" or "stars in the sky" description?

[Cronos]

Still, can you honestly say, outside the necessity for holding up your end of the debate, that the number Jews draw from you a a "sands of the sea" or "stars in the sky" description?

See, look here mate -- the total number of people in the entire bleedin' world don't draw that LITERAL description. The total number of people that have ever lived don't even come NEAR that LITERAL description. If you're going to be so Literal minded, then the prophecy ain't gonna happen until we have a Galactic Empire -- and you'd be pretty knackered to wait that long.

14 million is a large number, heck, even the 1 million odd number of Jews and Israelites that came back when the Persian Shah said go on outta here IS HUGE.

[priceofreedom]

"Jews from Arab lands look like Arabs"

On this point I would have to disagree. My grandparents were from Turkey and Iraq and you can tell immediately that they are not Arabs. When you are in Israel it takes about 1 day to be able to discern the difference between the Jews and the Arabs. Some of my family are very dark skinned but the facial features are different then that of the Arabs.

[missyme]

Maybe because many of the Jews were scaterred about Europe unlike the ARABS...

[Alouette]

LostTribe (the guy who kept claiming that the Celts were the "Israelites) would have a field day on this thread.

[priceofreedom]

"Israelis have risked their lives to bring Ethiopian Jews, Yemenite Jews and others to Israel. It was never about color."

thanks cinnamon, you took the words right out of my mouth.

[Havoc]

oooooooo Pretty. ;)

[Havoc]

The term Israel and Judah are used interchangeably at times after the Exile.

I think that is something you would have to find support for. At the time of Jesus, there is no hint that such distinctions had been broken down, much less after him save for distinctions by outsiders who were not of the tribes. And that is another matter.

[William Terrell]

That will probably count converts. The line of Abraham is genetic. I don't know how important that is, but the Bible seems to place a lot of importance on it.

[William Terrell]

But there is no evidence in the Bible or history for the reconcilliation of the two houses. None that fit the prophecy, that is, except the one I mentioned. That one could be interpreted so.

[William Terrell]

Not literal of course, but with all the other masses of populations in the world, would you call the Jews sands of the sea? Plus, like I said in a recent post, we are probably talking hereditary Jews, not converts, because the Bible talks hereditary and doesn't mention converts.

Sands of the sea is a very subjective term, but I can't think it being used in a prophecy would mean some statistically insignificant population.

[Havoc]

There were no "lost Tribes", they were assimilated into different groups including the Judeans, Arabs, Chaldeans, etc.

Lost speaks to their curse to be scattered from their lands. Thus the need for an apostle for each tribe to seek them out and minister to them.

They do still exist as tribes in different form perhaps to to interbreeding; but, a family which survives still exists. My name is not Bell, but I'm related to Alex Graham Bell. That family still exists so long as I and my siblings exist among others. What do you do with the ritually pure family of cohan priests in Africa - a secluded community which survives to this day right where history says they should be. Arguing nonexistance because you lost them in the history doesn't mean they no longer exist. It means history lost track of them and didn't pay attention. They themselves have known all along where they were.

[Alouette]

the Bible talks hereditary and doesn't mention converts.

The "Book of Ruth" is not part of your Bible, I would suppose.

The very first mention of converts in the Bible is Genesis 12:5.

[William Terrell]

In what way does Gen 12:5 discuss converts to Judaism? And where in Ruth?

[priceofreedom]

the Jewish Virtual Library lists the Jewish population of the world in the year 2003 as 13,296,100

heres the link http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/jewpop2.html

[priceofreedom]

"Maybe because many of the Jews were scaterred about Europe unlike the ARABS..."

In this case that is untrue as my family never made it out of the middle east. Turkey and Iraq is about as far as they got before returning to the holy land.