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Newsletter>
Pastor Thomas Featured in Local Newspaper
September 14, 2008
There is a lot of understanding coming to the Christian church today concerning Israel — rightfully so since Christians believe that all things for Christians and Jews will be fulfilled in Israel.
We are now beginning to understand that our Messiah, Jesus, was himself a Jew. There are new congregations of Messianic Jews springing up throughout the United States, which are either Jewish or Gentile believers in Jesus Christ who practice Jewish rites.
What has not come to light yet to Orthodox Jews, Messianic Jews or Christians is that there is a large movement of African-Americans and black people throughout the world, myself included, who understand that they, too, are descendants of the original Hebrew people.
They are either Messianic Jews who believe in Yeshua or they are Orthodox Jews who do not follow Yeshua. They usually prefer to refer to themselves as Hebrews as opposed to Jews. However, Hebrew, Jewish and Israelite people are all synonymous as they all consider themselves the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Much thought needs to be given, particularly in this day and time, in identifying who the "True Israel" is, who are to be the recipients of the promised "Restoration of the Jewish people" in the latter days, the times that many believe we are already in.
The Holy Scriptures reveal that the original Hebrew Jewish people were a different ethnic group from what is typically taught. Through careful study of the Torah, through understanding the demographics, character and likeness of these Hebrew people, and through many Scripture references in the Old Testament, it is clear that they were a black negroid people.
These historic Hebrew people went on to intermarry and intermix into many other nations of black people such as the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Egyptians and Ethiopians causing what we have today: most if not all black people throughout the world being Jewish by the mixing of blood.
After they were exiled out of the land of Israel on several occasions, they primarily fled to the land closest to them, the land of Ham or as known today, Africa. During the African slave trade, they were then scattered throughout the world by slave ships just as the Scripture in Deuteronomy 28:68 prophesied.
As my Christian and Messianic Jewish brothers and sisters and my Orthodox Jewish brothers and sisters hash out whether Yeshua is the Messiah or not, I would like to throw my hat into the ring and add yet another element: a clarion call to my Black Hebrew Israelite Jewish brothers and sisters throughout the world to come into the light to claim their Jewish rites.
Pastor Sylvia A. Thomas is the author of the book "Me? Jewish? The Revelation of a Black American Christian Jewish Woman" and is director of Sylvia Thomas Worldwide Ministries (www.NewIsraelOnline.org) based in Tallahassee. She can be reached at sylviathomasministries@gmail.com.
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