Anglo-Israelism

This belief has been accorded little scientific proof or significance; its significance stems largely from its cultural significance as a concept, and as an idea historically accepted and propounded. Proponents assert that national favour with God is based on a nation's status as an Israelite nation while individual salvation remains based on a personal relationship with God.

Due to the amorphous nature of this idea over the years, there has rarely been a central head, recognised leadership, or organisational structure to the movement. This has led to a diverse set of professions and beliefs ancillary to the genealogical claims.

Scope of movement

Growth and spread of belief

Although British-Israelists will cite various ancient manuscripts to show an ancient origin for British Israelism, the belief appears to have gained momentum since the English Revolution and especially during the "Restorationist" movement (late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries). John Sadler published The Rights of the Kingdom in 1649.

It was only in the late 1700s, however, during a religious climate of Millenarianism that it became a distinct ideology thanks to the preaching and writings of two men, Richard Brothers and John Wilson. Other books from this period detailing this theory were Ezra Stiles' The United States elevated to Glory and Honor, published in 1783, and Richard Brothers' A Revealed Knowledge of the Prophecies and Times, published in 1794. Also cited as an original work is Rev. John Wilson's Our Israelitish Origins which was originally published during the 1840s. Brothers was certainly the first of the two to begin to expound his version of British-Israelism, but many have suggested he lacked credibility due to his alleged mental illness and extreme tendencies. Wilson, on the other hand, developed the idea using scriptural references and his own reasoning.

Wilson's ideas were to be refined, and new ideas developed, well into the second half of the nineteenth century. Wilson had already begun to spread his message by public lecture, but no formal organisations or movement was formed under his leadership. British Israelism was seen as amusing to some, fascinating to others, but it did not seem to develop any sort of organisational structure until the latter half of the nineteenth century at the hands of Edward Hine and Edward Wheeler Bird.

In 1919 the British-Israel-World Federation was founded in London near Buckingham Palace. During this time several prominent figures patronized this organisation. Perhaps one of the most notable of these members was the Prime Minister of New Zealand at the time, William Massey. This organisation continues to the present day, with its main headquarters located in Bishop Auckland in County Durham. It continues to maintain local chapters throughout the British Isles and internationally.

Modern adherents

The late Professor Roger Rusk (1906 - 1994), brother of former U.S. Secretary of State Dean Rusk, was a prominent teacher of British Israelism. He spent 13 years as a public school teacher, and 28 years as a professor at the University of Tennessee, where he became Emeritus Professor of Physics. He was also a member of American Physical Society and the Tennessee Academy of Science.

The British Israel belief is also held by Pastor Arnold Murray of the Shepherd's Chapel, a registered non-profit organisation in the State of Arkansas. His teaching is broadcast regularly by satellite.

Some groups that follow the original teaching of Herbert W. Armstrong adhere to this doctrine. Armstrong was the founder and Pastor-General of the Radio Church of God from its foundation around 1934, through its renaming in 1968 as the Worldwide Church of God, until a week before his death in 1986. Armstrong wrote in chapter 5 of his Mystery of Ages (1985), "The Assyrians settled in central Europe, and the Germans, undoubtedly, are, in part, the descendants of the ancient Assyrians." (p. 183). In this, Armstrong draws upon the opinions of Herman L. Hoeh, published in his 1963 Compendium of World History.³ On the fourth page of his book, The United States and Britain in Prophecy (1980), Armstrong maintained that this theory is a master key to understanding Biblical end-time prophecy. The current Worldwide Church of God has abandoned this doctrine and offers a detailed explanation of the doctrine's origin and abandonment at their official website. ⁴

Some have suggested that the references made in the Scottish Declaration of Arbroath of 1320 to the ancient nation of Israel imply that the authors of the Declaration believed in a racial connection between the Scots and the ancient Israelites.^{citation needed}

Due to the expansive nature of the British Empire, believers in British Israelism spread worldwide, but it is most prevalent in the Commonwealth nations, including Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and Belize. Nations with large populations of British and Northern European descendants such as the United States, South Africa, Ireland, and Argentina also contain groups of believers in British Israelism. Although no comprehensive database exists, it is now possible that there are more who embrace this belief outside of Britain than within it.

Historical ideas

Legends and folklore

Ancient British folklore contains many legends connecting Britain with Biblical Israel. These include but are not limited to:

Each of these stories has been incorporated into the British Israel theory as evidence of a belief in a tangible genetic connection between the people of Britain and the people of the Holy land.

Critics^who? contend that these stories are apocryphal and were created and planted later to help justify England's rejection of the Vatican's authority.

The Saka

The key component of British Israelism is their representation of the migrations of the Lost Tribes of Israel. They often suggest that the Behistun Inscription has provided an invaluable missing link. George Rawlinson, Sir Henry Rawlinson's younger brother, connected the Saka/Gimiri of the Behistun Inscription with deported Israelites:

The inscription connects the people known in Old Persian and Elamite as Saka, Sacae or Scythian with the people known in Babylonian as Gimirri or Cimmerian. This is important because the Assyrians referred to the Northern Kingdom of Israel in their records as the "House of Khumri", named after Israel's King Omri of the 8th century BCE. Phonetically "Khumri", "Omri", and "Gimiri" are similar.¹⁰

The archeologist E. Raymond Capt asserted that there were similarities between King Jehu's pointed headdress and that of the captive Saka king seen to the far right on the Behistun Inscription as shown in the photo of the Black Obelisk to the right.¹² King Jehu of Israel was a successor to King Omri of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

General overview of beliefs

The main evidence for British Israel is determined through the identification marks listed in the Bible, which proponents claim strongly apply to Britain and America. Among them are that 12 tribed Israel will lose all trace of her lineage (Isaiah 42:19, Hosea 1:9), Israel will be a great and mighty nation (Genesis 12:2, 18:18, Deuteronomy 4:7-8), named "Great," i.e. Great Britain (Genesis 12:2), will be a blessing to other nations (Genesis 12:2-3), that they will become many nations (Genesis 17:4), that their descendants will be Kings and rulers (Genesis 35:11), that they will keep the Sabbath (Exodus 31:13), that they will be a missionary nation (Isiah 49:6, 66:19), rule over others (Genesis 27:29, Deuteronomy 15:6), become envied and feared (Deuteronomy 2:25, 4:8, 28:10), that they will lend to other nations (Deuteronomy 15:6), that Israel will inhabit the isles of the sea (Isaiah 24:15), that Israel's new home will be northwest of Eretz Israel (Isaiah 49:12), and that it would spread abroad (Gen. 49:22).

Adherents of British Israelism assert that the Saka-Scythians migrated north and west after the Persian King Cyrus the Great conquered the city of Babylon. History suggests that these Scythians were forced further north and west by migrating / invading Sarmatians. The Sarmatians were also called “Scythians” by the Greeks. To differentiate between the two, Herodotus suggests that the former “Scythians” were called "Germain Scythians" (meaning "True Scythian"), while the Sarmatians were still merely called “Scythians.” This theory suggests the term "Germain Scythian" is synonymous with "Germanii." or in modern times "Germanic" or "German."

Rhys argued that both Celts and the Scythians came from an area south-east of the Black Sea, and migrated westward to the coast of Europe, comparing the name of the Welsh for themselves, Cymry, with the name of the Cimmerians "Kumri". He suggested the names Iberia for Spain, and Hibernia for Ireland were connected to a variation of "Hebrew" and that this was evidenced in philology. ¹⁴

Some researchers^who? suggest that the burial customs of the Scythians and Vikings also show similarities to ancient Israelites, for which many have argued a common origin in support of British Israelism.¹⁵

Theology involves claim of racial lineage

As with Judaism, British Israelism asserts theologically-related claims of a genetic link to the early Israelites. As such, it is based on a genealogical construct. This belief is typically confined to the geo-political status or the prophetical identity of the nation, not to the individual's superiority or salvation status with God.

Due to the diverse structure of the movement, other elements of belief and key doctrines may be embraced by individual adherents. British Israel theology varies from the conventionally Protestant Christian to various more extreme forms, one of which may be exemplified by the Christian Identity Movement with some of its historic roots in British-Israelism, but the core belief of British Israelism is that the Anglo-Saxon peoples of Britain and Northern Europe have a direct genetic connection to the Ancient Israelites mentioned in the Bible. However most British Israel movements also believe that personal salvation is open to all.

Genetic evidence

Genetics research on DNA shows that most modern Jews share origins with other people of the Middle East and are sharply divergent genetically from Britons and other Europeans.¹⁶

Criticism

Critics^who? responding to the British-Israel rejectionism, are quick to point out contrary evidence, and the idea that city names in England such as "Yarmouth" arose without any real historical connection to Ancient Israel should be dismissed as lacking basis^{citation needed}. For example, the article from the Scotsman entitled "One in five Scots has blood tie to ancient Iraq" [2]^{dead link} should cast serious doubt to accepting spurious DNA patterns as justification for utterly dismissing other more obvious geographic and cultural evidence^{citation needed}.

Advocates^who? of the theory assert that that the Bible refers to Judah as being of darker skin, and the story of the patriarch Judah himself having a child by a Canaanite woman may also explain genetic differences between modern Jews and the British people while also explaining similarity to modern day Arab people^{citation needed}.

Critics^who? of the theory reject any such interpretation of scripture and find no color distinction among the twelve tribes of Israel. They assert that all of the Israelites were Semitic and thus of the same color and ethnicity as the Canaanites^{citation needed}. Judah's great-grandfather Abraham had been called out by God from among the Chaldeans. The Chaldeans and Canaanites were of similar color and ethnic background^{citation needed}.

Advocates^who? of the theory further respond that the idea of ancient British people as having a religious system entirely unknown to ancient biblical writers should be dismissed considering that the river "Aven" shares the same name as a principal region of idolatrous practices mentioned in various bible prophecies^{citation needed}. Some descendants^who? of the inhabitants of the same region even have family traditions which say that the real name for the same river is actually not even "Aven" at all, but in fact "Beith Muin Ailm," dismissing connection with some of the more widespread ancient customs which are looked down on as unfavorable for the aforementioned reason^{citation needed}.

Key writings and people

Early books criticising the historical and theological basis of Anglo-Israelism include:

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