Rudolph Windsor in his book From Babylon to Timbuktu: A History of Ancient Black Races including the Black Hebrews presents a thoroughly comprehensive history of the original Jews within the backdrop of ancient History. He traces their origins in Babylon within the loins of their forefather Abraham up to their birth and growth in the land of Canaan all the way up to their final dispersion from Palestine in 70 AD into the greater part of Africa, leading west.
Mr. Windsor exhibits a level of truth-telling that I have only seen in a few books.
He traces the history of the black African Hebrews of Egypt and Ethiopia. We are given lucid glimpses into the Tabiban Kamant and Wasambara Jews who are presently known as the Falashim of Ethiopia. He also takes on intellectual excursions into the backgrounds of the Jews of the Malagasy Republic, which is present day Madagascar. And from there, the reader treks in to the world of the North African Jews to the black Jewish kingdom of Ghana. Out of the Jewish kingdom of Ghana, Windsor relays the interesting story of Eldad the Danite who informed the Algerians of this Hebrew empire south of the Sahara in the western Sudan. Eldad lived in the ninth century. (p. 92)
It was from Windsor’s book that I began to scientifically consider the so-called “black race” originating from Asia and not Africa. He quotes a Herbert Wendt, a white German scholar who asserts, “All indications point to the fact that Asia was the cradle of the Black race.” (p.35) Wendt certainly makes some unsettling conclusions in his book It Began in Babel, another good book that is out-of-print.
Windsor maintains that even the early Talmudic scholars were black, the eminent Moses Maimonides (aka “Rambam”) being one of them. (p. 113) He then turns our attention to the black Jews of Angola known as the Mavumba, the Jews among the Ashanti, the Jews of Dahomey, and the Yoruba Jews of Nigeria. The Yoruba Jews in particular called themselves by the name of “B’nai Ephraim” or “Sons of Ephraim.”(p.131)
Windsor quotes Godbey, “These facts have peculiar significance when the presence of Judaism among American Negroes is to be considered. Hundreds of thousands of slaves were brought to America from this Western Africa during the days of the traffic, beginning nearly four hundred years ago." He also says: “How much more of Judaism survived among West African Negroes in that earlier time? As persecuted communities, they were rather more in danger than other Negroes of being raided by war parties and sold as slaves. It may be considered certain that many partially (why not fully?, is my question) Judaized Negroes were among the slaves in America. How many of them might still hold some Jewish customs here is another question." (Godbey, p. 246) It has been postulated by scholars that so-called “African-Americans” are descended from Yorubas.
If Godbey is right about “Judaized Negroes being in the traffic” (and I believe he is), then I am led to entertain that American blacks are descendants from the tribe of Ephraim, which is apart of the House of Joseph, Manasseh comprising the other half. I’m also led to think that they could be of the tribe of Asher, also being possible descendants of the Ashanti, the people of Ashan, which I’m thinking could be a derivative from Asher. Windsor, referencing Nahum Slouschz, says that the Hebrew tribes of Asher and Zebulon were in Carthage since the foundation of the city. (p. 108) Could it be that these Hebrews of Asher and Zebulon made their way to West Africa, as well? It is highly probable. Windsor makes an interesting point when discussing the Jewish expulsion from Spain in 1492: “These black Jews would naturally go to African countries most of all, because of less persecution and they could disguise themselves amongst the blacks.” (p. 116)
(UPDATE-06/18/2010: AFTER FURTHER STUDY OF THE SCRIPTURES, I AM NOW LED TO BELIEVE THAT AMERICAN BLACKS ARE DESCENDANTS OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH-JOEL 3:6 OFFERS A SIGNIFICANT INSIGHT-"THE CHILDREN ALSO OF JUDAH AND THE CHILDREN OF JERUSALEM HAVE YE SOLD UNTO THE GRECIANS, THAT YE MIGHT REMOVE THEM FROM THEIR BORDER." There is a lot in that verse, but I deem it appropriate to leave it for another forum.)
Rudolph Windsor offers some interesting causes as to why American blacks are deplorably ignorant of their Hebraic past. The first is “the fall of Hebrew kingdoms.” The second is “the lack of communication with Jewish education centers,” and thirdly, “intense persecution and their deliberate blotting out of the mind their true nationality.” (p. 123) There is one final factor that Windsor fails to consider: knowledge of self and one’s history on the part of black people will only be realized through Yeshua the Moshiach of Israel through the Ruach Hakodesh. This is how this reviewer came into the understanding of his Hebraic past.
Windsor examines the causes for the fall of Hebrew kingdoms. He cites a Moroccan Jewish tradition that attributed their decline to epidemics, wars, and frequent conversions to Islam. (p.119) Windsor also explores how some Jews made it to West Africa by a very intriguing route...from Portugal. (p.115) During the Portuguese expulsions, many Jews fled into the West African coast by way of ships. Windsor relates, “As it has been mentioned before, King John of Portugal furnished ships in order to deport the Jews to any country they desired; however, unscrupulous Portuguese captains exacted as much money as they could from the Jews and dumped their human cargo at various places along the west African coast.” (p. 124)
And lastly, Windsor offers some very refreshing hope for the future in this area of research, “Continuous research is needed in African Hebrew History, especially in the excavation of ruined Hebrew cities of Africa. When this gigantic work is completed, I believe the evidence will reveal information that will amaze humanity. It is my sincere belief that a greater number of black Jews were deported to the western coast of Africa than is admitted by some writers.” (p.125)
I believe the denial of “some writers” is modest friendly assessment by Mr. Windsor. I would venture to say that most writers present dubious presentations of African Jews. I would also say that many have dropped the ball in this area and perhaps have been sadly conditioned into accepting that the Ashkenazi type is the genuine pictorial presentation of the modern Jew. It would be short of a miracle if genuine archaeological work was undertaken in this area. However, the Zionist power structure would have a lot to lose if such facts were brought to light. I thank the author, Mr. Windsor, for his work because it has given me the intellectual capital to further search this much neglected field out and to further discover my African Hebrew-Jewish past and ancestry. Rudolph Windsor’s work is so much of an ideological weapon that he ran into difficulty with many mainstream publishing houses that he was led to create his own, known as the Windsor’s Golden Series. I just wish he would write more.
Copyright © 2010 Emeth Book Review
