Figurative and Literal use of Lineage in Scripture
It should be noted that lineage is used in the scriptures both in figurative and literal ways. For example, in the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord states that "the rebellious are not of the blood of Ephraim" (D&C 64:36). Latter-day Saints believe in the "literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes" (Article of Faith 10) and that the declaration of lineage in patriarchal blessings reflects at least one component of genuine genetic ancestry, although Gentiles without Israelite ancestry can be "adopted" into a tribe.
There are some cases where parents are of one tribe and a child may be declared to be of a different tribal lineage. While the purpose of this paper is not to explore the genetics of the transmission of tribal lineage, it is sufficient to say some individuals may have some genetic influence from more than one tribe, although only one tribe is declared as primary in each patriarchal blessing. There may also be dominant and recessive traits associated with lineage. When mixed lineage is present, lineage of Ephraim and Manasseh frequently appear to be dominant. For example, most full-blooded Irish members are of the tribe of Dan, while the overwhelming preponderance of those of mixed Irish ancestry β Irish-American, Irish-Scottish, Irish-English, etc. β are of the tribe of Ephraim. This concept of dominant and recessive inheritance may explain at least in part why there are so many LDS members of the lineage of Ephraim and Manasseh.
History of the Tribes
The apocryphal second book of Esdras, regarded as genuine by many early Christians, gives the following account of the ten tribes:
‘"nd whereas thou sawest that he gathered another peaceable people unto him. These are the Ten Tribes which were carried away captives out of their own land in the time of Oseas, the king, whom Salmanaser, the king of the Assyrians, took captive and crossed them beyond the river; so were they brought into another land, but they took this council to themselves, that they would leave the multitude of the heathen and go forth onto a further country, where never man dwelt, that they might keep the statutes, which they never kept in their own land. And they entered in at the narrow passages of the river Euphrates, for the most High then showed them signs and stayed the springs of the flood till they were passed over; for through the country there was great journey, even of a year and a half, and the same region is called Arsareth." (2 Esdras 13:39-45.)
Lands of the Dispersion: Afghanistan
‘And it came to pass that the servant said unto his master: How comest thou hither to plant this tree, or this branch of the tree? For behold, it was the poorest spot in all the land of thy vineyard. And the Lord of the vineyard said unto him: Counsel me not; I knew that it was a poor spot of ground; wherefore, I said unto thee, I have nourished it this long time, and thou beholdest that it hath brought forth much fruit. And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto his servant: Look hither; behold I have planted another branch of the tree also; and thou knowest that this spot of ground was poorer than the first. But, behold the tree. I have nourished it this long time, and it hath brought forth much fruit; therefore, gather it, and lay it up against the season, that I may preserve it unto mine own self.’ Jacob 5:21-23
Afghanistan has the world’s highest rate of displaced persons and one of the highest rates of infant and child mortality. Approximately 250,000 Afghan children have died from land mine injuries over the past decade, while another 250,000 die each year from preventable illnesses or hunger.
‘I originally hail from Afghanistan. My family has always maintained that they are the Beni Israel [children of Israel] – descendants of the prophets.’ saad_mohseni(at)hotmail.com
The following books contain some information about the House of Israel in Afghanistan and Pakistan:
Spain, James W. “The Way of the Pathans” Oxfor Univ. Press 1962 pp. 27-29
Carou, Sir Olaf, “The Pathans” St. Martin’s Press – New York 1958
(Carou is probably the most accurate)
- gvedington(at)uswest.net
Afghanistan: Tribe of Benjamin <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/israel/losttribes2.html>
‘Straddling the boundaries between Afghanistan, Pakistan and Kashmir lives the world’s largest tribal grouping — the Pathans. All of the 15 million Pathans, who comprise some 60 tribes, claim descent from Kish, an ancestor of the Biblical King Saul. Many of them also claim to be children of the Lost Israelites. The Pathans perform circumcision of the eighth day, wear a fringed garment similar to the Jewish tzizit, light candles on Friday nights and observe food taboos similar to the laws of Kashrut.’
[Kashrut is derived from the word Kosher. King Saul was a Benjaminite.]
Lost Tribes: Afghanistan <http://moshiach.com/tribes/ns/1.html>
An excerpt from this site:
‘There I personally found an amazing sight. There are so many of a tribe with names that had Yusuf in the name as Yusufzai, Yusufuzi, Yusufzad, etc., who claimed origin from the Lost Tribes and I personally believe it. Yusuf means Joseph and Yusufzai means children of Joseph. The tribes of Joseph are the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh who are a part of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. They also call themselves Bani-Israel meaning children of Israel. Their tradition is that they were carried away from their ancient homeland.’
‘Not only the Pathans, but also the Afghan Royal Family has a very well known tradition placing its origin in ancient Israel, they came from the Tribe of Benjamin. This tradition was first published in 1635 in a book called Mahsan-I-Afghani and has often been mentioned in the research literature. According to this tradition, King Saul had a son called Jeremiah who had a son called Afghana. Jeremiah died at about the time of King Saul’s death and Afghana was raised by King David and remained in the royal court during King Solomon’s reign. About 400 years later in the time of disorder of Israel, the Afghana family fled to a land called Gur which is in central Afghanistan. They settled and traded with the people of the area and in the year 662, with the arrival of Islam, the sons of Israel in Gur converted to the prophet with 7 representatives of the Afghan. The leader of the sons of Israel was Kish like the name of Saul’s father…So Afghan Royal Family has the tradition of ancient Israel – Benjamin Tribe of the Southern Kingdom of Judah.’
Pathans as descendants of the Lost Tribes of Israel <http://moshiach.com/tribes/pakistan.html>
An excerpt from this site:
‘The people of Pathans now number 15 million people living mainly in Pakistan and Afghanistan as well as in Persia and India. They have a tradition of being of the Lost Tribes and have Israeli customs. The Pathans have custom of circumcision on the 8th day. This is a known Jewish custom, and is the oldest Jewish tradition. I myself witnessed and was present at a very joyous circumcision ceremony on the 8th day after birth. Muslims have custom of circumcision but it is not on the 8th day, and usually at the age of 12. The Pathans have custom of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is considered a day of rest and they do not labor, cook or bake. The Pathans prepare 12 Hallot (traditional Jewish bread, Leviticus 24:5) in honor of the Sabbath as was done in the ancient temple. One of the significant indicators proving the Israeli origins of the Pathans is the lighting of the candle to honor the Sabbath. After lighting, the candle is covered usually by a large basket…And the symbol of (Star of David) is found in almost every Pathan house.’
This site discusses many other remarkable similarities between Pathan traditions, laws, and religious observances and Israelite traditions.
The Missing Tribes of Israel: Afghanistan <http://www.jewish-history.com/Occident/volume1/dec1843/tribes.html>
An 1808 article documenting the Israelite lineage of Afghans from a Jewish perspective.
Lands of the Dispersion: Argentina
Menorah Was Found in South America <http://moshiach.com/tribes/ecuador.html>
An excerpt from this site:
As for the Indians in South America and the Lost Tribes of Israel, there was an interesting article in a newspaper published in Israel (Maariv, Dec 31, 1974) as follows: In 1587, a Jesuit Nicholas Delttsu was sent to South America by the king of Spain to convert the Indians. In Argentina, he found a tribe with Hebrew names, Abraham, David, Moshe, etc.. When he asked them if they were circumcised, they answered, ‘Yes, just as our ancestors.’ In the same area were found knives of stone used for circumcision. Sharpened stone knives are cited in the Bible as used for circumcision. Of equal interest is the recent find of a tribe in Argentina related to the Incas of Peru. On a stone tablet were found 3 commandments – ‘Do not steal.’ ‘Do not lie.’ and ‘Do not murder.’ Scholars concluded that these commandments come from the Ten Commandments of Moses but existed hundreds of years before the Spaniards arrived. And in 1974 in the same area, round stones were found with Hebrew Menorah (candlestick with 7 arms of ancient Israel) on the stone, and on the side is written in Aramaic, Pascha (Passover). Aramaic is an ancient language which ancient Israelites used and this itself means very old. A few meters away was found a long stone in the shape of a brick with an engraving of a boat (the emblem of Zevulun is ship) with the word Tzipora (the same name as the wife of Moses and one of names of Israelites. The name of the ship?) written on it. Does this mean that they came here on boat? Scholars believe it is 3000 years old.’
Lands of the Dispersion: Armenia
‘When we were called to serve in the Russia Moscow Mission with a submission to Armenia, I was one day packing to go to the MTC, and in a quiet moment it was like a voice said to me, ‘Jack, you are going to teach the 10 tribes.’ I stood there chilled, and from that moment I knew that many Armenians would turn out to be of the 10 tribes lineage. One story we heard in Armenia from one of the candidates for Catholicos (Armenian Church Patriarch) was that there were masses of records stored in the private basement of the Armenian Church museum in Etchmiadzin.’ Jack Hughes, frontier(at)innercite.com
It is widely acknowledged by their own scholars that Armenians have a high proportion of Israelite blood. In Armenia Awakening: Sons of the Prophets (see Gathering of Israel Bulletin #6), Elder Jack Hughs writes:
An old Russian folk song titled ‘Abdul the Bul Bul Ameer’ begins with the line ‘The sons of the prophets were brave men, and bold, and quite unaccustomed to fear…’ The ballad tells of the battle between a Russian soldier and Abdul, a trans-caucasian Tartar renowned for his sword play. The duel ends in the death of both combatants, Abdul being tossed in the Black Sea one dark stormy night. It is a humorous tale, containing references to the descendants of the Prophets being in the area of the Black Sea, very near what is now known as Armenia.
Armenia, the oldest Christian nation in the world, is poised on the brink of a new age of enlightenment. Armenians are a people descended from Noah’s son Japeth, merging with Semitic tribes including the biblical covenant people through Shem, Abraham and the 12 tribes of Israel. Dr Nephi Kezerian, a noted genealogist, traces these ancestral streams in an appendix to his excellent book ‘Genealogy for Armenians.’ It is interesting to note how closely associated the Armenians were with the ‘Lost ten tribes of Israel’ for over 700 years.
Armenia’s Christianity dates to around AD32 when kings Agbar and Sanatruck were baptized by Jesus’ Apostle Bartholomew and Thaddeus. The Armenian Church today is called an Apostolic Christian church for that reason. Over the centuries the Armenian Church has had a friendly relationship with the Roman Catholic church, receiving gifts from the Popes such as crowns for the Catholicos (leaders of the Armenian church) and a small wooden relic believed to be part of Noah’s Ark. Armenian tradition says that in the 3rd century AD, Gregory, a Catholic missionary who Armenians call ‘the Illuminator,’ was shown in a vision by Jesus Christ the exact location to build his church. This spot is hallowed, covered by an altar in a church, and called Etchmiadzin, interpreted as ‘where the Only Son of God came down to earth.’ Armenia’s history is a long string of invasions by all the worlds known powers of that time. Persia in 519 BC, Alexander the Great in 334 BC, Romans 56 BC, divided between Persia and Byzantium 400 AD, Arabs 628 AD, and in 1050 AD successively by Turks, Mongols, and Tamberlane. The 16th century was a push-pull between Persia and Turkey. In 1826 Armenia became part of the Russian Empire, and in 1936 a Union Republic of the USSR. In 1915 Turkish Islamists massacred 1,500,000 Armenians, half of the population of this small country at that time, to take their land from them. In Yerevan, a needle shaped monument called the ‘Genocide Needle’ honors all those who lost their lives. Each year on April 24th, tens of thousands of Armenians march a long pathway to the needle and place garlands of flowers 3 or 4 feet deep around this memorial. Armenians still lay claim to the land Turkey stole from them which includes Mt. Ararat, an awesome 17000-foot mountain where Noah’s Ark landed.
In a recent announcement the country of Armenia is to have its own mission with President Sangster to preside. Our contacts still in Armenia via tell us via email that the church is flourishing there as the country’s leaders recognize the positive influence of the church among its people. In December of 1997 we were permitted to attend an excursion to the Freiburg Temple with 36 of our converts from Armenia – truly a missionary’s payday.
The Blood of Israel accounts for the overwhelming response of ethnic Armenians to the gospel in spite of other potentially unfavorable factors (heavy restrictions on proselyting by the government, strong national church, and no scriptures in Eastern Armenian). It is abundantly clear that while the receptivity of people in different nations involves many factors, including sociopolitical and economic factors, missionary work ethic, and the effectiveness of mission policy, it is undeniable that the presence and relative amount of the ‘Blood of Israel’ in the population exerts a profound effect on the long-term growth and strength of the church. There is also a considerable number of Church members of Armenian descent in the United States.
Christ in Armenia
Early Armenian Christian Traditions
Gevork Nazaryan, webmaster, armenianhighland.com
With respect to your inquiry on the appearance of Christ in Armenia in ancient times: there are two noteworthy and major historical accounts with this regard. First report is somewhat questionable (or has been questioned by some historians). It is dated to early First Century AD and according to the accounts of the Chroniclers of this time (both Armenian and Assyrian) such as Agathangelos and Phaustos Buzand – Christ and his Disciples were in Armenian (Northern) Mesopotamia, in the Armenian kingdom of Edessa in the court of king Abgar (not to be confused with non-related Islamic Akbar). It is during this time according to these accounts that Abgar after hearing our Christ and His mission for humanity converts to Christianity, thus becoming one of the first early Christians. This account has been questioned by a number of historians who say there is no subsequential historical facts to prove that Christ actually ventured into N. Syria – N. Mesopotamia regions. I too believe that there needs to be more research before this can be historically accepted to verify these accounts.
For example the fact that Christianity never got hold of in the Kingdom somewhat unexplained. This is in a sharp contrast to the conversion of King Tiridates (Arm. Trdat) conversion in 301 AD which is recorded and verified in Armenian, Syrian, Latin and Greek accounts and the biggest proof is of course the continuous and unbroken tradition of 1700 years of the Armenian Holy Apostolic Church in Armenia Proper or Greater Armenia. We know that two of Christ’s Apostles – St. Thaddeus and St. Jude (St. Bartholomew) entered Armenia via the Armenian Atrpatakan in the south of Armenian Highland, proceeded with their preaching to Siunik (present day parts are in the Siunik Marz of Republic of Armenia) and Goltan (present day Azeri controlled Nakhichevan area) where they fell victims to initial anti-Christian stance of Arsacid (Arshakouni) dynasty. The Armenian Church prides itself on the Apostolic legacy and their martyrdom. But the roots of the Armenian Apostolic Church and its continual success as a religious institution (not counting the individual converted Christians from the First Century onward) date back to early Fourth Century AD. In 301 AD when St. Gregory the Illuminator became the first supreme Patriarch, the Catholicos, the spiritual leader of the Armenian Holy Apostolic Church, which he himself established. It is during this period in 303 AD when we have another major account of Christ’s appearance to St. Gregory the Illuminator.
According to both Agathangelos (late IVth Century) and Phaustos (early Vth), St. Gregory is undecided on where to built the new Seat of the Holy Apostolic Church. During his presence near the capital city of Valarshapat (Vagharshapat – in the l-gh transition) St. Gregory has a vision in which Christ descends on a hilltop and points to St. Gregory the sacred spot where the new Mother Church of St. Etchmiadzin or in another phonetic version Echmiatsin is to be built. The word Etchmiadzin in itself is derived from the two or more correctly three Armenian words – the Decent – Ech, Miadzin – of the Only Begotten One, hence the name and the current place of the Mother Church on the sacred hilltop – Etchmiadzin.
Now with respect to your second question on the Lost Tribes of Israel and in general the Hebrew presence/contact cultural exchange etc. Throughout the centuries especially during the times of early period there was tremendous contact between the peoples of Near East. There were people known as Hurrians who have given so much of their legacy to Armenians, Hebrews, Arameans, Assyrians, Phoenicians, Babylonians – in all almost all of the major peoples and civilizations that were on the horizon in the closing of Second Millennium BC and the start of the First Millennium BC. Many historians say that their original homeland was around lake Urmia-Zagros Mts. in Armenian Highland and parts of N. Mesopotamia. The ancient Armenoid Sumerians are also tied into this. In their epics of Gilgamesh amazingly they speak of the Great Flood and the Mountains of Arrata. This same account of the Great Deluge, Noah and the Arc landing on Mt. Ararat ‘in the mountains of Armenia’ is as I am sure you very well know is graphically described in the Old Testament. How can this happen? Well, for one thing we know that Abraham was from the ancient Sumerian city of Ur in Southern Mesopotamia. Was Abraham actually part of the Sumerian culture/folklore tradition or simply the Epic of Gilgamesh passed down to him orally or written by the local inhabitants… We do not know this exactly or I at least have not come across any conclusive work on the subject matter. Even today there is some common identity in physical features, cultural aspects, outlooks, approaches to life and cultural aspirations of both Armenian and Jewish peoples. This is of course true of some other Near Eastern peoples whose ancient roots go back to the times of the Mesopotamian Civilizations and the Fertile Crescent. I know for a fact that if you do get a chance to visit the History State Museum in the Republic Square in Yerevan you will enjoy the fine collection of ancient artifacts going back as far as Third Millennium BC. Also as you might already know in 2001 Armenia will be celebrating the 1700 year of adoption of Christianity as a state religion, thus the atmosphere next year will be very jubilant marked with various important events (such as for example the grand opening of the newly built Mother Church of St. Gregory the Illuminator in the heart of Yerevan to mark the historic anniversary) throughout the year.
I myself have majored in Near Eastern studies and my passion for the ‘People of the Book’ is one of utmost interest. Today the once thriving Armenian Jewish community has disappeared due to the fact that most of the Armenian Jews have migrated to Israel (one of them became member of Knesset) still the Armenian Jews (who have continual presence since the time of the second destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 AD) have managed to maintain the Jewish community that goes back to the depths of time.
I want to conclude with a quote from the Bible from the Book of Jeremiah. The Jewish call of overthrow of Babylon in the Sixth Century BC is clear. Armenians of the Land of Ararat as it was known, the Medes and others must united in overthrowing Babylonian – Assyrian domination on the many peoples of the Fertile Crescent.
Jeremiah: 51:27
‘Set ye up a standard in the land, blow the trumpet among the nations, prepare the nations against her, call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz; appoint a captain against her, cause the horsHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ[\]^_