A few people have recently asked me, “Yooo . . . What do you think about Kyrie and Kanye?” or, “Hey, what do you think about the Hebrew Israelites?” or, “Hey, can you help me understand hoteps?” The recent controversy that Kyrie Irving and Kanye West have been facing in the news has brought the Hebrew Israelites into popular attention again.
Thoughts In a Nutshell
Here are my thoughts in a nutshell: Kyrie, Kanye, and many others are looking for answers to three core concerns of Black people. One, they are looking for Black identity. “Who are we as Black people?” Two, they are looking to make sense of Black suffering. “Why do Black people suffering so much?” Three, they want Black political and economic empowerment in the face of white racism. “How do we understand our oppression and rise above it?”
In short, Kyrie and Kanye are looking for a spiritual answer to their concrete problems as Black men.
Many celebrities have used Hebrew Israelite rhetoric or pulled from similar teachings. Israel United in Christ, a Hebrew Israelite organization, has a webpage dedicated to celebrity rhetoric supporting their convictions. There is something about their teachings that is appealing to many Black folks.
If we are going to understand Black people and Black spirituality, we must understand religious movements like the Hebrew Israelites. We must also engage them with sincerity. We cannot laugh or scoff them away. If we fail to understand them, we will fail to bring the good news of Jesus to bear on Black people’s primary concerns. If we fail to understand them, we will also fail to understand ourselves. Why? Because, as fellow Black people, their own desires reflect our own.
This will be the first in a series of posts. Future posts will give Scripture’s answers to these three concerns, but let’s first begin with putting Hebrew Israelism into context.
Hebrew Israelites as Religious Black Nationalism
Hebrew Israelism finds itself within the larger family of black nationalism. It is a black nationalistic organization whose unifying interest is religion. Let me explain.
What is black nationalism? C. Eric Lincoln — the late, prominent black sociologist of religion — states in his book The Black Muslims of America, “All black nationalist movements have in common three characteristics: a disparagement of whites and their culture, a repudiation of ‘Negro’ identity, and a concomitant search for and commitment to the black (African) heritage” (47). In other words, they critique white culture’s racism, critique Black identities that accommodate white culture, and recover Black dignity and worth. The context of these organizations is white racism, and the goal is Black uplift in the face of racism.
Black nationalist organizations can have a political focus or a religious focus as their unifying interest, according to Lincoln. Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) is an example of an organization whose focus was political. Noble Drew Ali and the Moorish Science Temple is an example of one whose focus was religious. However, one should not be confused: A religious focus has political goals in mind, and a political focus must appeal to religion in order to motivate its people. For example, the UNIA established the African Orthodox Church, and the Moorish Science Temple had explicit political goals of resisting white racism in society.
The Hebrew Israelites find themselves as a religious black nationalistic organization in the realm of the Moorish Science Temple, Rastafari, and the Nation of Islam. This is why they find support from Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam and other movements like it. They are a part of the same family, so to speak.
We Must Address Our Questions with the Scriptures
These organizations have Lincoln’s three characteristics, and I would add three other elements. These organizations speak to Black identity, Black suffering, and Black empowerment. I respect the Hebrew Israelite efforts to speak to Black concerns, especially considering the failure of many Christian traditions. Though I respect their efforts, I find them problematic in some areas.
Black African Christians must embody the impulses of black nationalism but in a way that is deeply shaped by the scriptures. Hebrew Israelites fail to understand some of Scripture’s key teachings in order to promote Black people’s own divine election. As I highlight how Hebrew Israelites address Black identity, Black purpose, and Black empowerment, I will highlight how the scriptures do the same but call us higher.
Coming up next: Black identity.