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DOCTRINAL
ERROR 		BRITISH ISRAELISM
Religious and Pseudo-historical Belief
 

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British-Israelism (Anglo-Israelism) is the belief and teaching of a number of religious groups, that the 10 "lost" tribes of Israel are actually the Anglo-Saxon race and are specifically the people of Great Britain. By definition, then, the Anglo-Saxon (or white) people are the true Israelites, being the descendants of Abraham and are the only chosen people of God and heirs to the covenant of God. The people who are living in Israel today, calling themselves Jews, are actually impostors who mistakenly identify themselves with the Israelites, but are, in fact, descendants of Judah and are not the chosen people of God and are not part of the covenant of God..

The teachings regarding British-Israelism, are nothing new, having been around for several centuries. This doctrine was re-packaged and popularized in the twentieth century by Herbert W. Armstrong as Armstrongism and was a main element of doctrine in his World Wide Church of God. His son, Garner Ted Armstrong, continued the teaching until his death in 2003.

This belief and teaching is popular in many circles, religious and otherwise. It provides a convenient foundation for the justification of attacks on the current Jewish people and the anti-Semitism that is found in the world today. By joining themselves to the teaching and belief, people claim that they are not anti-Semitic because the real Jews are Anglo-Saxons and therefore they, themselves, are the true Semites. Their attacks on the Jewish people of today are, therefore, exposing the fraud and deception that is inherent in the modern Jewish claim that they are Israelites.
BELIEFS
The justification for the claims of those who advocate a belief in British-Israelism is to use historical information that they claim proves their theories. History records that in the 7th and 8th centuries B.C., the Babylonian and Assyrian occupations of Israel resulted in the deportation of the northern (10) tribes from Israel. British Israelites contend that every single individual was deported and not one (or a descendant) ever returned to occupy the land. Even though they were under the control of the Babylonians and Assyrians, it is claimed that members of the tribes were able to migrate west and established a new homeland in the British Isles. As a result, present day British, Canadians of British origin and Americans of British origin are direct descendants of the "real" Israelites, are God's chosen people and parties to the Covenant of God with Israel.

British-Israelites claim that the daughter of king Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, went to Europe and established the throne of David in Ireland. Jeremiah 43:4-7 is used as proof of their claim. The Stone of Scone, which has been used as a coronation stone for the British monarchy for centuries, is claimed to be the stone used in the coronation of king David and the "pillow" that Jacob used when he saw his visions.

Among the arguments used to support their beliefs are linguistic claims. Since the tribe of Dan supposedly migrated cross Europe on its way to the British Isles, the following names are linked to origins in that tribal name: London (LonDAN), Danube (DANube), Danzig (DANzig), Dneiper (DANeiper), Dneister (DANeister), Donegal (DANegal), Dardanelles (DarDANelles), Sweden (SweDAN), and Denmark (DANmark). Why other tribes have not left similar marks is not explained. They also claim that by removing the letter "I" from the Jewish name Isaac, they derive the word saac, which combined with the son produces the word saacson, which is equated with the Saxson, meaning Anglo-Saxon or British.

In another argument, it is noted that Berith is the Hebrew word for covenant, and Ish is the Hebrew word for man. By combining the two words, the word Berith-ish (Covenant Man) is formed , providing the basis for the word British.

"They adopted, in place of the name of Almighty God, the names of Baal! The name of Baal was virtually plastered all over ancient maps of Palestine. We read in the Bible of places named "Baal-peor," and "Baal-zephon"; and remember that even some individuals were named after this false god, such as "Baalam" (which merely means the plural "many Baals"). Now, notice this incredible list of the names of Baal found in Ireland! Baal-y-Bai, Baal-y-Gowan, Baal-y-Nahinsh, Baal-y-Castle, Baaly-Moni, Baal-y-Ner, Baal-y- Garai, Baal-y-Nah, Baal-y-Con-el, Baal-y-Hy, Baal-y-Hull-Ish, Baal-Nah-Brach, Baal-Athi, Baal- Dagon.

Howlett, a pastor in the 19th century in that region, says, "These certainly are memorials of the Baal worship once prevailing in Ireland. In them we have not only the name of Baal but its conjunction also with other Hebrew names. How can this be accounted for, except as they were so called by immigrants from Phoenicia and Palestine?"
Copyright © Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Organization
In other claims, an argument is presented that Abraham's name was to be called "Great" (Genesis 12:2). Therefore, that is how the name Great Britain (Great Covenant Man) came about.

In Isaiah 66:19 there is a term "Tarshish" which means "white border". The argument is made that the verse refers to the White Cliffs of Dover.

MAJOR DOCTRINAL ISSUES
  1. The entire concept of British-Israelism is truly anti-Biblical. The proponents use Biblical verses in an attempt to back their ideas, but in the process totally ignore what has been said before and after the verses they use. The Bible is used as an attempt to give credibility to ideas that have no basis in the Scriptures.

  2. The apologists for the belief twist and misuse historical events in a manner that distort the reality of events and confuse the uninitiated. The words and theories may sound important to those who do not know better, but the reality of what is being said is nonsense.

  3. The attempt to use Jeremiah 43:4-7 as a proof text for their claim that the 10 tribes travelled to Ireland is ludicrous. The main force of the belief is that the daughter of Zedekiah, princess Tea-Tephi, was accompanied by the prophet Jeremiah to Ireland where she just happened to marry the king of Ireland, who also happened to be a descendant of Judah like herself. It was there that the two established the continuing throne of king David, fulfilling the prophecies in the Old Testament of the Bible. The story is contrived and false.

  4. The "proofs" presented in the linguistic claims of place names that contain the word, or variation, or DAN is totally ludicrous. There is no correlation between the Hebrew and English alphabets that would allow such a comparison to be made. If these comparison are allowed, then the Israelites must have also gone east and visited Vietnam where they named the cities of, Danang, Don Duong and others.

  5. The "proofs" presented in the linguistic claims of words being the same in Hebrew as in English are also ludicrous. It has been noted that dropping the "I" from the name of Isaac results in the world saac which is equated with Sax-son. The rational for doing such a thing is that in the Hebrew language, vowels are not written. If that criteria is used, then Isaac should become sc, as the a's should also be dropped. In that case the word becomes nonsense. The same should be done with the word "son", becoming sn. Thus the term formed is sc sn, which is gibberish. Which vowels should be placed back, in order to make sense out of the word?

    Since the apologists replaced the "c" in Isaac with an "x", without any just reason, perhaps there are other terms that can be made out of the two sets of consonants:
    Using an "x" - sc becomes: sax, sex, six, sox

    Using the vowels, "sn" becomes: san, sane, sin, sine, son, sun

    There is no context in which that can be done in the English language. English is not Hebrew and there is no correlation between the alphabets and the words.

    However, there is a greater problem. The name Isaac is a Latin word, or form, of the Hebrew name Yitschak. Isaac is not even a proper Hebrew name, so the linguistic exercise becomes even more ridiculous. The attempt to make the word Saxon out of the name Yitschak becomes impossible.

  6. The same contrivances are used in the "Berith" "Ish" combination to form the word British. The letters used are from the English alphabet to form an English word. If one uses the Hebrew alphabet, then the combination again becomes nonsense. Only the sounds bear a resemblance.

  7. The reference to the origin of the name "Great Britain" and the alleged reference to Tarshish meaning the White Cliffs of Dover are ludicrous at the very best. The reference in Isaiah 66 is to the Millennial kingdom and the new earth, not the migration of Jews to England. By using the reference, the British-Israelite apologists reveal that they wish to change the revelation of history by God in order to fit their own theology. The reality is that the claim is an absolute falsehood, devised to appear theological and academic. It is neither.
What the British-Israelite apologists did was to formulate a theory and a doctrine, then attempt to find support in the Bible and in the historical record. In the absence of solid support, suppositions and postulations were substituted and cited as support. This is typical of false doctrine and false prophets.

In order to make the theory plausible, the apologists had to twist Biblical verses to suit their purposes, rewrite the history of God's covenant people, the Jews, as recorded in the Bible, redefine the Covenant of God with His people, redefine salvation and what it means, and redefine the record of who Jesus Christ was and claimed to be as recorded in the Bible.

The most damaging evidence against the teaching, is found in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ. Apparently He believed that he had come to the real Jewish people and claimed to be their Messiah and king. Is Jesus Christ presumed to be deluded or a liar? British Israelites create their own god and their own way of salvation and have deluded themselves into thinking they are safe from the judgment of the real God against their false system of belief.

British-Israelism is the old "white supremacy" belief that was placed in a religious package in order to give it a respectable appearance. Fortunately, the Bible does not support the doctrine and the attempts of the apologists to appeal to the Scriptures for their support reveal their true identity; not as Israelites, but as FALSE PROPHETS who deny the person and teaching of Jesus Christ.
FALSE CLAIMS AND PROPHECIES BY BRITISH-ISRAELITES
  1. Lt. Col. W.G. MacKendrick prophesied in his book, The destiny of the British Empire and the USA (1921), said that the Armageddon in the Bible would occur in the years 1928 through 1936.

    W.G. MacKendrick was a false prophet.

  2. Herbert W. Armstong prophesied as follows.
    A prophecy about Mussolini:
    "Undoubtedly, then, the "Beast" who will capture half the city of Jerusalem, fighting at Armageddon against Christ at his Second Coming, is MUSSOLINI, with ten European Dictators, and their armies! It is coming in This Generation!"
    Herbert W. Armstrong, The Plain Truth, January 1939, p. 4

    A prophecy about Hitler:
    "And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against - against whom? Not Britain and America! Not Israel - against Him that sat on the horse and His army (Rev. 19:19.) It is Christ and the Angels that Hitler will fight."
    Herbert W. Armstrong, The Plain Truth, March/April 1943, p. 6

    A prophecy about the second coming of Christ and the destruction of the United States by the year 1975:
    "Jeremiah's prophecy is more specific. It is the beginning of the national trouble to come on America, the British nations, and the democracies of north-western Europe! And, as both Jeremiah and Jesus were inspired to record - and also the prophet Daniel - it will be the most catastrophic time of national trouble that has ever struck any nation or ever will! Here is exactly how catastrophic it will be: one third of our entire population will die in the famine and disease epidemic!"
    Herbert W. Armstrong, 1975 In Prophecy, p. 11

    "But all these things, as Jesus explained, are to be only the beginning of our time of national trouble. "Once we are weakened by starvation, disease and the resulting calamitous economic depression, the Ten-Nation European Colossus will suddenly strike with hydrogen bombs that shall destroy our cities and our centers of industrial and military production!"
    Herbert W. Armstrong, 1975 In Prophecy, p. 13

    Herbert W. Armstrong was a false prophet.

No false prophet can be successful unless he has a following, and followers are culpable when they make no attempt to verify the truthfulness of their leader against the truth of the Scripture and, as a consequence, they deceive themselves.

END OF ARTICLE
by Gary A. Hand
On Doctrine

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