Surfing through the NET recently a You-tube clip, ’Re-emerging the Jews of Nigeria’ drew a curiosity of a writer to watch and listen what it has to say. The clips contain some group of Ibo men and women from different parts of the land in a worship place described as synagogues by the director, chanting and singing praises to God. The songs were not familiar ones as they were sung in Hebrew tongues. And some members of the congregation interviewed confirmed they were Ibos either residing within Nigerian States of Abuja , Port Harcourt and Anambra or outside Nigeria adhering to Judiac way of worship of ancient fathers.
The comments from the public reacting to this clips as read gave impression of four categories of people represented in the discussion forums. Some were abusive, aggressive, agitated and others appreciative in their expressions. It is these four sets of mindset, this article intends to address in this series, under the following presentations;
- The Ibo Jews
- The Liberal Jews.
- The racist Jews.
- The tribe conscious Nigerians.
And
- A sincere analytical opinion of the situation.
The Ibo Jews-
There is no law prohibiting any man or group of people from seeking to know their root, and for the Ibos in particular, it is a tradition to look homewards because there is no place the tribe considers to be like or better than home. When we were growing up, there were men and women counted as one of us in the village, only to hear one day that these people have discovered their roots, packed every belongings and left the village to their places of birth. Also men have equally made sudden appearance in my community to take their rightful place in their family history.
That is the power of bloodline of an Ibo man, no matter how long and comfortable it resides outside the lineage will certainly return in due time.
In fact recent years have witnessed a tremendous search for identities by men and women across the globe. In Nigeria for instance, clips of videos and pictures of persons from America and Europe were shown who came to the country in search of their parents. Cases that readily come to mind are that of Michelle Sijuade, a Nigerian of a British mother, who has been to this country up to two times putting desperate effort to connect back to her Dad after long years of separation. The 34 year old woman based in London came to Nigeria
Michelle posted a chilling note to all who care to help out;
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Michelle, is not the only one in search of her Dad, American TV star Stacie Turner, stormed Nigeria
I started the search for my father nine years ago when my son was born and I was diagnosed with sickle cell traits. And I said it’s interesting to find out my medical history because I always knew I was adopted. All of sudden because of this medical history I was curious to know who my parents were for the very first time. So, I wrote the adoption agency to try and get my medical information. They didn’t have it but instead they sent me a summary of who my parents were. And it was the first time I found out that my birth mother was a German/Finish descent and my father was of Nigerian descent. As I grew up with my family, I always thought that I was African-American not knowing I had these other nationalities in my background that I didn’t know anything about. And so I came to Nigeria
Meeting face to face with my father is indescribable. Though, I initially found him in April 2010 when I first contacted him on phone. Since then we had talked on phone a number of times but the network was always bad, and because of the dialect we couldn’t really have a conversation. But finally seeing him on that day was completely overwhelming for both of us. He was completely open and welcoming. The moment was incredible. I found out that I have 10 siblings. I grew up as an only child and never thought I have all these relatives, which is a wonderful thing.
Stacie Turner (third from Right and Dad next to her) and other members.
The moment we both met, I was speechless. My father was screaming and crying. I also started crying. We didn’t say anything to each other. Emotion was just overflowing. He just kept looking at me like ‘is it real? Are we really here? Originally, I didn’t want to come looking for him because my birth mother has said the experience would bring him shame. But fortunately, we have some good friends in the United States
Nollywood actress Shan George.
Now it is not about economic issues that inspire Nigerians to search for their links across the world rather love to be united with bloodline raises a curiosity as pointed out by Stacie Turner because this group of people for instance are comfortable and independent and discovering their root might not add anything to their financial status rather take from it. What they need is warm embrace from kits and kin and a place among the brethren. Nigerians have been told by Mark Walton of African Channel, an International TV station based in Los Angeles to expect an unprecedented boom in tourists’ traffic from the United States following the report that more than 70 percent of African-Americans have discovered their roots lay in Nigeria America
Corroborating Walton’s assertion about the relevance of DNA tests by African-Americans to possible influx of US tourists’ to Nigeria Nigeria , has risen significantly, following the DNA test fever in America Nigeria tourism on a US Road Nigeria government to gird its loins by beefing up infrastructure and setting in motion other strategies to attract home-sick African-American yearning to visit
Rev. T D Jakes,an Ibo American
From this information gathered in US, it would not be surprising to have many African-Americans making Nigeria, at least, a second home in the near future if Nigeria could put her ace together, by providing an enabling environment for the diasporas. Infact, Africa-Americans are desperate to have DNA test result further analyzed into tribal roots which result claims that about sixty percent of African-Americans of Nigeria America
Now, "I have a place where I can go back and say, 'This is who I am; this is my home,' " says Stump, 34, a homemaker and mother of six in Basalt, Colo.
The truth is that some of the African-American yearning to come back are comfortable and might not have need for Nigeria economically rather assist in developing the nation and the continent in general.
The Ibos see any true male child from the tribe who does not think homeward and remained in a foreign or strange land (outside Ibo enclave) as efulefu, which means fool and prodigal. Such person is without honour and inconsequential in the sight of his kinsmen. Even at death, the Ibos could spend whatever to take the corpse of a tribesman home. Within and outside Ibo land, families and communities ensure that this ancient tradition is upheld except on extreme cases where event around the death is a helpless one. Therefore, it is not wrong for the Ibos as a society to seek to know where they came from, for there is no place like home.
Now, if in
If these historical descents are true, what is not true is the myth that the Ibos ancestor, Eri, fell from heaven, for there is no related story like that in any part of the universe. Ibos came from some place and the quest to connect their root has been a primary concern over the years unlike Jeff Lieberman’s opening bias remark that with the introduction of internet in Nigeria, young Ibos began to research their history;
With the introduction of the Internet in Nigerian society, young Igbo men began to research their history and noticed a pattern of similarities between Igbo and Jewish traditions. This discovery gave rise to Igbo shaking off years of Colonial Christianity and fueling a movement toward Jewish identity and practice, which has been fraught with turns into Messianic worship, family exile, prejudice from Muslim and Christian neighbors, and scorn from Jews in the Western world, yet it has also been a communal journey.
Jeff, would have spared himself the publicity of ignorance on a subject, he knows little or nothing about. To narrow down an age long quest of a people to internet connection that is about 15 years old is to rubbish and make jest of the issue on ground. No wonder some forum contributors followed this thought to castigate and talked down the Ibo race. If one would ask when was internet introduced in Nigeria Israel
Olaudah (Ikwuano)Equiano (1745-1797)
Does he know that as far back 1995, the Israeli government under Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin has sent delegates to Nri, a place considered as the first settlement of the Ibos to confirm this claim and the delegates were satisfied with the sites they saw and concluded that the Ibos are indeed one of the lost tribes of Israel, also other delegates under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was sent in 1997 for the same mission?
Does he also know that the Israeli ambassador to Nigeria, on March 28, 1996 paid another visit to Nri kingdom, wept for similar things he saw in Israel that is found also in the kingdom and gave gift of Olive fruit and Oil which Israel traditionally presents as special gifts to those recognized as kings in Israel to Eze A.E Chukwuemeka? Those material items excavated from the ground are they information downloaded from the internet?
Does pattern of similarities in tradition strictly make the people one? If so, the Arabs who share some similar traditions with Israel
It is an exaggeration by Jeff to slight the Ibo nation to say that Igbo shook off years of colonial Christianity…and scorn from Jews in the Western world…yet it has also been a communal journey.
The question is how does 40,000 estimated number of Ibos that embraced Judaism came to represent a tribe that numbered up to 50 million people and where are the synagogues in the Southeast that are not seen, such that it could be regarded as a communal journey?
How many western Jews are scorning the Ibos quest for Jewish identity and how many are in support? The Ibos are predominantly Christians and would not be possible to convert to any religion in such a large number as painted by Jeff.
The story that the Ibos are from Jewry is not new among the tribe except for the new breeds. All the people interviewed in the video clips fall within middle thirties and above age group and this similar story will be heard from any Ibo that falls within that range elsewhere in Ibo land and that does not mean that other ages below the group may have not been privileged to hear the story of Jewish ancestry. I remember hearing the story from Pa Nzegbulam, as a child. He was a grand uncle and a very close friend of my grandfather, Fredrick Iwuji. Pa Nzegbulam was a Second World War soldier who traveled wide. He used to tell us the story of Adolph Hitler of Germany Israel Israel and as children in primary school; we were not thinking beyond our village and daily chores, Nigeria Israel was proclaimed a Sovereign nation by the United States of America and United Nation and all Israel were enjoined to return to their homeland in Israel Israel
Surprisingly, one of the commentaries posted on the NET acknowledged having read the story from World geography textbook as early as 1950’s when most of us writing have not been conceived; ‘I recall being surprised when I read this in my 1950’s era 7th grade World geography textbook,’The Ibos are referred to as ‘the Jews of Africa’ because they are so industrious ( as close to a direct quote as I can remember).
I want to believe that the person who wrote this is neither an Ibo nor a Nigerian and for him to be surprise at the time he read World geography text book means he was a bit up in age and old right now. Also, I am sure that the textbook referred to is out of circulation by now and World geography is no more a subject taught in very many countries today, for instance, Nigeria
On further search on the NET, a write up credited to Rabbi Yehudah ben Shomeyr of Adint-Ministries, Canada disclosed that connection of Igbo people to Israel
Rabbi Yehuhah ben Shomeyr
Having read many articles on Igbo-Israel relationship written by Ibo and non Ibo researchers on the subject, one will not hesitate to advice our Ibo brothers in the light of the tribe’s proverb that you can only show someone his relation and not his friend. It is left for that relation to acknowledge and embrace the relationship. Some of these Ibos should not impose themselves on Israel
The implication of granting and integrating the Ibos as Jews are enormous and will alter the political, economic, social, security and religious landscapes of the nation, therefore, require a diligent and comprehensive approach to address.
If God be in the programme of in-gathering of the dispersed of
past finding out.
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