Home | Letters | WHAT ABOUT THE ARABS?

WHAT ABOUT THE ARABS?

21/06/2024 06:45:00 Simanga Gamedze

Font size:

Sir,

Since the guest writer’s letter of of April 9, 2024, for the column Comments & Analysis, contained so many statements and assertions, I did not attempt answering every one of them due to lack of space.

So, in this letter I’d like to address a point found under the writer’s first and third headings: ‘Sons of Japheth (Caucasian Hebrews),’ and ‘Sons of Sham (Abrahamic Hebrew Line).’ Under the first heading he had this to say about Japheth’s grandson Ashkenaz: “The Ashkenaz are one of two major ancestral groups of Hebrew people, whose ancestors migrated to France and Central and Eastern Europe, including Germany, Poland and Russia. The other group is called Sephardic Hebrew and it includes those whose ancestors migrated and lived in Spain, Portugal, parts of North Africa and the Middle East,” end of quote.

Question

So, my first question is: If Japheth’s grandson was one of the contributors of the Hebrews gene pool, did their dispersal into the Middle East, and then much later on into Europe and Russia disqualify them from being Jews? Does not the Bible state that God would cause His people to return from the furthest outreaches of the world? (Isa. 11: 11; 43: 5-11; Ezek. 38: 8). I ask this because there are no records, or evidence of black Jews emigrating to Central and Eastern Europe. But, it’s the writer’s first paragraph, under the third heading, that reveals his source of confusion, causing everything else said from that point on to be false, or at best, partly true.

Quote: “Sham is the ancestor of Abraham, first to be called Hebrew and father of the Israelis; most probably a black man. Abraham had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac. How could Sarah, his wife, allow a black woman, Hagar, to bear the son of Promise for her husband Abraham unless they were all black?” End of quote. It’s the word ‘probably’ that causes the rest of the writer’s belief-system to stand on shaky ground. One never begins a hypothesis with a possibility; and then later on state one’s views as a ‘certainty,’ without providing clear evidence to support one’s hypothesis. This is a big no-no! For, upon this assumption the writer went on to state that all the Bible’s patriarchs and prominent characters were black, because they descended from the ‘possibly’ black Abraham and his two black wives!

If the writer ignores everything else I’ve presented in my previous letters, could he please, for the sake of this newspaper’s readership, address the following questions pertaining to Ishmael: If Abraham, Sarah and Hagar were all black, how come the Arabs are not black, since the Arabs trace their lineage from Ishmael, Abraham and Hagar’s firstborn son? I wonder whether he also believes that the Arabs are imposters, as some folk claim the Israeli Jews to be? And, if not, why not, since both Ishmael and his half-brother Isaac, according to the writer, was ‘probably’ black?

Untainted

As I previously said, Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, as well as the patriarchs were not black, nor white, but similar to most of the Middle Eastern nations, particularly those from Yemen, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and North Africa, whose bloodlines remain largely untainted by the incursions of the Crusaders, Greek and Roman conquerors. Really, if the writer had only considered this simple irrefutable fact that stares us in the face, none of these dangerous fallacies would have gotten off the ground. And, on this subject of Jewish identity, it’s noteworthy that there have always been people who are quick to jump onto any bandwagon regarding the Jews and their heritage, but not so with the Arabs; except for those who have a desire to die as martyrs.

So, I suggest that those who hold to these erroneous ideas re-consider their views regarding the - physiology of Abraham and his family. And please don’t change your tune by now saying that Hagar was actually white; for, even if that were the case, the Arabs would not resemble the Arabs we know with their distinct Semitic features; setting them apart from blacks and the average European and Caucasian people.

Addressed

And then there’s something else he spoke of in another article that needs to be addressed. And that’s the need for black people to regain their stolen identity. While this idea and principle has value, his premise is flawed. So, let me explain by way of example. George Washington Carver (died 1943) was a black American who surrendered his life to Jesus Christ, and in so-doing, found his true identity, and the understanding that enabled him to become a leader in the field of botany, astounding the learned of his day with his discoveries. When asked how he obtained his knowledge, since he did not possess the resources they had, he replied, “I know the Maker of these products, and

He shows me how they are constructed, and what can be obtained from them.” A black man, made beautiful by the Spirit of God, taught the elite of his day the secrets no one else possessed! So, my advice is: Look to Jesus Christ, our one true ancestor, the author of life and the answer to all of life’s many challenges. For, it is in Him alone that we find our fullest identity and life’s purpose.