"Brit-Am Now"-242
May 11, 2003
Contents:
1. Brit Am meeting Sunday in Dallas
2. Encounter with Friend from France
3. Finances
4. What Spake Zarathustra? (Corrected Version)
1. Brit Am meeting Sunday in Dallas
From: Judy Snyder <yahudeit@excite.com>
Subject: Brit Am meeting Sunday at Falafel restaraunt/Dallas
This Sunday we will have our Brit Am meeting at the Falafel restaurant in a
kosher restaurant in Dallas. My van can
carry 7 people, let me know if you want a ride.
You can meet me at my house at 2pm or at the restaurant at 3:30. We will
stop at Dreidels on the
way.
Call 8173556097 for more info and rsvp so I can make reservations.
Judy
Tehillim 122 ...when our feet stood within thy gates, O Jerusalem; O
Yerushalayim, built as a city that is strong: there the tribes used to go
up...an appointed practice for Yisra'el, to give thanks. For there are set
thrones of the house of David. Shalom, Yudy
2. Encounter with Friend from France
I just met a friend of mine who returned from a longish visit to France
which country he was born and raised in.
My friend knows history well and is quite intelligent.
The conversation went roughly like this and may be of interest:
"Do you still believe that Reuben is in France and other Tribes of Israel
in parts of Europe?
You are living in a dream world. You do not realize the depth of hate these
people now have towards the Jews.
All over Europe it is the same. Even in England. Even old friends (like
Denmark) are now becoming enemies, etc.
Anti-semitism is everywhere, etc."
HOWEVER My friend then acknowledged that the few good friends the Jewish
people and the State of Israel still have
are mostly Bible-believers. Since in the past some Bible-believers were
enemies of the Jews we can assume that another factor is involved. People
who believe in the Bible and identify with the Jewish people may well
(based on this point alone) have some Israelite ancestry.
3. Finances
We need more offerings, contributions, and book orders.
At the moment we seem to be on the borderline between just making it/not
quite making it AND
being able to spread the message as it should be. I do not want to go into
details but money for Brit-Am
is needed. We still have some debts from the past and possibilities for the
future and need to deal with both.
4. What Spake Zarathustra? (Corrected Version)
by Yair Davidiy
There is a danger in learning about pagan religions since we are usually
influenced by what we learn. God commands us to be careful in this matter:
[Deuteronomy 12:30] TAKE HEED TO THYSELF THAT THOU BE NOT SNARED BY
FOLLOWING THEM, AFTER THAT THEY BE DESTROYED FROM BEFORE THEE; AND THAT
THOU ENQUIRE NOT AFTER THEIR GODS, SAYING, HOW DID THESE NATIONS SERVE
THEIR GODS? EVEN SO WILL I DO LIKEWISE.
[Deuteronomy 12:31] THOU SHALT NOT DO SO UNTO THE LORD THY GOD: FOR EVERY
ABOMINATION TO THE LORD, WHICH HE HATETH, HAVE THEY DONE UNTO THEIR GODS;
FOR EVEN THEIR SONS AND THEIR DAUGHTERS THEY HAVE BURNT IN THE FIRE TO
THEIR GODS.
The founder of Zoroastrianism was called
Zoroaster in Greek and Zarathustra in Persian. The German philosopher
Nietsche wrote a book called "Thus Spake Zarathustra" in which Nietsche
places his own philosophy in mouth of Zarathustra
Zarathustra and the religion he founded is of some
importance to us since we believe that Zarathustra was an Israelite from
the Lost Ten Tribes and his original intention was to reform the pagan
practices of his fellow Israelites.
Background:
The Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom of
Israel and exiled the Ten Tribes. The Israelite Exiles became identified as
the Scythians and related peoples. The Scythians rebelled against the
Assyrians and then became their allies and protectors. After that the
Scythians took over the Assyrian Empire. The Scythians established contact
with King Josiah ben Amon of Judah. Some of the Scythians returned
temporarily to the Land of Israel and established their center in Beth
Shean. King Josiah ben Amon sent the prophet Jeremiah and other emissaries
to the Scythians in their places of exile to encourage them to return and
also to reform their religious practices and beliefs. The appearance of
Zarathustra was a result of this and so too was the original doctrine of
Buddha. At all events the Scythians lost control of the Assyrian Empire.
The Scythians took the major role in destroying the Assyria cities but were
forced by the Medes and Babylonians to give up their positions of authority
and begin moving out of the Middle East. The Scythian settlements in Israel
were abandoned. The religion of Zarathustra was left over from this period.
It had originally been preached to Israelites and intended for them but
they apparently did not take to it. Non-Israelite peoples adopted this
religion but changed it in accordance to their pagan beliefs. The Israelite
origin of this religion is an historical curiosity testifying to what might
have been.
Zarathustra (ZOROASTER) appeared from eastern Iran in the
region of Hara and Bactria. His original doctrine was monotheistic and even
Biblical in character (Franz Altheim, "Alexander Und Asien". Germany 1953,
"Alexander und Asien", p.13, Mary Boyce, "A History of
ZoroastrianismLeiden/Koln 1975, p.195.) After Zoroaster's death, his
religion was paganised by the Median tribe of Magi, even though the
original message had been Hebraic. Zoroaster, according to Iranian
tradition had been taught by the prophet Jeremiah or by one of Jeremiah's
pupils (Josef Horovitz "Hebrew Iranian Synchronism," Bombay 1931, p.12ff.).
Zoroaster himself had Scythian familial connections (Gherardo GNOLI,
"Zoroaster's Time and Homeland. A Study on the Origins of Mazdaism,"
Naples, Italy 1980, p.96) yet some reports identify him as an Israelite
(HOROVITZ, p.12ff.).
Historically, Zoroastrianism is the term given to the ancient
religion of Persia. At present there is a sect of people, named Parsees in
Iran and in India. These people descend from Persian followers of the
Zoroastrian religion as it was at a later date. The religion of these
people (according to our sources) is quite different from the beliefs of
its founder.
The Jews in Persia as well as the early Christians in Iran had
traditions that Zarathustra was Jewish. It was said that he had been taught
by Jeremiah or by Baruch ben Neriah who was a pupil of Jeremiah. The
Moslems in Persia also repeated similar ideas. This indicates that even at
a later stage there still existed something in Zoroastrianism that
suggested Hebrew influence.
Historically, The Scythians, Medes and Babylonians had
conquered Assyria. The Medes got the Scythian leaders drunk and massacred
them. The Medes and Babylonians then divided the Assyrian Empire between
them and drove the Scythians away. The Babylonians conquered Judah and
exiled all the Jews to Babylon. The Medes lived in Media in northern and
western Iran. They ruled over the Persians. The King of the Persians was
married to the daughter of the King of the Medes. When his son, Cyrus,
became king of the Persians he rebelled against his grandfather, the king
of the Medes, and took over the kingdom. After that Cyrus ruled over the
Medes and Persians. Cyrus conquered the Babylonian Empire. Cyrus allowed
the Jews to return to Judah, which they did, led by Ezra and Nehemiah.
Cyrus the Great (550-530 BCE). was followed by his son, Cambyses (530-522),
who died in Egypt after attempting to destroy all the idols there and
killing the sacred bull. The brother of Cambyses became king but a distant
cousin named Darius claimed that this king was an impostor and killed him
and made himself king. He is known to history as Darius the Great (522-486
BCE).
The dynasty that Cyrus began is known as the Achaemenid
dynasty. It has been assumed that Cyrus followed Zoroaster but it is not
certain. Cyrus in an inscription celebrating the fall of Babylon mentions
Marduk and Yahweh of Israel. After Cyrus came Cambyses (530-522), who went
about destroying idols. After Cambyses came Darius the Great (522-486 BCE).
Darius the Great (522-486) mentions Ahura Mazda, which is the name of God
in Zoroastrianism. Under Cambyses the building of the Temple had been
interrupted but Darius ordered the building to go ahead.
Ninian Smart, (The Religious experience of Mankind, by, NY, 1969, p.241),
mentions four major Stages of development in Zoroastrianism:
1. The Religion of Zarathustra himself.
2. The religion of the Achaemenean monarchs of Cyrus and Darius who
introduced elements that compromised the original monotheistic character.
3. The Arsacid (Parthian) and Sassanian dynasties: The Parthians were
indifferent religiously and often inclined towards Judaism and
Christianity. The Parthians were followed by the Sassanians who ruled Iran
from 211 C.E. to 641 C.E. The Sassanians were ardent Zoroastrians and
Zoroastrianism was revived and regulated.
4. Modern Period.
The Zoroastrian Scriptures are known as the Avesta. Parts of
the Avesta:
a. Yasna: liturgical writings including the GATHAS. The Gathas were written
in a unique dialect. Some go back perhaps to Zarathustra.
b. Visparad: invocations of all the lordsfor use at festivals.
c. Yashts: collection of hymns to various deities.
d. Venidad: prescriptions about purifications, etc.
The Avesta was completed in the 300s CE.
Additional religious texts were written in Sassanian times in the Pahlavi
dialect.
Parts of the Gathas are attributed to Zarathustra himself and from these
the original beliefs of Zarathustra can be reconstructured.
Zarathustra was a monotheist. He denounced other gods as
devils. He emphasized opposition to Druj, who was the personification of
evil or the Satan. He believed in Angels. His religion has been described
as resting on four main points: 1. Worship Ahura-mazda 2. Magnify the
archangels 3. Damn the demons 4. Marry your nearest relative [If
Zarathustra was an Israelite, this last injunction would have the effect of
helping the Israelite exiles retain their ethnic origins].
The Life of ZOROASTER (c.630 - c.550 BCE) (or c. 628 BCE c. 551 BCE). He
was probably born at Rhages (now Rayy, a suburb of Tehran), a town in Media
- which is the region covered by modern-day Iran and Iraq. His Persian
name, Zarathushtra, has been explained to mean camel handler. {It could
also be derived from the Hebrew, Zerah ]. His father, according to
tradition, was the owner of cattle. According to the 'Zend Avesta', the
sacred book of Zoroastrianism, he was born in Azerbaijan, in northern
Persia, into the Spitama family. His father's name was Pourushapa. At the
age of 30 (or 40 according to other sources) he received the first of a
series of revelations of a new religion (ca 600 BCE). He is said to have
received a vision from Ahura Mazda, the Wise Lord, who appointed him to
preach the truth. Zoroaster began preaching his message of cosmic strife
between Ahura Mazda, the God of Light, and Ahriman, the principle of evil.
According to the prophet, man had been given the power to choose between
good and evil. The end of the world would come when the forces of light
would triumph and the saved souls rejoice in its victory. Zarathustra
preached for two years to the religious leaders of his country. His
attempts to proselytize at home failed, and he fled east to ancient
Chorasmia, now largely Persian Khorasan. There were ten long years between
the revelation and the first convert. And this convert was his own cousin
Metyomah. For two years following the conversion of Metyomah, Zoroaster
made little or no progress. He then succeeded in converting King Vishtaspa
of Chorasmia to the new faith. King Vishtaspa has been identified with
Hystaspes, the father of Darius the great [See E. Herzfeld, Zoroaster and
His World (1947); R. C. Zaehner, The Dawn and Twilight of Zoroastrianism,
1961]. After this Zoroaster led crusades for 25 years to persuade Scythian
and related peoples to accept his new religion. He was killed fighting.
Zarathustra according to the most commonly accepted sources
lived in the period c.630 - c.550 BC. He received his first vision around
600 BCE. King Josiah of Judah reigned according to conventional dates
around 640-609 BCE. The Scythians lost control of the Assyrian Empire
somewhere around 614-609 BCE. These dates are estimations and are not
certain. Zarathustra lived at the time of King Josiah and Jeremiah the
Prophet. Jeremiah the prophet, according to the Talmud, was sent to the
Lost Ten Tribes. Zarathustra was born in an area of the Lost Ten Tribes and
later moved to another area which was also a Lost Ten Tribes center. He had
family connections to the Scythians whom we identify as being at least in
part identical with the Lost Ten Tribes. There are traditions that connect
Zarathustra to Jeremiah the Prophet. The original doctrine of Zarathustra
was similar to that of the Bible. We can therefore conclude that
Zarathustra really was probably an Israelite.
Beliefs and Parallels with Scripture and Israel.
Scholars agree that there are similarities between the
original doctrines of Zarathustra and the Bible but they claim that this is
because the Bible was influenced by Zarathustra and not the other way
around. This is wrong but it is fashionable. If you said anything else not
many people would listen to you and if you were an academic you might not
get a job. Zoroaster was thus taught the doctrines of an individual
judgment, Heaven and Hell, the future resurrection of the body, the general
Last Judgment, and life everlasting for the reunited soul and body.
PARALLELS WITH THE BIBLE:
1. One God.
2. Resistance to evil.
3. Satan and Devils. Other gods = devils. Demonic forces.
4. Angels. Angels appointed over abstract principles.
5. Saoshian= Messiah.
6. Resurrection of the Dead.
7. Last Judgment.
8. Zarathustra was linked with Rhages in Media which is a Ten Tribed area
(as explained in the book Ephraim by Yair Davidiy)associated with the
Tribe of Naphtali. He later moved to Chorasmia and was active in Herat
which was also a Ten Tribed area [as explained in The Tribes by Yair Davidiy.
9. There were Parallels between the doctrines of Zoroaster and Essene
teachings. The Essenes were a Jewish sect in Qumran by the Dead Sea. The
Essenes however were not influenced by Zoroastrianism but rather both
developed from a common Hebraic source.
M. Coventsky: <<Many experts contend that the emphasis in post-exilic
Judaism on rewards and punishment, heaven and hell, the struggle between
the forces of good and evil, and the notion of an individual afterlife were
derived from Zoroastrianism. There is a striking similarity between the
Manual of Discipline, of the Dead Sea community, and Zoroastrianism,
regarding the problem of evil. But other scholars maintain that there is
enough in Pharisaic Judaism to justify the search for origins of these
ideas with Palestinian tradition specifically, or even exclusively.>>
This is the opinion that we adhere to. Zarathustra preached an Israelite
doctrine because he was an Israelite. Similarities between Zoroastrianism,
the Bible, and Judaism arose because they all came from the same Hebrew
sources.
10. The father of Zarathustra was Pourushapa. This name has been explained
to be derived from Purusha in Sanskrit, which means man and Aspa , which
means a horse. The name is derived from the root asep which is also found
in Scythian areas and connected to the name Joseph. This was explained by
Yair Davidiy in The Tribes(1991) and in more detail by IRMA HAYNMAN, "The
Syncretic Creed of Hellenized Jews From Tanais , 1994, World Union of
Jewish Studies.
11. Zarathustra supposedly had a vision at age 40 wherein he received a
vision from God, (Ahura Mazda), who appointed him to preach the truth, cf .
Moses
12. Many scholars (e.g. Altheim, Boyce, Morton Smith) have analysed
passages of the Gathas and found parallels in language, style, and content
with Biblical passages especially those of Isaiah.
Isaiah prophesied about Cyrus (Isaiah 44:27-45:4) and the
punishment of the Babylonians (43:14;47:14) that Cyrus in part carried out.
Josephus says that Cyrus was shown the prophecies of Isaiah mentioning his
name and was influenced by them. It may be that the early Persian kings
held the Book of Isaiah in reverence and this influenced whoever wrote the
Gathas. Cyrus started the Achaemenid dynasty. The Achaemenids belonged to
the Pasargadae clan. The early Persians like the early Medes were a
confederation of different tribes. Not all these tribes had the same
origins. The Pasargadae were the ruling clan of the Persian confederation.
They were a small ruling body. The name "Pasargadae " has been explained
to mean in the local Aramaic dialect, Pasar-(sons of)-Gad . They may
originally have been Israelites from the Tribe of Gad. This would explain
why they were so attracted to the religion of Zarathustra as it was
originally intended.
Morton Smith saw a parallel between Isaiah and a specific
Gatha of the Avesta.
From Morton Smith: Yasna 44. In Yasna 44, Zoroaster asks Ahuramazda
questions to which the god replies simply such as "I am" or "I do." Isaiah
has similar passages. Tell me truly Lord, who in the beginning, at the
creation was the father of Justice? (GY 44.3.1-2) Rain justice you heavens
& this I, Yehouah, have created. (Isa 45:8) Who established the course of
the sun and the stars? Through whom does the moon wax and wane? (GY
44.3.3-5). Lift up your eyes to the heavens. Consider who created it all,
led out the host one by one. (Isa 40:26) What craftsman made light and
darkness? (GY 45:5.1-3) I am Yehouah. There is no other. I make the light.
I create darkness. (Isa 45:7)13.
The father of Darius had been converted by Zarathustra.
Jean-Claude Brinette, "Religion in Ancient Persia ", points out that the
name Dariusin Persian was pronounced as Darayavahu. Brinette says: Darius
is properly Darayavahu. Yavahu is uncommonly like Yehouah (YHWH), and must
have sounded similar. Vahu is the Iranian god of the wind, that became,
like the Hebrew, to mean breath and so life, so Yavahu literally means the
same as YHWH. Scholars admit the etymology of "DR" ("ZR") is puzzling. [In
Aramaiac and Iranian the d and the z could interchange, e.g. Manda =
Manasseh ]. Literally, "zara" refers to the action of sowing seed in the
fields (Gen 26:12; Isa 37:30), and seems to be a Semitic root. So, Zara in
Hebrew is seed. & Darayavahu can be read in Hebrew meaning "seed (progeny)
of Yehouah," "seed of the living god." Brinette also points out that,
<<Nehemiah was the "cupbearer" to Artaxerxes (Neh 2:1). Since Artaxerxes,
as a devout Zoroastrian, could not have touched let alone drunk from a
ritually unclean cup, Nehemiah must himself have been [considered the same
as] a Zoroastrian. Pollution in the Zoroastrian scheme was the result of
the Evil Spirit who caused "dust, stench, blight, disease, decay and
death." Devout people were obliged to stay clear of these noxious things to
protect themselves as Ahuramazda's good creation. The king particularly
required this protection, and we can be sure that his servants had a duty
to keep him pure.>> In other words, in the eyes of Artaxerxes, Nehemiah the
Israelite must have been considered ritually pure from the point of view of
Zoroastrianism. The "Holiness Code" of Leviticus 18 to 26 is a code of
purity from pollution that has similarities with practices of Zoroastrianism.
Brinette points out that : <<Darius favored the Jerusalem priesthood. A
revealing scrap of papyrus written from Darius to Arsames, his long-serving
Egyptian satrap in 419 BC, and found at Elephantine, ordered that the Jews
of Elephantine must keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven
days.>>
We thus see that it may well be that Zarathustra was an
Israelite and his religion was originally of Biblical character but the
pagan Gentiles changed it. We have also seen that the early kings of Persia
may also have been of Israelite descent. Buddha may also have been a
Israelite and also have been influenced by the emissaries of King Josiah
and Jeremiah. We do not know. We do know that according to Buddhist
tradition the first Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, lived around about the same
time as Jeremiah, Josiah, and Zarathustra. He was born in ca. 563 BCE. He
was known as Shakya-muni. He belonged to the Shakyas who according to the
Greeks were Scythians. The Lost Ten Tribes were in Scythia. The original
doctrine of Buddhism appears to have been that all suffering is caused by
bad deeds and bad mental energies. By doing good and training your energies
to be positive you can eliminate suffering. This was not necessarily a
religious doctrine but rather a moral philosophy that was later adapted to
religious concepts. Buddhism as practiced at present is a pagan
religion.
From our point of view all this does not matter very much at
present since the overwhelming majority of exiled Israelites did not remain
in Persia or anywhere near it but moved away and went to the north and
later to the west into Europe. Zoroastrianism and Buddhism became
paganized. We do not really need them nor do we need to know much or
anything about them. It is enough for us to study the will of God as
revealed in the Bible and if necessary as explained by legitimate
commentaries on the Bible.
[Deuteronomy 18:9] WHEN THOU ART COME INTO THE LAND WHICH THE LORD THY GOD
GIVETH THEE, THOU SHALT NOT LEARN TO DO AFTER THE ABOMINATIONS OF THOSE
NATIONS.
Adapted from Ephraim" ch.2
After the Israelite Tribes were exiled by the Assyrians these
Tribes were re-settled in different areas of the Assyrian Empire. Many
groups from the Israelite Tribes retained their original Tribal Identity.
They usually federated with other Israelite entities and are identifiable
as part of the Scythian forces. Most of the Israelites were due to be
pushed northwards as part of the Scythian hosts though some groups retained
a presence for some time in the Iranian area. In Scythia one group
identified by its neighbors as Israelite called itself Nephtali. The
Nephtali were also referred to as Cadussi. This people had first been
recorded close to Mannae southwest of the Caspian Sea. The area was one of
the major regions to which Northern Israelites had been transported by the
Assyrians. The Apocryphal Book of Tobias mentions Israelite exiles from the
Tribe of Nephtali in Ecbatana and Rages of Media both of which adjoined the
Cadussii area.
<<This is the story of Tobit, son of Tobiel, son of Hananiel, son of Aduel,
son of Gabael, son of Raphael, son of Raguel, of the family of Asiel, of
the tribe of Naphtali. He was taken captive in the time of Enemessaros
[i.e. Shalmanessar] king of Assyria, from Thisbe which is south of Kedesh
Naphtali in Upper Galilee above Hazor, behind the road to the west, north
of Peor.>> (Tobit 1;1-2).
<<After the deportation to Assyria when I was taken captive and came to
Nineveh...>> (Tobit 1;10).
<<All my kinsmen grieved for me, and Ahikar looked after me for two years
until he moved to Elymais>> (Tobit 2;10).
<<Sarah, the daughter of Raguel who lived at Ecbatana in Media>> (Tobit 2;7).
<<I have often travelled into Media and used to lodge with Gabael our
fellow countryman who lives there at Rages>> (Tobit 5;6).
The Book of Tobias (Tobit) thus testifies to the presence of
Israelite Exiles from the Tribe of Naphtali in the Cadussi area. Later we
have evidence of a people to the north in Scythia who were known as
Naphtalites also being referred to as Cadussi or Kadussi. The very name
Kadussimay be derived from the ancient Israelite city of Kadesh in the Land
of Naphtali:
<<AND OUT OF THE TRIBE OF NAPHTALI, KEDESH IN GALILEE WITH HER SUBURBS>>
[Joshua 21:32].
.
The Nephtalites were called Cadussi by the Greeks, Romans,
and Persians but Pliny reported that they termed themselves Gaeli. "Gaeli"
is also one of the names that the Celtic Hiberi called themselves. The
Gaeli had migrated to the British Isles from the Middle East via Spain. The
Cadussi-Gaeli were related to the Sacae Scythians according to Xenophon.
[We identify the Sacae as ancestors of the Angles and Saxons who invaded
Britain]. The Cadussi (or Kadussi) later moved northwards into Scythia east
of the Ural mountains where they were also referred to as Nephtalites or
Nephtalite Huns though some sources still referred to them as "Kadassaye"
i.e. Cadussi. Legends, their Tribal names, and additional factors link them
to the Israelite Tribes of Nephtali, Dan, Judah, and other Israelite
Tribes. After a series of wars and migrations the Cadussi-Nephtalites (also
known as "White Huns" and sundry other names) split up into several groups.
The majority went westward and entered Scandinavia to form what later
became the Danes and Norwegians. Another portion remained in Scythia to
eventually merge with the Khazars who converted to Judaism.
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