"Collective Responsibility
and Rabbinical Authority" by Yair Davidiy
Rabbinical Laws have Biblical Authority and are often encompassed in the words of the Hebrew Scriptures. The Lost Ten Tribes do not at present have to keep the Torah though in the future they will. The Prophet Jeremiah foresaw that in the End Times the Ten Tribes would adhere to the Christian Faith before they returned to Israel.


Collective Responsibility
and Rabbinical Authority
Contents:
The Origin and Purpose of this Article
Did the Rabbis Invent Commandments of their Own?
The Case Against Individualistic Interpretation
Judges and Sages Commanded to Interpret the Bible
The Ten Tribes were Exiled for Inventing their own Religious Beliefs!
Judah Keeps the Law of Scripture according to the Bible
The Calendar
Alleged Superstitions and Exagerrations in the Talmud
Applications of Rabbinical Law Unacceptable to the Modern Mind?
Non-Jews are not obligated at Present to Keep all the Commandments.
Some Personal Points.
Has Brit-Am Lost Followers Because of its Position on the Commandments?
The Obligation of Judah to Reach Out to the Lost Ten Tribes
The End Time Arousal of "Ephraimites"
The Lost Ten Tribes in the latter Times were to be Christians

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To Hear a Talk based on the Text below:
Collective Responsibility and Rabbinical Authority.
http://britam.org/Broadcasts/newBAMBI/Rabbis.mp3
(ca. 50 minutes)



The Origin and Purpose of this Article
If you were not unconventional and prepared to rebel against the accepted intellectual norms you probably would not be visiting our site and reading this article. It was written in reply to a letter whose author has recanted and asked that we not publish his missive.  Therefore we have not done so. We thought however that the points made were worthy of public perusal so we incorporated them into the present article.

The article below speaks of Rabbinical authority. It emphasizes the Communal Responsibility of the Israelite Nation while also explaining why the Ten Tribes (who comprise the greater part of that nation) do not AT PRESENT necessarily have to consider themselves obligated to keep the Commandments.
Did the Rabbis Invent Commandments of their Own?
It is commonly assumed that the Rabbis added Laws of their own to the Written Torah.
The Book of Proverbs warns against adding to the Divine words.

Prov. 30:5, 6: "Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them who put their trust in Him.  Add you not unto His words, lest He reprove you, and you be found a liar."

The Oral Law however is not an addition to the Divine Words but rather an exposition of them.
The Rabbis were always careful in making their rulings to distinguish between what was written expressly and what they had learnt through studying the Hebrew expressions employed in Scripture and applying logical constructs. Their aim was always to discern the intention of the written word and to apply it. This is their duty.
To learn and study the Word of the Almighty is what we are commanded to do.

Joshua was commanded:
[Joshua 1:8]THIS BOOK OF THE LAW SHALL NOT DEPART OUT OF THY MOUTH; BUT THOU SHALT  MEDITATE THEREIN DAY AND NIGHT, THAT THOU MAYEST OBSERVE TO DO ACCORDING TO ALL THAT IS WRITTEN THEREIN: FOR THEN THOU SHALT MAKE THY WAY PROSPEROUS, AND THEN THOU SHALT HAVE GOOD SUCCESS.
Adding to the commandments would appear to be contrary to a written injunction which says:

Deut. 4:2 says "You shall not add unto the word that I command you, neither shall you diminish from it, that you may keep the commandments of God that I command you."

Deut. 12:32 says, "What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: you shall not add thereto, nor diminish from it.

In reply we would, in general terms, say that the Oral Law is not so much an adding to the Commandments but rather an explaining of how existing Commandments must be kept.
The Rabbis have never really added any commandment. They have made enactments based on the Commandments.

In the Army for instance, "General Army Command Protocol", might say that weapons are to be properly maintained. A front-line platoon commander in action or undergoing live-training in difficult conditions may then interpret this to mean that all rifles must be cleaned and oiled daily. He is not adding to the General Army Command Protocol but rather putting it into effect.

The Case Against Individualistic Interpretation
Most of our readers live in North America or in one of the other Western Nations.
Here we have the ideal of a free secular society where every one can do their own thing as long as they do not interfere with others. Individualism is justifiably admired. A good deal of the progress and reform that our societies have achieved is due to individualism, to people being prepared to go against the grain and not bow down to how others think they should. These values are actually Biblical in character. An individual Israelite had to be prepared to give up his/her life and not transgress certain commandments.
Nevertheless the Bible emphasized the communal responsibility of the whole nation.
They were to become,
A KINGDOM OF PRIESTS, AND AN HOLY NATION [Exodus 19:6].
[The word translated here as PRIESTS can also mean "rulers" but the point is the same].
The emphasis is on the nation as a whole.

The Community of Israel accepted an obligation to enforce the SAME Law on all members of the Community!
[Deuteronomy 29:29] THE SECRET THINGS BELONG UNTO THE LORD OUR GOD: BUT THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE  REVEALED BELONG UNTO US AND TO OUR CHILDREN FOR EVER, THAT WE MAY DO ALL THE WORDS OF THIS LAW.
The Torah was given to the whole of Israel as a group and they were commanded to be mutually responsible for each other in keeping it. 

From a common sense point of view if the Almighty said something it had a specific meaning.
The Torah was given to the whole community to be kept by all members of that community.
It is not logical that one person should keep Pesach on one day and someone else on another, that one person eats kosher meat and another something else, that one person considers intercourse with certain women permitted and another forbids it.
This sort of behavior may be OK in a democratic secular society where everyone has different religions.
Originally however the Torah was given to the Israelites as one whole.
The religion created the nation, obligated every member of that nation, and if anyone publicly transgressed the commandments they were to be punished by the community.
[Deuteronomy 29:9] KEEP THEREFORE THE WORDS OF THIS COVENANT, AND DO THEM, THAT YE MAY PROSPER IN ALL THAT YE DO.

[Deuteronomy 29:10] YE STAND THIS DAY ALL OF YOU BEFORE THE LORD YOUR GOD; YOUR CAPTAINS OF YOUR TRIBES, YOUR ELDERS, AND YOUR OFFICERS, WITH ALL THE MEN OF ISRAEL,
 
[Deuteronomy 29:11] YOUR LITTLE ONES, YOUR WIVES, AND THY STRANGER THAT IS IN THY CAMP, FROM THE HEWER  OF THY WOOD UNTO THE DRAWER OF THY WATER:
 
[Deuteronomy 29:12] THAT THOU SHOULDEST ENTER INTO COVENANT WITH THE LORD THY GOD, AND INTO HIS  OATH, WHICH THE LORD THY GOD MAKETH WITH THEE THIS DAY:
 
[Deuteronomy 29:13] THAT HE MAY ESTABLISH THEE TO DAY FOR A PEOPLE UNTO HIMSELF, AND THAT HE MAY BE UNTO THEE A GOD, AS HE HATH SAID UNTO THEE, AND AS HE HATH SWORN UNTO THY FATHERS, TO ABRAHAM,  TO ISAAC, AND TO JACOB.
Throughout the Bible God speaks to the nation and about the nation.
The individual (king, prophet, etc) is important in so far as they form part of the nation and are connected to it.
They occupy their positions for the sake of the Hebrew people.
There is a collective responsibility.
The Community was obliged to enforce the Keeping of the Sabbath.
One could be put to death for desecrating the Sabbath!
[Exodus 31:15] SIX DAYS MAY WORK BE DONE; BUT IN THE SEVENTH IS THE SABBATH OF REST, HOLY TO THE LORD: WHOSOEVER DOETH ANY WORK IN THE SABBATH DAY, HE SHALL SURELY BE PUT TO DEATH.
But what exactly would constitute Sabbath desecration?
Look in the Bible. It is not so clear.
It must however have been clear to someone.
The Almighty would NOT have given us commandments if HE did not expect us to keep them.

Judges and Sages Commanded to Interpret the Bible
Moses was commanded to appoint seventy elders to help him rule over the people (Numbers 11:16).
There also existed a hierarchy of local judges over tens, hundreds, and thousands (Exodus 18:21).
Any case too difficult at one level would be passed on upwards (Exodus 18:26).
As in any legal system over time a body of precedents and legal principles developed telling in detail how the Commandments were to be put into practice.
[In point of fact most of the Rabbinical injunctions are hinted at in the written Scriptures according to grammatical niceties and quirks of the Hebrew Language. A good portion of the Talmud is dedicated to clarifying the Law according to what the Biblical verses indicate.
Even if this was not so however we would still be obliged to do as the Rabbis say.]
In case of doubt the Israelites were commanded to go to the authorities and Sages that would exist in their time.

[Deuteronomy 17:8] IF THERE ARISE A MATTER TOO HARD FOR THEE IN JUDGMENT, BETWEEN BLOOD AND BLOOD, BETWEEN PLEA AND PLEA, AND BETWEEN STROKE AND STROKE, BEING MATTERS OF CONTROVERSY WITHIN THY GATES: THEN SHALT THOU ARISE, AND GET THEE UP INTO THE PLACE WHICH THE LORD THY GOD SHALL CHOOSE;
In case of doubt concerning any matter of the Law and its practical implications one had to make an effort ("ARISE") and go to the recognized authority that existed.
[Deuteronomy 17:9] AND THOU SHALT COME UNTO THE PRIESTS THE LEVITES, AND UNTO THE JUDGE THAT SHALL BE IN THOSE DAYS, AND ENQUIRE; AND THEY SHALL SHEW THEE THE SENTENCE OF JUDGMENT:
The Priests, Levites, and/or simple Israelite Judge, whoever was in charge at the time, would make the decision usually after consultation with the others and in accordance with accepted tradition and well know laws of logical deduction applied to Biblical verses and derived from them. This was the foundation of what later became the Talmud.

[Deuteronomy 17:10] AND THOU SHALT DO ACCORDING TO THE SENTENCE, WHICH THEY OF THAT PLACE WHICH THE LORD SHALL CHOOSE SHALL SHEW THEE; AND THOU SHALT OBSERVE TO DO ACCORDING TO ALL THAT THEY INFORM THEE:
 
[Deuteronomy 17:11] ACCORDING TO THE SENTENCE OF THE LAW WHICH THEY SHALL TEACH THEE, AND ACCORDING TO THE JUDGMENT WHICH THEY SHALL TELL THEE, THOU SHALT DO: THOU SHALT NOT DECLINE FROM THE SENTENCE WHICH THEY SHALL SHEW THEE, TO THE RIGHT HAND, NOR TO THE LEFT.
Even if one went to the Sages to decide how a commandment should be carried out and did not agree with what the Sages said you still had to obey them. This was the commandment.

[Deuteronomy 17:12] AND THE MAN THAT WILL DO PRESUMPTUOUSLY, AND WILL NOT HEARKEN UNTO THE PRIEST THAT STANDETH TO MINISTER THERE BEFORE THE LORD THY GOD, OR UNTO THE JUDGE, EVEN THAT MAN SHALL DIE: AND THOU SHALT PUT AWAY THE EVIL FROM ISRAEL.
 
[Deuteronomy 17:13] AND ALL THE PEOPLE SHALL HEAR, AND FEAR, AND DO NO MORE PRESUMPTUOUSLY.
The Ten Tribes were Exiled for Inventing their own Religious Beliefs!

It says:

Isa. 8:20: "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."

We were asked concerning the above verse:
Could not this be construed as against Rabbinical rulings?
Answer: No!
The Rabbis made their decisions in accordance with the authority invested in them and the actual REAL meaning of the Biblical verses.
Isaiah chapter eight is actually speaking to the TEN LOST TRIBES and warning them not to invent religious doctrines of their own.
The Lost Ten Tribes were exiled because they added to the Law and Scripture things that were not so!
[2-Kings 17:9] AND THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID SECRETLY [Hebrew: "VaYeChapu"] THOSE THINGS THAT WERE NOT RIGHT AGAINST THE LORD THEIR GOD, AND THEY BUILT THEM HIGH PLACES IN ALL THEIR CITIES, FROM THE TOWER OF THE WATCHMEN TO THE FENCED CITY.
The expression translated in the King James Translation above as DID SECRETLY in Hebrew is "VaYeChapu" which can indeed mean "cover, hide" but also (see Rashi, Targum Yehonatan) connotes inventing things that are not so, hiding the truth.
They said things about the ALMIGHTY and his commandments that were not true.
[2-Kings 17:15] AND THEY REJECTED HIS STATUTES, AND HIS COVENANT THAT HE MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS, AND HIS TESTIMONIES WHICH HE TESTIFIED AGAINST THEM; AND THEY FOLLOWED VANITY, AND BECAME VAIN, AND WENT AFTER THE HEATHEN THAT WERE ROUND ABOUT THEM, CONCERNING WHOM THE LORD HAD CHARGED THEM, THAT THEY SHOULD NOT DO LIKE THEM.
Judah Keeps the Law of Scripture according to the Bible
It was prophesied that Judah would keep the Law.
http://www.britam.org/judah.html#6a
Jews Keep the Law : The Jews kept the Law as it had been prophesied that Judah would:
Psalms 60: 9, 108:90 Genesis 49:10, Zechariah 8:23, Hosea 11:12, Ephraim goes away from the Torah yet Judah remains faithful.
"Ephraim compasseth me about with lies, and the house of Israel with deceit: but JUDAH yet ruleth with God, and is faithful with the saints". (Hosea 11; 12). 

"Ephraim is the strength of mine head; Judah is my LAWGIVER"  (Psalms 60; 9, 108; 90). 

"The scepter shall not depart from Judah nor a lawgiver from between his feet."  (Genesis 49; 10). 

[Zechariah 8:23] THUS SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS; IN THOSE DAYS IT SHALL COME TO PASS, THAT TEN MEN SHALL TAKE HOLD OUT OF ALL LANGUAGES OF THE NATIONS, EVEN SHALL TAKE HOLD OF THE SKIRT OF HIM THAT IS A JEW, SAYING, WE WILL GO WITH YOU: FOR WE HAVE HEARD THAT GOD IS WITH YOU.
By Judah keeping the Law the intention is to Rabbinical Teachings since only they have an unbroken line of Authority and only their instructions conform with the meaning of Scripture in the Hebrew original.

The Calendar
Critics of Rabbinical Teachings and enthusiasts who have started up their own religion taking a more literal view of the Bible often introduce their own calendars. They say that the Rabbis are wrong and that the Bible tells us differently how to compute the year and the time of the Holy Festivals. They therefore "celebrate" these "holy days" on dates other than those in the present Hebrew Calendar.
Since in Ancient Israel every male had to go up to Jerusalem three times a year and keeping the Feast Days was publicly enforced there must have been only one calendar.
The Sages had authority to decide when the Feast Days would take place.
They were given this authority by the Bible.
In the Talmud all learned scholars are exhorted to study astronomy.
I do not consider myself  a learned scholar in the Talmudic sense and have not done this.
For me it is enough that the Sages have decided.
Nevertheless even from a scientific point of view the Rabbinical computations cannot be dismissed as unreliable.

http://www.science.co.il/Hebrew-Calendar.asp
 ##According to the Talmud, one complete cycle of the moon around the earth takes 29.53059 days (Masechet Rosh Hashana). This value is very close to the average value measured by NASA: 29.530588.##

The difference between NASA and the Hebrew Calendar is only 00.000001!
Maybe NASA is wrong?

The Almighty predicted that the Jews would fast on certain days according to HIS calendar!!
The Jews keep the four fasts of mourning (according to the Hebrew Calendar) over the Destruction of the Second Temple as prophesied by Zechariah 8:19.

[Zechariah 8:19] THUS SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS; THE FAST OF THE FOURTH MONTH, AND THE FAST OF THE FIFTH, AND THE FAST OF THE SEVENTH, AND THE FAST OF THE TENTH, SHALL BE TO THE HOUSE OF JUDAH JOY AND GLADNESS, AND CHEERFUL FEASTS; THEREFORE LOVE THE TRUTH AND PEACE. 
These four fasts are the four days of mourning associated with the destruction of the Temple. When the Temple is rebuilt they will become feast days. These fasts are still kept by the present-day Jews who are descended from Judah.
The fast days will have been kept in months of the Year computed by the Hebrew Calendar, i.e.
THE FAST OF THE FOURTH MONTH, -17th Tammuz
THE FAST OF THE FIFTH, - 9th of Av
AND THE FAST OF THE SEVENTH, - 3rd of Tishrei (Gedaliah)
AND THE FAST OF THE TENTH, - 10th Tebeth (Tevet).

Alleged Superstitions and Exaggerations in the Talmud
Critics of the Talmud and of the Rabbis sometimes pick out certain passages and mock them.
The Talmud is  about as big as the Encyclopedia Britannica or Encyclopedia Americana.
Each page can take hours, days, or months to learn properly and even then one may feel that not even the surface has been scratched.
The only thing that really obligates the Jew is what the Law says. All the rest is commentary and explanation.
How the Law has been decided is what concerns us.
The Talmud contains up-to-date scientific insights, profound truths, along side some other matters that to the modern mind are difficult to accept. Very often upon examination these difficult matters conceal deeper truths.
There exist web-sites explaining this.
See the articles by
Gil Student
 http://www.angelfire.com/mt/talmud/

Applications of Rabbinical Law Unacceptable to the Modern Mind?
Quotation:

##Jews apparently can't ride elevators on the Sabbath because pushing a button breaks the Sabbath....Such beliefs are pure nonsense to most of us. ##

Reply:
Initially we answered:
If you are not Jewish you are not obligated by the Law so you can ride in the elevator on a Saturday with a clear conscience. All day long if you like.

We now feel that this answer may have been somewhat unnecessarily caustic. Electricity and the widespread use of electric appliances etc is a comparatively recent phenomenon. When this usage was introduced and became widespread Rabbinical Opinion was divided. There were some authorities who permitted it. Eventually a consensus was reached whereby it was decided (in simplified terms) that electricity on Sabbath would be allowed but initiating the process by turning on a switch etc forbidden. This, roughly speaking, is the Jewish law today in Rabbinical Orthodox circles.

The Conservative and Reform Jewish religions officially apparently deny the Divine Origin of the Torah. There were, and still are, however maverick "Rabbis" amongst them who try to maintain some semblance of Jewish Legal ("halachic") legitimacy. In cases such as electricity on Sabbath etc they will quote the lenient opinions that some Rabbis once held before the contrary stricter view was universally accepted. For non-Jews who do not wish to become Jewish but wish to keep the Law without making it too burdensome on themselves such lenient rulings could be an option?

Non-Jews are not obligated at Present to Keep all the Commandments
Non-Jews even if they are of Israelite Descent are not obligated to keep the Law at present.
See:
Queries on the Law
 http://www.britam.org/Questions/QuesLaw.html

Joseph and the Law
 http://www.britam.org/worship.html

Our task is not to explain Judaism or Jewish Law.
Brit-Am is not out to make converts to Judaism.
In the future all of Israel will keep the Law but apparently it may be somewhat different from how we know it at present.
On the one hand,
[Malachi 4:4] REMEMBER YE THE LAW OF MOSES MY SERVANT, WHICH I COMMANDED UNTO HIM IN HOREB FOR ALL ISRAEL, WITH THE STATUTES AND JUDGMENTS.
The Lost Ten Tribes will have to return and accept anew the Law of Moses and Israel.

This is also mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud and Zohar.
Eventually the Lost Ten Tribes will return and be accepted anew into the Covenant of Moses (Malachi 3:22; Yerushalmi, Sanhedrin 10; Zohar "VaYechi"). At present they have other goals and duties to fulfill. Technically they are Gentiles and not obligated by the Law (Jeremiah 3:8, Talmud Yebamot 17). Their obligations under the Law have been suspended temporarily (Hosea 1:9).
 
Also:
http://www.britam.org/Ezekiel16to20.html
[Ezekiel 20:33] AS I LIVE, SAITH THE LORD GOD, SURELY WITH A MIGHTY HAND, AND WITH A STRETCHED OUT ARM, AND WITH FURY POURED OUT, WILL I RULE OVER YOU:
God rules over us and the Law will have to be kept.           
on the other hand, 
[Ezekiel 16:61] THEN THOU SHALT REMEMBER THY WAYS, AND BE ASHAMED, WHEN THOU SHALT RECEIVE THY SISTERS, THINE ELDER AND THY YOUNGER: AND I WILL GIVE THEM UNTO THEE FOR DAUGHTERS, BUT NOT BY THY COVENANT
Judah must seek to bring the Lost Ten Tribes back. God makes the participation of Judah in the process of returning the Lost Ten Tribes a prior condition for the rehabilitation of Judah herself!
BUT NOT BY THY COVENANT: The Lost Ten Tribes will not necessarily have to convert to Judaism in our sense of the word though they will renew the covenant between Israel and the Almighty and Judah is obligated to assist them.                 
 
We can leave the solution to the future.
We do not have to have all the Answers.
Perhaps a Prophet will arise?
Perhaps intensified study of Scripture will yield another solution?
At the moment we do what we have to and teach what we know.

Has Brit-Am Lost Followers Because of its Position on the Commandments?
Brit-Am may have lost Followers due to its position concerning the Torah and non-Jews.
What do you want?
That we tell them what they would like to hear rather than what we think is the truth?
If we did think the Lost Tribes should now keep the Law we would have to advocate converting to Judaism and no-one really wants us to do that and we would not want to do it.
We are not qualified for it. The Jews are not ready for it.
Most "Joes" and "Ephraimites" do not want it and are not suited for it. They are often vehemently against those of their community who do take that path.
Perhaps unjustifiably so?
Anyway it is not our field of interest.

Some Personal Points.
Yair Davidiy, head of the Brit-Am Movement of the Ten Tribes believes in Judaism and tries to observe it. 
The Jewishness of Yair and that of others in Brit-Am is one of the factors as to why many are attracted to us in the first place.
Though we attempt to speak and act with circumspection it is to be expected that something of our religious predispositions will here and there intrude.
One cannot have it both ways.
Nevertheless we are still here (at least for now) and still have much to offer.
Where else will you find us?
If we all begin to do what we can as much as we can according to what we now know we can go a long way.
It could make for a very nice beginning.

Obligation of Judah to Reach Out to the Lost Ten Tribes
Part of our appreciation of being "Jewish" indicates we should reach out to the Lost Tribes.
Ezekiel says that Judah has an obligation to help the Lost Ten Tribes return. The complete return of Judah is dependent upon the return of "Samaria" (Ezekiel 16:53, 55, 61) meaning the Ten Tribes especially Manasseh. Manasseh today is mainly the USA. God will renew His covenant with Judah and with Israel (Ezekiel 16:62).

The End Time Arousal of "Ephraimites"
We are approaching the End Times. Spiritually aware and Sensitive individuals amongst ethnic entities that in a Biblical sense qualify to be considered Israelite are becoming aroused. These are people amongst whom a significant proportion of descendants of Israel are to be found. They often feel a need to re-assert their Hebrew being. This arousal may express itself in a compulsion to keep the commandments as they understand them. In others it is a yearning to return to the Land of Israel. In many cases both impulses are present. For most of those concerned conversion to Judaism is out of the question. Usually they are strongly attached to the foundations of their own religion. They usually also feel a strong attachment to the Jewish People and support the State of Israel. We cannot really say anything to such "Ephraimites" (as they often call themselves) other than to encourage them in the path they are going, give information to those who request it, and trust that the Almighty will guide all of us along the track we need to follow. This arousal was foretold in Prophecy.

The Lost Ten Tribes in the latter Times were to be Christians
See the Brit-Am Commentary to Jeremiah chapter 31.
http://britam.org/Jeremiah/Jeremiah29to32.html

[Jeremiah 31:6] FOR THERE SHALL BE A DAY, THAT THE WATCHMEN [Hebrew: "Notsrim"] UPON THE MOUNT EPHRAIM SHALL CRY, ARISE YE, AND LET US GO UP TO ZION UNTO THE LORD OUR GOD.
The word translated above as “WATCHMEN” in Hebrew is “Notsrim”. This term in Hebrew came to mean “Christians” and Jeremiah was in fact prophesying that the Lost Ten Tribes in the latter Times would be Christians prior to their return.

This equation of "Notsrim" with Christians was first remarked upon as far as we know by Don Isaac Abarbanel (1437 - 1508). Abarbanel applied the term to non-Israelite Christian enemies of Israel coming from the north. We however understand the Biblical passage differently. We discussed the term "Notsrim" and its historical significance in our work "Ephraim". Archaeological evidence indicates that in the time of the prophets amongst Northern Israelites there existed a kind of paganised-Hebraic cult whose followers would have been known as "Notsrim". Later the name was applied to Christians possibly due to similarities between the two beliefs. Jeremiah when making his prophecy, after the manner of Prophets, would have taken the nearest parallel extant in his time to describe that of the future, i.e. he wanted to tell us that at that stage they would be Christians. This does not mean he would have agreed with Christianity only that just prior to their Redemption Christianity would have been the faith the Ephraimites followed and possibly the means through which Divine Providence begins the process of bringing them back.
This is one of the several good reasons that Brit-Am avoids inter-faith dialogue and religious polemics.
Our task is to tell Joseph and Judah who the Ten Tribes are (Research and Recognition) and to work towards a future Reconciliation between the two.
These are the Three Rs of Brit-Am: Research, Recognition, Reconciliation.

The notion that by "Notsrim" the Prophet Jeremiah intended Christians from the Lost Ten Tribes has since been adopted by several "Ephraimite" leaders who sometimes neglect to accredit either Brit-Am or Abarbanel.
See the Midrashim quoted and the Comments on Jeremiah 3:18:
Judah will Bring the Ten Tribes Back!
http://www.britam.org/Jeremiah1to5.html#Bring


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