Bnei Menashe

The Bnei Menashe ("Children of Menassas", Hebrew בני מנשה) are a small group of Jews from India's northeastern states of Manipur and Mizoram, claiming descent from the Ten Lost Tribes, specifically, from the tribe of Menasseh (Menashe, in Hebrew). The come from the Shinlung tribes, and speak primarily Mizo.

History

The Bnei Menashe have an oral tradition that their forefathers were exiled and enslaved by the Assyrians 2700 years ago, and that they later escaped to the east, eventually arriving in China. This tradition also includes a description of persecutions (1,000 years prior to the advent of the Kaifeng Jewish Community of Kaifeng), which drove their ancestors to the south, as a result of which, they ultimately arrive in the border regions of China, Myanmar (Burma), and India, where they reside today.

The tradition continues that, upon the arrival in the early 1900s, of Christian missionaries, the bulk of the population converted to Christianity, believing the missionaries' message that their ancient prophecies had been fullfilled by Jesus. Today, the majority of the population of this area remains Christian.

In 1951, a local chief named Tchalah had a vision, which he shared with his people, indicating that God had instructed him to direct his people to return to their pre-Christian religion, which he determined to be Judaism, and to return to what he declared to be his people's original homeland, Israel. Several thousand of his followers set out, on foot, to go to Israel, soon thereafter being turned back (mostly for political reasons) by Indian authorities.

Because of their tenuous (and in the opinion of many, only legendary) connection to the Jewish people, those who wish to (re)join the Jewish people are required to undergo Orthodox conversions, since, while some Israeli rabbis regard their claims as legitimate, many do not; therefore, to satisfy dissenting opinions, every effort is made to ensure that they are excepted according to the strictest interpretation of Jewish law.

Presently (March, 2005), there are approximately 3,000 Bnei Menashe living in Israel, with an additional 5,000-8,000 remaining in northeastern India.

References

Kulanu's Indian Jewish communities page, including a number of Bnei Menashe links Shavei Israel, the foremost advocacy group for the Bnei Menashe in Israel (formerly Amishav)