Wentworth Arthur Matthew

Wentworth Arthur Matthew was born in Lagos, Nigeria in 1892 and died in 1973. He is the founder of the Commandment Keepers.cite web |url=http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/blackjews.html |title=The Black Jewish or Hebrew Israelite Community |last=Ben Levy |first=Sholomo |accessdate=2007-12-15 |format= |work= ] "The Manhattan African-American History and Culture Guide," Museum of the City of New York]

In 1919, Wentworth Arthur Matthew, founded the Commandment Keepers Congregation in Harlem. He was heavily influenced by the white Jews he met, and when he learned about the Beta Israel, he began to identify with them.cite web |url=http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/blackjews.html |title=Black Jews |accessdate=2007-12-16 |format= |work= |last=Holzinger |first=Kay ] Matthew trained rabbis, who set up synagogues throughout the United States and the Caribbean. When, interviewed, many of the older members of this community recall memories of their parents observing Jewish dietary laws, such as abstaining from pork or salting their meat. The group was heavily influenced by the philosophy of Marcus Garvey. Wentworth Matthew believed that black Jews were the original Jews, but white Jews had kept and preserved Judaism. Matthew, however, never denied the legitimacy of the white Jews. He eventually concluded that black Jews would not be accepted by the white Jewish community.

Wentworth Matthew's teachings are followed today by many Black Hebrew Israelites. Matthew believed that blacks who convert to Judaism were not converting, but rather returning to Judaism.cite news |first=Tara |last=Bahrampour |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=They're Jewish, With a Gospel Accent
url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D07E3DD1230F935A15755C0A9669C8B63 |work= |publisher=New York Times |date=June 26, 2000 |accessdate=2008-01-19 ]

Matthew applied and was rejected twice to become a member of the New York Board of Rabbis. After his death in 1973, his Jewish orientation was taken on by Capers Funnye, who is now a rabbi at the Beth Shalom B'nai Zaken Ethiopian Hebrew Congregation in Chicago, [cite web |url=http://northstar.vassar.edu/volume4/chireau_deutsch.html |title= The North Star
accessdate=2008-02-09 |last=Angell |first=Stephen W. |coauthors= |date= 2001 |work= |publisher=Florida A & M University] which he founded in 1985.cite book |last=Chireau |first=Yvonne |editor=Yvonne Patricia Chireau, Nathaniel Deutsch, eds. |title=Black Zion: African American Religious Encounters with Judaism |year=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York |isbn=0195112571 |pages=18 |chapter=Black Culture and Black Zion: African American Religious Encounters with Judaism, 1790–1930, an Overview p. 48]

References

External links

* [http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/blackjews.html Black Jews]
* [http://www.blackjews.org/RabbiBios/RabbiMatthew.html Rabbi Wentworth Arthur Matthew] BlackJews.org
* [http://commandmentkeeperscong.org Commandment Keepers Official Web Site]