If you are a true Bible believing Christian, the Christian Identity Movement (also known as Anglo-Israelis, British Israelism and Israel Identity) should give you reason to be very concerned simply by the extreme misnomer of their name. In fact, any reasonable person should see this cult for their corrupt teachings and unbiblical dogma.

To use the words “Christian Identity” as two key words to describe themselves is troubling at the very least and very misleading. A Bible believing Christian certainly cannot be identified with such a group, but the world in general would jump at the chance to throw this group in with all true believers simply because of its name. How convenient for the enemies of the true God of the Bible.

This cult essentially blasphemes Israel, is very anti-Semitic and is a white supremacy group using religion to further its unbiblical, political, social and military agendas. The adherents of this organization are generally members of the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nation, Nazi Party and any number of White Separatist groups. They use both the Old and New Testaments but clearly twist the Scriptures to create their own religion.

An early advocate of this group was someone by the name of Charles Carroll who wrote a dastardly book titled, The Negro a Beast, an obvious Ku Klux Klan proponent. Racism runs rampant. Even Catholics, have been targeted by this group.  Identity members believe in Nativism, meaning that if you are not born in the U.S.A. and a Protestant then you are considered harmful to this country and the West in general.

They also believe in anglo-Israelism (British Israelism), which according to their warped analysis would make the British, the Americans and Canadians the true descendants of the ancient Israelites–the ten lost tribes. They spread the lie that the Jews in Israel are a false people who are descendents of Cain. These Identity Movement revolutionaries are a dangerous group and are predominant in most every Western nation. They are loosely structured without any central organized hub.

This fringe group is a disgrace to the true teachings of Christianity, which teaches tolerance, love and patience, forgiveness and kindness. Considering how they distort the true teachings of Christ, I would suggest that there is also a high illiteracy problem within those who belong to the group. But that would also be true for all cults that pervert the Bible.

This is a diverse bunch with some radical methods and ideals forming a group of about 200,000 members claiming they are the descendants from the ancient Israelites. They are dispersed throughout the USA, mostly. The Black Hebrew Israelites was originally founded before the Civil War and grew into various sects each having their own individual leaders, who are not necessarily in close contact with the other sects but they all propagate their core twisted teachings. Some other cults to be aware of that fall under this group are titled: The Commandment Keepers, House of Judah and the African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem.

Some of these groups stand on the street corners of major cities and condemn people for what they harshly term as false beliefs using vulgar verbal attacks. From what we have investigated, those who call themselves Black Hebrew Israelites are completely closed to listening to any views other than their own and will become quite aggressive and agitated when asked to listen other points of view.

Like many other cults, these people create unbiblical doctrines and rules to further their own particular cause. One example is that they believe salvation can only come if a person calls on the name Yahshua, a Hebrew name for “Son of God (Yah).”

They also deny the existence of heaven and hell.

They deny the Trinity.

In keeping with end-times interest for readers of Rapture Ready, the eschatology of the Black Hebrew Israelites really stretches ones good senses: They teach that when the Messiah returns that all Israel (meaning black people) will be gathered back to modern Israel. They consider themselves to be the chosen ones. They believe and teach that the Jews are the Negroes in America and that the Jews come from one tribe, the tribe of Judah which according to their doctrine consists of  Hispanics, Native Americans and Negroes. They believe that Jesus was black and that Moses, Pharoh and some Roman emperors were black.

They consider white people to be nearly subhuman and that Caucasians have an evil agenda to conceal what they believe to be their identiy of the true “Israelites.”

The Black Hebrew Israelites add other teachings to the Bible (obviously) and do not consider the Bible the inerrant Word of God.

Much more could be written on this cult but enough has been covered here to show that this is another group that is about as lost as it gets and if you come across any of them, the best way to handle it is through prayer. Pray for their deliverance from false teaching and for their salvation. Trying to engage in a rational conversation will get you nowhere and you could be in for an unpleasant verbal lashing.

“For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book” (Revelation 22:18-19).