The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-07-24

Rabbi SeTgiuS Throws Some Light On
the Great Biblical Mystery.

tle-An Appeal to Christians in Their
Behalf Rabbi sergius a Descendant
of the Converts Of Penteoost.
Rabbi John Sergius Ben Israel q Chris
tian jew. preached yesterday morning at
the First Presbyterian church and last
night at Trinity Methodist church. The
subject of his morning discourse was the
Messiahship Of Christ. Rabbi Sergius
devoted himself last night more partic-
ularly to the history of his people, the
Christian Jews of India. As stated in
Yesterdays MORNING NEWS, he claims
that there are many thousand Jews in
India, protesting the Christian faith
which has been handed down to them
by their fathers since the days of Pente-
ost. These Jews are the defendants.
of the lost ten tribes eff Israel who were
carried away into captivity several hun
dred years before Christ.
Rabbi Sergius claims that these Israel
ties were scattered all over Asia. even as
far as China, and that those residing in
India to-day, are the descendants Of those
who were carried there or wandered there
after their capture. He endeayored to
adduce scriptural proof Of these state
ments last night, and also that some Of
LlG DDODletlGS OF INC Nlu anu NEW Itouu-
ment related to them.
A NATIVE OF HINDOsTAN.
Rabi Sergius was born in Hindostan,
and has been in this country only eleven
months, coming here to seek assistance
for his people, who are very poor. His
wife was an English missionary whom he
married in India. His English is so
broken that his hearers yesterday could
follow him with dinculty and were not
able to get a very connected idea of his
discourse The statements that he made,
however, are most interesting.
and if established will add an important
chapter to contemporary and religious
history.
Rabbi Sergius referred to the fact that
when the ten tribes were carried INTO
captivity Joy Tiglath Pileser, those who
eventually found their way to India pre-
served their faith, or rather returned to
the true faith from which they had de
parted before their conquest, and also
carried with them the science of Masonry
which has been preserved among them
ever since, They were received with
favor in India, and some of their repre-
sentatives had honors conferred
upon them by the rulers of the
country. At the time Of the
and prosperous and conducted trading
operations even as far as Jerusalem.
CONVERTED AT THE PENTECosT.
On the day of Pentecost it is claimed
that a number of them We're present and
shared in the wonderful conversion of
that day. These carried back to India
with them the seeds of the new faith
They were shortly afterwards reinforced
by the Apostle Thomas, who preached the
gospel all through India with great sue
cess, and was finally killed and buried
fhapa and the TtloPp n his n iC el a irf,a
TO be known to the Christian Jews there
to-day.
The cause of the apostles death, Rabbi
SergiuS said last night, was his attack
upon the Hindoo custom of burning the
wives of deceased husbands with the
bodies of their husbands. This fact is in
teresting if true, as it is this same Gus
tom which the modern Christians have
done so much TO subdue in India.
The early Christians, Rabbi Sergius said,
were very active missionaries, sand their
efforts in India were very successful a
large portion of the population accepting
Christianity. At the time of the Mo
hammedan invasion, however, the Chris
tians were ruthlessly slaughtered and
compelled to accept the Mohammedan
faith.
A PEOPLE REDUCED TO POVERTY
BY reason of the Mohammedan inva-
sion and the constant wars occurring in
the country, the Jews were reduced to
a state of AFFECT poverty from which
they have never recovered. NOtwith-
standing their poverty Rabbi Sergius said
that Jews, or rather Christian lsraelites,
have adhered faithfully to their religion
They are very strict in their observances
and neither drink, steal, gamble nor
dance.
Rabbi Sergius said he never saw whis-
ky or beer, and never saw dance nor a
game of chance of any kind until he came
to this country. He denounced all these
things in style truly methodistic He
claims that the Indian Israelitish Chris
tians have among them manuscripts left
by the Apostle Thomas of the gospels and
other sacred writings and also writings
of other early Christians which have been
carefully preserved and handed down
among them. These writings have never
been put into print but many copies of
them have been made by hand. Rabbi
Sergius says he has papers with him to
prove the authenticity of these manu-
scripts.
SUBJECT FOR INVESTIGATION.
Altogether habit Sergius statements
are very interesting, and would seem to
call for close investigation by religious
authorities. Owing to his imperfect
knowledge of English. the ministers who
have conferred with him since his arrival
in Savannah, have not been able to salts
fly themselves as to the evidence of what
he states. They were sufficiently salts
fed, however, of his sincerity to allow
him to use their pulpits.
He landed in British Columbia IL
months ago and came south on account
of his wife's health She is now
i'll here, and win probably remain
here sometime He expects to go to Chi
cago soon to the worlds fair to present
his mission there. He has visited and
preached in Eufaula, Bainbridge and
other places in this section, and has let
tiers of recommendation from prominent
ministers of those places.
Some interest has been excited
among the Jewish people Of Savan-
nah by Rabbi Sergius story, and some Of
them have called upon him. They say he
is undoubtedly Jew and a well educated
man. He is acquainted with the Jewish
Talmudic language and several modern
languages. He is also a Mason of the an
Gent rite. A very severe article ap-
peared in the Jewish Messenger Of
Cincinnati some time ago charging him
with being an impOstor Others believe
that there is truth in his claims, however.
The ten lost tribes of Israel have
been regarded as one of the historical
mysteries, and if Rabbi Sergius can estab-
lish the truth of his statements he will
throw light upon a most interesting sub
ject. A book was written by an Oriental