Tag Archives: Bible

Jew of the Week: Semei Kakungulu

The Jewish Warrior-King of Africa

Semei Kakungulu, founder of the Jewish Abayudaya tribe of Uganda

Semei Kakungulu (1869-1928) was born into the African tribe of Baganda. As a young man he was converted to Christianity by a missionary. Meanwhile, he grew to become a skilled warrior, as well as an influential politician. The British supported him, essentially turning him into the unofficial king of the Busoga region, which he conquered for the Empire along with other territories. However, the British did not want to confer any titles on him, fearing he would become too powerful. This strained the relationship, and soon Kakungulu also abandoned Protestant Christianity, further driving a wedge between him and the British. Having begun to study the Bible on his own, Kakungulu recognized that Christians had misinterpreted and manipulated it, for example changing the day of the Sabbath to Sunday despite the fact that the text explicitly says it must be Saturday. According to lore, Kakungulu isolated himself in a room with the Bible, and emerged some time later with the book torn in half, concluding that only the first half (the Old Testament) must be true. In 1919, he circumcised himself and his son, urging his followers to do the same. He started a new community focused on following the laws of the Torah. Starting in 1925, the growing community encountered a number of Orthodox Jews from Europe who were working and traveling in the area. One of them, a man named Joseph, taught the community (now known as the Abayudaya) proper Jewish rituals and prayers, the Hebrew language, and even showed them how to slaughter and prepare kosher meat. Soon after, the community dropped any remaining aspects of their former Christian faith, and properly converted to Judaism. Kakangulu wrote a Jewish manual for Africans, and was able to inspire as many as 8000 followers in his time, building a network of some 36 synagogues in the region. His descendants continue to thrive in today’s Uganda. Click here to read more about them.

Words of the Week

In those days it shall come to pass, that ten people, of all the nations of the world, shall grab onto the clothing of a Jew, and say: “We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”
– Zechariah 8:23, as quoted by Kakungulu in response to a Christian missionary.

Jew of the Week: Yehoshua bin Nun

Holy Warrior

God miraculously causes the sun to stand still, allowing the Israelites under Yehoshua’s command to win the battle (painting by John Martin)

Hoshea bin Nun (c. 1355-1245 BCE) was born in Egypt during the time of the Israelite slavery. Upon the return of Moses, Hoshea became his trusted servant and right-hand man. He was the only one allowed to approach Mt. Sinai other than Moses himself, and is one of the few people in the Torah described as being filled with a Godly spirit. In the wilderness, he became the chief military commander of the Israelite army, leading them to multiple victories. When the Israelites originally reached the Holy Land, Hoshea was dispatched as one of the twelve spies. It was then that Moses renamed him Yehoshua (more commonly known as Joshua), to give him strength for his mission. He was the only one, along with Caleb, to bring back a positive report, and for this was rewarded with permission to enter the land of Israel, while the rest of the generation was condemned to perish in the wilderness over a forty year period. At the end of those forty years, when Moses passed away, Yehoshua took over and led the Jews into Israel, overseeing their successful reclamation and re-settlement of the land with a series of miraculous victories. His work complete, Yehoshua passed away in the Holy Land at the age of 110, having gained a reputation for wisdom, humility, and most of all, being a beloved caretaker of his people. He is believed to be the author of the Biblical book of Joshua. As his origins are obscure, and he alone has the moniker “bin” in his name (as opposed to the standard “ben”, which means son), several legends have come forth regarding his birth. In one of the most enigmatic, it is said that the baby Yehoshua was among those newborns thrown into the Nile River by Pharaoh’s soldiers. However, he was swallowed up by a great fish which was later caught by fishermen; Yehoshua was thereby accidentally rescued from the fish’s belly, hence the name “bin Nun” (nun means “fish” in Aramaic). Yehoshua’s yahrzeit is commemorated on the 26th of Nisan, which this year falls on Saturday.

Words of the Week

The Persian Empire was always against the Muslim Arab Empire, especially against the Sunnis. The threat is from Persia, not from Israel.
– Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal

Jew of the Week: Ayn Rand

Ayn Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum Rand

Alisa Rosenbaum (1905-1982) was born in St. Petersburg. She taught herself to read at age 6, and had decided to become a writer by 9. She was among the first group of women to enroll in a Russian university, studying history and philosophy, devouring all forms of literature in not only Russian, but German and French, too. She went on to study cinema arts, and took on the pseudonym Ayn Rand, from the Hebrew ayin (עין), meaning “eye”. In 1925 she came to Manhattan, and shortly after moved to Hollywood where she became a screenwriter. (Her first job was with Cecille B. DeMille – the guy who made The Ten Commandments). She catapulted to fame with the publishing of her novel The Fountainhead. The book sold over 3.5 million copies (despite being initially rejected by 12 publishers!) and was turned into a motion picture in 1949. The Fountainhead strongly influenced people around the world, inspiring Rand to move to New York and start a philosophy circle for her admirers, among them future Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. Rand’s greatest work came in 1957. This novel, Atlas Shrugged, became the basis for a new philosophical movement called Objectivism. In a 1991 survey by the Library of Congress, readers cited Atlas Shrugged as the second most influential book of all time, after the Bible! A passionate political activist throughout her life, Ayn Rand’s career included 12 books, along with a variety of films and Broadway plays. A woman with a complex mind, she called homosexuality “immoral” and “disgusting” but at the same time fought to repeal all laws against it. She was a staunch pacifist, and yet heavily supported Israel in its wars, calling them “civilized men fighting savages”. In her words: “When I die, I hope to go to Heaven, whatever the Hell that is.”

Words of the Week

Do something instead of killing time. Because time is killing you.

– Paulo Coelho