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When our Congregation was established in 1896 it was incorporated under the name of Church of God and Saints of Christ by our founder, Prophet William S. Crowdy. We have retained this name throughout our existence. We interpret this name to mean that we are a religious organization which is directed by God, "Church of God", and we are followers of the anointed of God, "Saints of Christ."
Our Congregation should not be mistaken for Messianic Jews or Jews for Jesus
because we do not believe that Jesus is our Lord and Savior. History has taught
us that Jesus was a strict adherent of Judaism, an ardent practicing Jew who
observed all of the Biblical Jewish holidays. His mission, as suggested in
St. Matthew 5:17, was the spiritual promulgation and application of the Law and
the Prophets. We believe in the religion of Jesus and not the religion
about Jesus.
We categorize our religious beliefs and practices as Biblical Judaism, which
assumes a more basic and purist approach to the Judaic faith. We follow more
closely the Biblical mandates, especially the prophetic teachings with their
heavy emphasis upon such principles as love of God (Deuteronomy 6:5), faith
in God (Habakkuk 2:4), love of fellowman (Leviticus 19:18), practice of high
ethical and moral standards (Micah 6:8, Isaiah 1:16-17), and devotion to God's
commandments (Jeremiah 22:3, Amos 5:24).
We accept Judaism as our faith rather than our culture. Our
form of Judaism does not always coincide with the norms of the current Jewish
establishment with its Orthodox, Reform, and Conservative groupings. The beliefs
and practices of these groups have evolved from centuries of post-Biblical
development of law and custom set forth by rabbis and scholars of various
nationalities and persuasions.
Deuteronomy 6:4 states, "Hear O Israel: the LORD our God is One"
As adherents of Judaism, we believe that there is only one God and besides Him,
there is no other. We believe that this God created the universe (Genesis 1:1)
and everything in it (Psalm 24:1).
We believe that there is a distinction between God and Jesus of
Nazereth. In particular, we believe that God is THE
Supreme Being in the universe and that Jesus was merely a human being; a
noteworthy prophet (see St. Matthew 21:11), but a human being nonetheless.
We do not believe that God exists in three "modes of being".
Nor do we believe that God has (or needs) any sub- or
co-deities.
In fact, the dogma of the Trinity originated from Babylonian
pagan ideas. Trinitarianism was intertwined with Greek religion
and philosophy. The idea of 'God the Son' is Babylonian paganism
and mythology that was grafted into Christianity. Three
centuries after Jesus of Nazereth, Constantine the Great forced
the minority opinion of the Trinity upon the Council of Nicea.
Thus, Catholicism and all of its derivative Protestant
denominations inherited this pagan-based tenet.
Jesus was a strict adherent of Judaism. He did not change any of the laws of the
Torah (Matthew 5:17). He worshipped God (Matthew 4:10), and he observed the
Sabbath (Luke 4:16) and the holidays listed in the Torah, such as Passover
(Luke 2:41-48, 52).
We believe that Jesus was a prophet, and we accept all biblical prophets of God
who taught of the laws of God. Jesus lived an exemplary life, and we embrace his
teachings of love of God and man.
In the spirit of Numbers 12:6, Amos 3:7 and Jeremiah 1:5, we believe that the
raising up of prophets did not terminate in ancient Israel. We hold that in
1892, God spoke to a former slave, William Saunders Crowdy, in a vision,
revealed to him the religion of the ancient Hebrews, and caused him to re-establish
this religion among the suppressed Black people of America. We use the term
re-establish when describing the work of Prophet William S. Crowdy,
for he did not found a new religion, but he revived a long established religion
of solid Biblical under-girding -- the religion of the ancient Hebrews.
Since our re-establishment, our religious norms have been, and continue to be
shaped by what we believe to be Divine revelation manifested through a
succession of leaders from Prophet Crowdy to our present leader. Thus, our
religious practices are monitored by progressive, living insights into the
spiritual ideals to which we aspire. We are guided neither by rabbinic consensus,
nor by political expediency, but rather by a dynamic God-Consciousness actualized
in prophetic ideals and symbolized in the cry of the Biblical prophets of old:
"Thus saith the Lord, God."
Judaism is a system of religious beliefs that governs the life of the individual
who chooses to practice it. Thus, anyone, regardless of race, nationality, or
ethnicity, can embrace the religion. According to the Census, there are millions
of people worldwide who profess to Judaism. Among these are people of African
descent. Thousands of African-Americans in the United States professed to Judaism.
There is growing evidence that the ancient Hebrews of the Bible were an Afro/Asiatic
people. Many Egyptologists and biblical scholars, including Yosef Ben-Jochannan,
Charles Copher, Cheikh Anta Diop, Cain Hope Felder, Ivan Van Sertima, and Rudolf
Windsor have asserted that the people of the ancient biblical world were an African
people. Today, many people of African descent around the world practice Judaism
and trace their lineage to ancient times. For example, the "Beta Israel"
of Ethiopia believes that they are descendents of Menelik, son of Solomon, and
the Lemba Tribe of South Africa believes that they are the descendents of the tribe
of Levi.
Throughout the entire Bible, the seventh day of the week is designated as the
Sabbath. Originally sanctioned by God, the observance of the Sabbath on the
seventh day of the week was practiced by the ancient Israelites, the Prophets,
Jesus, the Apostle Paul, and early Christians. The attempt to change the Sabbath
to Sunday was man-made. In 321 CE, Constantine the Great, who was emperor of
the Roman Empire, passed a series of laws sanctioning Sunday as the Sabbath and
outlawing the worship of the Sabbath on Saturday.
According to many historians, Christmas, which means "Mass of Christ" and later
shortened to Christ-Mass, was not among the earliest festivals of the Christian
Church. In the Bible, no one is recorded to have kept a feast or held a great
banquet on his birthday. Early Christian Church fathers associated the observance
of the anniversary of ones birth with paganism. Thus, disassociating themselves
from pagan practices, they did not designate a date to honor the birth of Jesus
until the fourth century CE. It is commonly believed that Christmas derived
from practices observed by Romans. The Romans observed the festivals of Brumalia
(December 25) and Saturnalia (December 17-24) which celebrated the shortest day
of the year (the going out of the sun) and the new sun (emergence of the new sun)
respectively. Their celebrations were very popular, characterized by riotous
merry making.
In 321 CE, when Emperor Constantine the Great converted to Christianity and
Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, many old festivals
were abandoned. Brumalia and Saturnalia, however, because of their popularity,
were more difficult to give up. Hence, as a compromise, December 25 was adopted
as the birth date of Jesus, instead of the former sun worshipping festivals. The
official adoption of December 25 as the birth of Jesus came from Bishop Liberius
of Rome. In 354 CE, he ordered all Christians to celebrate the "birth of the
Christ child" on this day.
Our Congregation is incorporated under the name Church of God and Saints of Christ.
It is the name that was revealed by God to Prophet William S. Crowdy in 1892, and we
continue to operate by this name.
Temple Beth El refers to the name of our Temple Complex, which is located in our
international headquarters in Belleville (Suffolk), Virginia, USA. It is a Hebrew
phrase which means, "House of God."
Historically, these terms have been used interchangeably. Throughout the
scriptures, however, God and His prophets referred to His chosen people as
"Israel." For example, Deuteronomy 6:4 states, "Hear O Israel: the LORD our
God is one LORD."
The word "Jew" is a modification of the word "Judean." The Judeans were the
descendents of the Kingdom of Judah. Today the word "Jew" is usually defined
by Western civilization along racial (non-minority) lines rather than one who
is a religious adherent of Judaism.
We believe that Judaism is not a race but a religion. Hence, we prefer the
term "Israelite" in referring to members of our Congregation.
Religiously/Doctrinally the Bible/Torah is about the History of Israel and
God's disclosure of Himself to us (Israel). We are referred to throughout the
Bible by God and His prophets as "Israel/The Children of Israel" and not by
the term "Jew." The commandments were given to Israel.
Jacob's name was changed from Jacob to Israel as a blessing. God referred to
his descendants as the "Children of Israel." Therefore, it is our opinion that we
should continue to call ourselves "Israelites" as listed in the Bible.
What type of Judaism does our Congregation practice?
Why does our Congregation’s doctrine not put Jesus on equality with God?
Why does our Congregation’s doctrine not embrace the Trinity?
Why does our Congregation’s doctrine not reject Jesus?
Why does our Congregation believe in the medium of prophecy?
How can people of African descent practice Judaism?
Why does our Congregation observe the Sabbath on Saturday instead of Sunday?
Why does our Congregation not observe Christmas?
What is the relationship between Church of God and Saints of Christ and
Temple Beth El?
Why do we prefer to be called "Israelites" as opposed to "Jewish?"