SAMUEL SAADA
RISE
TO THE
KINGDOM
At the end of the 1960s, during the identity conflicts in the United States to which the African-American population was prey, a group of believers prepared to leave “the land of slavery” to settle in Israel.
Black Hebrew Israelite of Jerusalem, left the United States and settled in Liberia for two years before heading to the Holy Land. Their leader, Ben Carter, a steelworker from Chicago, would become Ben Ammi (son of my people) Ben Israel (son of Israel).
Self-proclaimed descendants of the ancient Hebrews, after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem (70 AD), the Hebrew slaves expelled from the holy city migrated to Africa. The links that will unite Africans and ancient Hebrews would be the spiritual result of the origins. Two thousand years later, in the 1940s, Marcus Garvey, the «Black Moses»,Pioneering militant of Pan-Africanism, promoter of the return of the descendants of black slaves to Africa, will influence Ben Ammi and his family to return to the ancestral land of the Back Hebrew Israelites.
In the United States, from the 60s and 70s, the black American population was the victim of lynchings, acts of violence and racism. This is the period of civil rights for the fight against discrimination. It was then that Ben Carter received in one of his dreams the visit of the Archangel Gabriel. He orders him to leave the land of slaves that is the USA. Thus, at the end of the year 67, with 200/300 faithful, they dispossessed themselves of their property and flew to Liberia. This is the first stage of their project before the holy land. A reconnection with their African roots and, in order to cleanse themselves spiritually of the oppression suffered.
For two years they lived in makeshift camps. In the jungle, plagued by malnutrition, poisonous animals (spiders, snakes, ants) they endure harsh living conditions. Some will die of dysentery, others will return to the United States.
In 1967, Israel was marked by the 6-day war. The country is booming. The living conditions of new migrants from Arab countries are disastrous.
In 1969, the few faithful who remained in Liberia prepared to leave for Israel with the intention of leading a highly spiritual life there in close relationship with the land of their ancestors. Ben Ammi and his group obtain tourist visas. Arrival in Dimona in the Negev. A piece of territory is allocated to them, which will become the “Village of Peace”. It’s really just a neighborhood no bigger than a football field. It is located east of the city. It is based on the kibbutzim model: sharing, working together, solidarity.
Since 1971, they have lived mainly on donations received by the faithful from all over the world (Ghana, South Africa, USA). Each member donates part of its income to the community fund which allows the operation of the infrastructures and to help the most deprived.
In the center of the village, the main square hosts the various celebrations. It also houses a covered area for Shabbat Fridays. A food and clothing market is set up.
The restaurant ‘’the Miznon’’, quite famous in the region, offers an exclusively vegan menu. The restaurants change every week. Each family has its specialties. This makes it possible to offer a variety of products and to create a monetary balance. The community also follows strict rules: its members eat vegan, do not wear synthetic clothing, do not consume tobacco or alcohol, favor herbal care and natural births, and practice regular physical exercises. These rules aim to maintain a healthy body, condition according to them of a healthy spirituality.
They grow fruits and vegetables on land acquired nearby.
The children follow a school curriculum in the schools adjoining the village. Core subjects are taught by Israeli teachers; history and spirituality classes by community teachers. There are two buildings at the entrance to the village, from primary to secondary school. As well as a sports complex. Universities are located in Beersheva and Tel Aviv for future students.
They observe the rituals and festivals of the Hebrew calendar, fasting and Shabbat and all other festivals. They reappropriate history: the exit from Egypt of the Hebrews becomes the exit from the USA, a country of slavery. They do not consider themselves as Jews, but as Judeans and prefer the notion of spirituality to that of religion. They claim to be descendants of the tribe of Judas, one of the twelve lost tribes of Israel. It is this refusal to convert to Judaism that partly explains their difficulty in obtaining Israeli nationality.
Since their establishment in the 1970s, they have regularly been the victims of arrests for irregular situations, although some have been established for years. So, as they call it, the ‘deportation’ of members of the community aimed at reducing the number of faithful continues to increase. The Jewish state tolerates less and less the arrival of new migrants. In order to ensure a family future, more and more young adults do their military service to obtain papers.