February 2012
From the heart of
Jonathan Bernis In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people . . . He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth. —Isaiah 11:11-12 TNIV Warmest greetings to you in Messiah Yeshua! As you receive this exciting Jewish Voice Connections newsletter, two medical outreaches to Jewish communities in Ethiopia are already in the last stages of preparation. Our first outreach of 2012 is a return to the Gefat Tribe, a recently discovered Jewish remnant in the rugged and remote mountains of Woliso, Ethiopia. The unprecedented logistical challenges in establishing last year’s ministry to these precious “Outcasts of Israel” culminated in an epic outreach, as 600 years of desperate prayer was answered by the love of God overflowing from the hearts of His humble servants. Overcoming monumental hurdles such as lack of electricity, water, and passable bridges, the Lord provided breakthrough after breakthrough to reach His Chosen People. We were able to treat more than 7,000 and see 832 of Abraham’s children receive salvation! We are anxious to return in answer to the cries of His People, and watch God glorify His Name! Please remember this special outreach in prayer—our advance team has already left to prepare for the February 24 clinic. Our second outreach is to Addis Ababa. From the first time I saw the “Wall of Death” memorials in the synagogues of Ethiopia memorializing the staggering number of babies that die before they reach the age of two, I have been committed to reaching the Beta Israel and Beta Avraham Jewish communities with free healthcare in Messiah’s love. God has flung wide the doors to minister His love for more than a decade to the Jews of Gondar and Addis Ababa, bringing thousands to salvation and granting amazing miracles of healing in His mercy. Our advance team is already preparing for our March 2 Ethiopia medical outreach with great expectation! What an unprecedented privilege it is to take part in the prophetic restoration of the “Exiled of Israel”—to minister comfort after her two thousand year dispersion, and to proclaim to Israel, “Your Messiah has come!” Join us and experience this miracle firsthand. Thank you for your prayers and support that make this miracle possible! For Zion’s sake,
Jonathan Bernis, President & CEO Jewish Voice Ministries International
Connections Jewish Voice Ministries International PO Box 31998, Phoenix, AZ 85046-1998 • Phone: 800-299-YESHUA Jewish Voice Ministries UK PO Box 628, Borehamwood, WD6 9AT UK Jewish Voice Ministries Canada PO Box 476, Maple Ridge, BC V2X 3P2
Connections A publication of Jewish Voice Ministries International
The Lemba of Zimbabwe
A Brief History of Africa’s Ancient Levitical Priests
“E
thiopia will quickly stretch out her hands to God” (Psalm 68:31b NKJV). For more than a decade Jewish Voice has proclaimed Yeshua and ministered relief to the Beta Israel and Beta Avraham, the Black Jews of Addis Ababa and Gondar, Ethiopia, witnessing extraordinary miracles and salvations among Jews. This prophetic End-Time move of God—regathering the remnant of Israel, scattered to the far reaches of the earth—continues to enlarge as new Lost Tribes are found and doors of opportunity open. In 2010 a previously unknown Jewish community living in an extremely isolated and rural area of Ethiopia contacted the Jewish Voice Global Outreach team; the Gefat Tribe of Woliso, suffering the privations of their mean existence, had been praying for relief. In 2011 Jewish Voice established the first medical clinic outreach in this remote and primitive location, exemplifying the love of Messiah to desperate Jewish brethren. The work Jewish Voice has been privileged to do among the Ethiopian Jews is unprecedented, yet the doors of Africa continue to open!
The claims of the Lemba of Zimbabwe have long been considered the stuff of legend—fascinating, but dismissed. In 1999 DNA testing profoundly changed that perception. Geneticists from the U.S., U.K., and Israel not only found the Cohen modal haplotype marker, indicating the Lemba were descended from the levitical priests of the ancient Jewish Temple and Aaron, Moses’ brother, but made the remarkable discovery that the marker is in higher concentration among the Lemba than the general Jewish population! Clearly Semitic in their physical features and traditions—among them, practicing circumcision, abstaining from pork, not mixing milk and meat, and the use of the shofar—the Lemba have now been genetically linked to Levi, one of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Drawing on elaborate oral traditions and historical documents, it is believed that the Lemba migrated to Yemen from Judea before moving to the African continent. Both genetic similarities and historic documentation connect the Lemba to the Jews of