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Letter of the Rabbis of the Holy Land to Ethiopian Beta Israel from the 1800’s

Letter of the Rabbis of the Holy Land to the Ethiopian Beta Israel from the 1800’s

In the name of the Lord, God of Israel : Greetings to you, sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who dwell in the Land of Abyssinia.We received the letter you sent us by means of the distinguished traveler, our brother Rabbi Ya’acov ben Moshe Faitlovitch, may God protect and redeem him. He, too, reported everything he saw and heard of your sorrows and grief of spirit over the loss of your holy books some time ago and the absence of teachers who would show you what route to pursue and what action to take. Upon hearing our brother’s message and reading your letter, our hearts pounded and our mercies waxed for you, for you are our own flesh and blood. We thank the Lord God of Israel Whose kindness and truth have not forsaken you, and Who has had mercy on you before the great, pious and just King Menelik.Be of good strength, our brethren. Neither fear nor grow soft of heart, for the God of our forefathers Who redeemed you and us with His great strength from the many and grievous troubles which have surrounded us thus far will neither abandon nor forsake you in the days to come. Recall the holy word He sent us through His prophets, to wit: “for the mountains may depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall My covenant of peace be removed” (Isaiah 54:10). Believe in Him and trust Him at all times, and He will stand at your right hand and not allow your legs to stumble. Do not listen, do not hunger for the voice of the inciters who speak nothingness, who lie and who seek to turn you away from the Lord or God, the one, only, unique God, Creator of Heaven and Earth, Who took us out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and outstretched arm, Who performed innumerable miracles and wonders for our forefathers and for ourselves, and Who gave us His holy Tora through his faithful servant Moses. We, your brethren, will do everything we can to come speedily to your assistance and to procure teachers and books for you, that your sons learn to fear the Lord and only Him forevermore and to keep His eternal Tora. May we all have the privilege of beholding the advent of the Lord’s day, when He shall cast His spirit on all the nations, and when they all become as one in doing His will with full heart; on that day He will gather us from the four ends of the earth and bring us to His city Zion in joy and to Jerusalem, His Temple, in eternal bliss.

/Signed/

Rabbi Naphtali Adler, Chief Rabbi of England, and his Sephardi colleague, Rabbi Moses Gaster; Rabbi Mordechai Horowitz, Rabbi of Frankfurt-on-Main; Rabbi Judah Leib Kowalsky, Rabbi of Wolkowysk, Poland; Rabbi Azriel Munk, Rabbi of Berlin; Rabbi Isaac Reines, Rabbi of Lida; RIDBaZ of Safad; and Rabbi Eliyahu Moshe Panigel, Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Eretz Israel.

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