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The House of Israel: Judaism in Ghana

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The House of Israel: Judaism in Ghana CHAPTER FIVE THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL: JUDAISM IN GHANA JANICE R. LEVI In the January 15, 2011, broadcast of the popular American television show Saturday Night Live, a skit was performed mimicking the extravagance of the MTV show My Super Sweet 16, where parents go way beyond the average family’s means to celebrate their child’s birthday.1 In this particular skit, a Jewish father throws an extravagant party for his son’s bar mitzvah and invites impersonators of popular contemporary artists to sing at the event. The performers sing humorous renditions of Taylor Swift, Jay Z, and Katy Perry’s chart-topping hits, inserting Jewish references into the lyrics. As the father introduces the final artist to perform, he sees that the performer’s last name is “Green,” a common Jewish name, and so he introduces the artist as “Cee Lo, oh Green, a member of the tribe.” However, when the black hip-hop artist Cee Lo Green emerges, and the father realizes that Green is black, he quickly retracts his statement by uttering “um, or not.” This retraction provokes laughter from the members of the audience—laughter that might indicate that they too are not prepared to imagine that Green could be a Jew.2 This instant disqualification was based on a physical attribute—skin tone— which trumped the assumption that Green could be a Jew based on his name. This skit captures a global perception that to be Jewish and to be black cannot be synonymous. Judaism, which is seemingly tethered to a notion of lineage and ethnicity, can be considered exclusive. Its exclusivity is referenced in the skit, which illustrates that the faith, indeed, seems to have both a name and a face. A person whose name and face do not reflect global perceptions is disqualified from being considered a Jew. However, this disqualification clashes with reality for certain sub-Saharan black African communities who claim Jewish identity. If to be Jewish and to be black seem 116 Chapter Five contradictory how do African Jewries, such as the House of Israel in Sefwi Wiawso, Ghana, navigate their identity in the global Jewish realm? The House of Israel certainly relies, on issues of origin in order to formulate aspects of Jewish identity just as communities everywhere construct their identity based on their surroundings, interactions, and understandings of origin.3 This chapter focuses on Ghanaian Jewry in Sefwi Wiawso as a case study to demonstrate the distinctions to be drawn between rabbinical or “normative” Judaism, and biblical Judaism; one could argue the latter is the main form of Judaism being followed by the practitioners in Ghana, although there is some hybridization of the two forms of Judaism.4 In order to understand the “name” and “face” of Ghanaian Jewry in Sefwi Wiawso, it is necessary to explore the community’s understanding of its origins and practices. The Jews of Sefwi Wiawso “Sh’ma Ysra’el Adonai eloheinu Adonai ehad,” recited the members of the Armah household during the Friday Shabbat services in Sefwi Wiawso in August 2010.5 Their litany is a clear indicator that this family and their community have been exposed to normative, or rabbinical, Judaism (in this case, the exposure was to international visitors who come to observe the Armahs’ atypical Jewish household).6 However, this exposure to international Judaism is relatively recent. The Jews of Sefwi Wiawso have not always been aware of Jews elsewhere and their particular practices. How, then, did this community, as a Jewish community, come into being? What are the current practitioners’ views of their heritage and its relations with Judaism worldwide? Finally, how does the community operate today, as a practicing Jewish community? Origins of the Community In 1977, Aaron Ahotre Toakyirafa, a practitioner of the local indigenous religion in Sefwi Sui, Ghana, had a vision declaring that what he was practicing—his daily observances and religious lifestyle—was pleasing unto the Lord. It was also revealed to Aaron that the religious practice to which he adhered as a traditionalist was called “Judaism” and that he should share this message to see if others would like to join. Inspired by this epiphany, Aaron set out to preach this revelation to the people in the local area of the Western Region of Ghana. Travelling from town to town, he sought permission from the village chiefs to speak to the mainly Christian villagers. He explained that local practices that had existed in The House of Israel: Judaism in Ghana 117 pre-colonial times—including eschewing work on Saturdays, and avoiding particular meats—were practices that pleased the one God. His message was not well-received because, in stressing the importance of the worship of only one God, he explained that Jesus Christ was not the Messiah, even suggesting that Christians were idolaters and polytheists. Aaron, who is acknowledged as the founder of the Jewish community in Sefwi Wiawso, persuaded some of his closest friends, along with a few others from nearby villages, to join him in professing Judaism shortly after his vision. At first, these newly converted Jews were not welcomed. They were often chased out of towns, beaten, and threatened with death. When eventually Ghana instituted religious tolerance and freedom-of-worship in the 1992 constitution, locals became more comfortable with the Jews’ presence.7 Today, they live in peace alongside their neighbours of various faiths.8 Over time, the community completed a synagogue and the congregation increased as families grew. As of 2010, approximately thirty families constituted Ghanaian Jewry in Sefwi Wiawso.9 Views of a Jewish Heritage in Sefwi Wiawso Although the relatively recent events surrounding the emergence of Judaism in Sefwi Wiawso are mostly agreed upon by the members of the House of Israel, the people of the community today hold complex views about their deeper origins and heritage as Jewish people. Understanding these views is crucial to understanding how this particular community operates and thinks of itself today. For some members of the community, a link to Jewish heritage in history is important. Aaron Ahotre Toakyirafa claimed, based on his vision, that this heritage existed in the Ghanaians’ pre-colonial practices. Some residents believe that the Sefwi people (their ethnic group) were originally Jewish, but that historically the group lost or perhaps never employed the term “Judaism” to describe their faith. Familiarity with the idea of a connection to Jewish heritage generations ago is more prevalent among Sefwi Wiawso’s few early converts—those who returned to the practices of the indigenous religion whose tenets Aaron claimed to preach. They believe that their Ghanaian Jewish ancestors originated in Israel (although those who believe this and who were interviewed by the author could not specify when the ancestors’ migration to Ghana took place). A few of these sources suggested their ancestors had come to Ghana via Ivory Coast, Mali, and Ethiopia. According to Joseph Armah: 118 Chapter Five What I know is that my grandmother told me that the majority of the Sefwis come from Mali and a lot of them too come from Ivory Coast. And, you see, uh, is that when that, they came through the wars, they came through wars. At first, because of war they were separated and some of them come from Ivory Coast to this place and some of them too come from Mali to stay here.10 Other interviewees, such as Joseph Nipah, one of the original members of the House of Israel, were not certain of the origin of the more sacred roots of their community. Nipah, however, did state that his grandfather explained that their people were “strangers” in the land.11 Nipah’s statement suggests that his ancestors were not amongst the original peoples of Ghana and thus travelled from a foreign and perhaps distant land. What the Jews living in Sefwi Wiawso are collectively cognizant of is the amount of religious observances in which their ancestors participated, and how those ceremonies were discarded or lost over time. According to Joseph Armah, the cessation of some of the Hebraic practices performed by many of his ancestors took place when they were in the process of surviving war, separation, and their journey to Ghana: And you see at first, uh, when they were going all through all this loss, one chief, the older chiefs was called Nana Kwanim Tano in this place.12 And, after he died there, his nephew who succeeded him as the king…was a Roman Catholic.13 Yes, he was a Christian. So, when he became the chief, he said that this time…they are Christians. You see, it was said in their New Testament that if you are…the followers of Jesus Christ you can do whatever you like. So, at this time, you have to go to farm on Saturdays, they have to celebrate their funerals on Saturday; they have to do whatever they like on Saturdays. It’s not because of that paramount chief, these laws are still there but because he was a Christian he let them stop all these.14 Many of the Jews in Sefwi Wiawso explained that due to the chief’s conversion to Christianity, the entire village converted; it was common for villagers to adopt the religion of the incumbent chief and for former practices to stop.15 Kwame Yeboah Daaku, who gathered oral histories of the Sefwi people in the mid-twentieth century, explained that the word “Sefwi” in “Sefwi Wiawso” may come from the Twi phrase “Esa awie,” which translates to “War is over.” According to the history relayed by Joseph Armah, it was war that caused the Sefwis to enter the region in which they now reside; this translation of “Sefwi” may add validity to his explanation of how the community might have lost an earlier Jewish heritage.
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