Judah Philip Benjamin, was a Confederate cabinet officer, and a close advisor of President Jefferson Davis. He was born in the West Indies on Aug. 6, 1811, but his family moved to North and then South Carolina, and he attended Yale. After moving to New Orleans, he became a nationally recognized lawyer. After holding minor public offices, he was elected to the U.S. Senate as a Whig in 1852.
After defending the south in a number of Senate battles, he resigned and supported a secessionist policy. He was soon after appointed to be the Attorney General of the Confederate states. After this position, he became the Secretary of War, and eventually the Secretary of State.
In 1865 he fled to Britain, where he achieved recognition as a lawyer. He died in Paris on May 5, 1884
"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed." {Genesis 12:3}. We could go on and on making scriptural references, but the message is that the Almighty God made a covenant with Abraham, that in his seed as passed down through Israel, all the families {meaning peoples and nations} of the earth, will be blessed {referring to the then coming Messiah, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior and of salvation in his name alone}.
The Confederate Cause in general and the Confederate Legion in particular, is opposed to the anti-Jewish bigotry held by some individuals among our numbers. The title Jew or Jewish is derived from their being 12 tribes, which constitute the descendants of Israel, one of these tribes is that of Judah. Early in the Old Testament these people were simply referred to as Hebrews, but by the time our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ carried out his ministry upon earth, they were known collectively as Jews.
Those who somehow hate Jews are either willingly ignorant or worse, and are following a doctrine, which can only lead to disaster. Certainly it does not require a Biblical Scholar to comprehend that Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord was and is a Jew. Secretary Judah P. Benjamin of the Confederacy was an individual whom our beloved President Jefferson Davis trusted, nominated and supported as a friend and cabinet member. Judah P. Benjamin was among the President's most loyal, prepared to carry out whatever duties in whatever position, where Davis need his services.
The Jewish People are today caught up in Biblical Prophesy and the Holy Scriptures give adequate warning to those who would choose to hate, persecute or denigrate them. The Jewish People as individuals are no better or worse then any other people upon earth, and are equally capable of greatness or calamity, just as any of us. We might take notice however, that modern Israel is the ONLY DEMOCRACY in the entire middle-east and is surrounded and outnumbered more then 600 to 1 by peoples and nations, which would like drive them and us into the sea or worse.
Let me say that without the Jewish People, there would be no Old or New Testament of the Holy Scriptures, no Christianity and no chance of salvation. The term Zionism has been used as a slur and a slander against the Children of Israel, or the Jews as they are presently known. When in truth what has been occurring is an on going return of the Jews to their own homeland in sufficient numbers. Let it be know by everyone, that no power upon this earth will remove these people from their ancient homeland, nor will they drive them into the sea.
The Confederate Cause WILL NEVER arise again, if it means doing so upon a mindset of bigotry and hatred toward the Jews, and that my friends and neighbors, comes from the Word of the Living God. We speak here of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel and the God of the Confederates. While the Confederate Cause in general and the Confederate Legion in particular is by its own proclamation, family and Christian oriented, should any Jews wish to join our numbers, they WILL BE MADE WELCOME.
Our beloved President Jefferson Davis trusted Judah P. Benjamin so much, that he retained him in his Cabinet throughout the War for Confederate Independence. Mr. Benjamin afterwards, chose the same course of action; as did thousands of other loyal and patriotic Confederates, which was to depart the country rather then live under Yankee rule. The Confederate Cause must have all the support it can muster, and that includes a hardy welcome to any Jews who wish to join our numbers, should that happen.
Those who are opposed and wish to persist in lambasting the Jews can only be described as an enemy of the Confederate Cause! If I seem to be speaking rather boldly, you must remember, I’ve been called a traitor to the Cause, because I refused to yield to this and other such foolishness. In closing let me say this, I’ve used Judah P. Benjamin as an example, but there were many thousands of Jews who supported and fought for the Confederate States of America. Many Jews gave their last full measure in blood and sweat, as well as dying in agony for an independent Confederacy!
"That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father." {Philipppians 2:10}. In this verse the use of the word 'should' does not infer an ultimate choice and an option, but that every knee will eventually bow and every tongue will in due course of time confess, either in this life, while they might receive forgiveness with a contrite heart in salvation or else afterward at the final judgement, when it is to late.
“And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” {Revelations 20:12}. Also see II Peter 12:8 and Hebrews 9:27-28 for a further reference. “Therefore being at the right hand of God exalted …” referring to the Christ, those who hold anti-Jewish bigotry will stand before that same Jesus our Lord and Savior in the Judgment and he being a Jew.
It is indeed interesting to consider the U.S. Supreme Court Justices who decided the Almighty God in Christ Jesus, the Holy Scripture and prayer is unfit material for the instruction of our children, further deciding that innocent unborn babies could be lawfully and constitutionally murdered. These justices will face the Supreme Judge of all creation! Imagine also the evolutionists for example, who will have discovered to late, there is after all, a creator of heaven and earth.
Those who truly wish to see a free and independent Confederate States of America, will understand the position I have taken, the others will be dealt with by the Almighty God himself, in due course of time. But it is not my intent, to stand by and allow the Confederate Cause to be cursed forever, as a result of some bigoted anti-Jew hater who is more enemy then friend of our people and nation. Hate me if you like, but leave the Jews to Almighty God!
God save the Confederacy
Thomas E. Guinn
Editor in Chief, C.S. News
Jewish
Confederate Warriors PG.2
The South and Zionism
David S. Reif
While observing the 60th anniversary of the creation of the Jewish state of Israel there has been a number of celebrations and retrospectives to commemorate this historic event. The recent speech of President Bush at the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) about the appeasement of terrorists by candidate Obama focused the attention of the world on the Israeli anniversary, for instance. There are a number of articles in the dominant media as well.
It seems to me that there are certain considerations regarding this event that are of especial interest to the South and the Southern Movement. I will concentrate on the dual aspects that political and the spiritual Zionism present.
The Jewish Library defines Zionism as; “Zionism, the national movement for the return of the Jewish people to their homeland and the resumption of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel, advocated, from its inception, tangible as well as spiritual aims.” The divine component of this movement was evident early on as was the political motive; there is a debate as to which was (and is) the most important and from that argument negative fallout has been generated.
Although the founding of the Zionist movement is usually attributed to Theodor Herzl a wealthy European journalist in the late 19th century there were antecedents. Keen observers note that it was probably Moses Hess who originally informed Herzl of the idea. Hess was a protégé of Karl Marx and a fellow Jew. Marx rejected Judaism and all religion as did Hess although Hess would recant in his old age. Yet the two would make important contributions to the ideal of Zionism.
Marx lacked sufficient mental horsepower to comprehend the overriding issues that religion brought to the table but did address the problem of European Jews in his treatise, Zur Judenfrage (On the Jewish Question) in 1844: a political document. In it he tacitly acknowledged that the Jewish emancipation in Europe would work on several distinctive fronts among them economic independence and geographic independence. Thus he laid the ground work for Hess and Herzl although Marx believed that only emancipation from the capitalist “state” would truly bring freedom.
The anti-religious bias of Marx notwithstanding the concept of Zionism was complete. It would be a two-fold movement. Herzl believed that Palestine (Israel) was the historic and Scriptural home of the Jewish people and there was a supernatural connection to Zion which consisted of “blood and land”. Furthermore, there was a political dimension that Zion/Israel was the penultimate Jewish State that would exist on earth to rule the Hebrew tribes through a divine bond.
In the early 20th century Herzl and his Zionist movement began to transfer people into Palestine where they believe the Jews had a historic claim to the land. At first this was facilitated through wealthy European Jews buying land and resettling it. By 1914 there were perhaps 50,000 European Jews in Palestine; by 1941 the number was nearly 10 times that many.
In 1948 with the dissolution of the British Protectorate the Israeli state was formed. Quickly the pace of immigration hastened. With the guarantee of citizenship for any Jew the remnants of European Jewry after the disaster of the Holocaust flocked to Israel. The Jewish State of Israel has had a troubled if not star-crossed life yet there are lessons for Southern partisans within its story.
The Southern secession of 1861 did not have overt religious roots. However, it can be successfully argued that the underlying metaphors involved in the secession of the 13 Southern states can be traced to the aspects of the Original Constitution informed by Judeo-Christian ideology. That discussion is outside the scope of this piece but there is general agreement within this readership to the veracity of that statement.
The claim that Southern secession was a political movement is evident to anyone who has taken time to study the situation. The desire for a working framework of federalism and a voluntary confederation of sovereign states opposed to Lincolnian centralism is overtly political. It is the heart of the ensuing conflict of the War Between the States: to this day.
These days there is not a comprehensive policy for the scope or procedure under which a Southern homeland might be founded. Yet there is a general idea of geographical territory involved in a model nation. There is also a broad notion that a Southern state would be based on defined concepts of Judeo-Christian ideology. Herzl must have experienced a similar formative period.
By saying that these general ideas have common ground with the historic concepts of Zionism is not a net negative. The components of Zionism were both political and spiritual. Whatever else one might say about Marx his political analysis of the situation the Hebrew people in Europe found themselves as detailed in Zur Judenfrage was on the mark. He rightly summarized that through economic and geographical means the Jews could be emancipated from the oppression of the state and the monarchy in Europe.
Then Herzl came along and said that there was a historic connection of “blood and land” with the actual territory of Palestine. The bond he speaks of is a mystical connection, part of the web of life that includes all people but can also encapsulate a defined group from oppression. That is to say if a Jewish identity is to survive within the global continuum then it must do so as a discreet entity while maintaining a connection to the material world through politics: a distinct cell within the web of humanity if you like.
Today the Christian Exodus movement is a strong echo of Herzl’s religious/political argument. This is what they say about themselves:
“ChristianExodus.org desires the return of constitutionally limited government to the whole of these United States. Recent years suggest that no such return to constitutional principles is likely. Therefore, we will return such principles to one sovereign State by moving thousands of Christian paleo-conservatives.
South Carolina can secure the rights of her citizens by interposing her authority under the 10th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The federal government operates outside its delegated powers in the areas of education, religion, abortion, domestic behavior, intrastate communication, intrastate commerce, taxation, welfare, healthcare, gun regulation, and a host of other subjects. Most powers concerning these topics are reserved to the States under the 10th Amendment. Therefore, we will see to it that South Carolina resumes her governmental authority in these matters and that our counties and State ignore federal directives in violation of the 10th Amendment.
ChristianExodus.org will continue to move Christians into South Carolina until constitutionalists possess a representative majority in both houses of the General Assembly. Such a strategy will make the sovereignty debate public, and the influence of our membership will tip the scales in favor of constitutionally limited government founded upon Christian principles.”
Although the revanchism implicit in Zionist thinking is missing a similar religious/political argument is present. These elements are also implied to the broader mission of Southern nationalism which sets it apart from the exclusively political motives of simple state secessionists like Vermont.
The notion that there are similarities between historical Zionism and Southern secession is a positive when considering the critics of the movement. The United States State Department has also supported Zionism and its creation as well as Israel’s right to exist. It can be argued by any sane person that a political-religious-cultural movement desiring an independent state is completely legitimate. To argue otherwise is to be against the concept of Zionism and blatantly anti-Semitic.
The State Department has already accepted national secession as a legitimate right of a people with its endorsement of Kosovo. The support of the State Department for Zionist Israel must be necessarily considered when discussing similar movements in this country. The acknowledged international concept of Zionism although somewhat different from the aspirations of Christian Exodus (for example) becomes an umbrella for the legitimacy of any Southern autonomy in regards to State Department policy and United States policy by extension. Certainly the United Nations and other international bodies have accepted sovereignty on lesser grounds.
On the occasion of its 60th anniversary by closely examining the rights given to the Zionists and the Israeli state one can conclude that their struggle for separate statehood is nearly identical in its legitimacy to the struggle of the Christian South. Although the foundations of European Zionism is on our mind today this kind of movement is not at all unique in history.
Looking at the broader view the accretion of influence into a concentrated geographical locale by like minded people was also the root of the American Revolution and separation from Britain. The story of Zionism and Israel is just one more example of how a people can fulfill a dream if dedicated enough. Just because the narrative of Zionism has some negative connotations is no reason for dismissing the lessons learned and the precedents set.
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