When Conspiracies and Heresies Link Arms
The emergence of the fake Jews and Replacement Theology (Part 1)
Rarely do conspiracy culture and Christian theology intersect the way they are right now. After the events that kicked off in Israel on October 7, 2023, the whole world has turned its eyes toward the Middle East, and in particular, the Gaza Strip region.
As is usually the case, everyone has an opinion about what is happening and how it might play out. Within the "truther/conspiracy" voices that fill Tik-Tok, Instagram, Telegram, among other media sources like podcasts and streams, I am seeing a troubling trend that I think needs to be examined closer and vetted out. These voices are reaching back to a long standing conspiracy and seek to interpret current events, but at times, they create confusion and misunderstand theology, especially regarding the role of Israel (both the land and the people) in the current church age and especially concerning future eschatological events. But... what's worse is the lack of individual research and the employment of parroting what they have heard someone else say in a 90-second reel. I believe that many mean well and are simply ignorant to the truth (historically speaking) and only want to shed light on this topic.
Others have real bias and are propagating an attitude of racial profiling, that is truly ugly and unbecoming of a confessing Christian. With this viral trending, the lack of discernment the obvious unwillingness to do honest hard research, I decided to write this article. I’m shooting for 2 parts (maybe more) and will focus on the 2 primary misunderstandings that are being propagated.
Part 1 - We will unpack the conspiracy that the modern current Jews living in Israel are NOT the real Jews. The original Jews were instead co-opted by Eastern European gypsies (called the Khazars) sometime in the 900’s, who returned after the establishment of the land agreement in the 1940’s and taken over the current land of Israel.
Part 2 - We will unpack the real history of replacement theology. What are it’s origins and who were the key players to help give it a place in the modern theological landscape. We will also look at how these two parts work together in creating a wrong approach to the Jews (people) and Israel (land).
Who were the Khazars?
The Khazars were a distinct Turkic group in Eastern Europe from about 800 - 1000 A.D. In Turkish their name is "qazmak," and it means "to wander" or "nomadic". This word origin may lend itself to the common description of the Khazar’s being gypsies. They were an organized group that was located in the region that corresponds to parts of modern-day Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. Primarily in the region now known as Ukraine and to the south in Crimea. There is sparse historical evidence of the Khazar kingdom, outside of a few letters during wartime and some Islamic writings that mention them. Yet the Khazars may in fact have represented the West Turk ruling dynasty. This seems to be the view of the tenth-century Persian work, Ḥudūd al-ʿĀlam, according to which the khāqān of the Khazars was "of the descendants of Ansāʾ," apparently corresponding to Asnā, or Achena, well-known as the ruling family among the Turks. Ko-sa, the name in Chinese of a sub-tribe of the Uigurs, is often taken as the equivalent of Khazars. Estimates of the Khazar population during their peak range widely, but they are generally considered to have been a significant and powerful group. Some scholars suggest that their population may have been in the millions, while others estimate a smaller population, perhaps in the hundreds of thousands. The lack of reliable historical records and the passage of time make it challenging to determine their exact population size with precision. The Khazars played a crucial role in the political and economic affairs of the Eurasian steppes during their existence, and their history is a subject of continued scholarly research and debate. The religion of the Khazars evolved over time, and the Khazar Khaganate went through periods of religious diversity. Initially, the Khazars practiced a form of native Turkic shamanism and may have had elements of Tengrism, a Central Asian animistic and shamanistic belief system.
By the 10th century, the Khazar Khaganate had declined and eventually disappeared, the Khazars were assimilated into neighboring cultures and populations. The exact reasons for the decline and the fate of the Khazar people remain topics of historical inquiry and debate.
Here is the basic theory that is being propagated today:
Apparently the Khazar’s converted to Judaism sometime in the latter years of their reign. There is a stunning lack of clarity on whether the entire region and population were converted, or it was just the elites of the Khazari ruling class. After the conversion was established and the Khazar empire was dissolved they dispersed into the rest of Eastern Europe and parts of Asia. The theory states that they repopulated the newly recognized state of Israel after the fulfillment of the Balfour resolution that was created in 1917. It wasn’t until 1948 when they migrated to the Levant claiming to be the “Jews” who had rights to the land. They would also continue to propagate and support the “Zionist” movement. These newly residing Jews (formerly Khazari gypsies) would become what is known as the “Ashkenazi” Jews. This would mean that the majority of the Jews that repopulated the land after 1948 were not really the Jews that God had promised to Abraham thousands of years earlier. They are larping as Jews. What’s worse is that these larping Jews have taken control of the worlds banking, entertainment and other influential systems that hold power and control over the goyim (gentiles). They own all the vices that control and ruin the lives of so many in the world today. If you or someone you know is addicted to pornography it’s the Jews fault, because they own the porno sites and apps. They sit around in meetings and think of ways to enslave the worthless goyim. They are the synagogue of satan mentioned in Rev 3. These Ashkanazi Jews are the cause of all the problems in the whole world right now.
Where did this theory come from?
The strongest proponent of this theory was Nesta Helen Webster. Sometime in the 1920s, she was among the first who perceived the Khazar origins of most Eastern European Jews.
Nesta Helen Webster
Nesta Helen Webster was an English author who revived conspiracy theories about the Illuminati. She claimed that the secret society's members were occultists, plotting communist world domination, through a Jewish cabal, the Masons and Jesuits. She blamed the group for events including the French Revolution, 1848 Revolution, the First World War, and the Bolshevik Revolution. Her writing influenced later conspiracy theories and ideologies, including American anti-communism and the militia movement. In 1920, Webster became a contributor to The Jewish Peril, a series of articles in the London Morning Post centered on the forged document The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. These articles were compiled and published in the same year in book form under the title of The Cause of World Unrest. Webster claimed that the authenticity of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion was an "open question". Prior to World War II, Webster was involved in Fascist political groups in the United Kingdom. (source Wikipedia)
It should be noted that some ideas she carried were also unconventional. For instance while reading the letters of the Countess of Sabran, Webster believed herself to be a reincarnation of someone from the time of the French Revolution. She attributed the French Revolution to a conspiracy involving Freemasonry, claiming that the German Freemasons and Illuminati lodges were the origin of the anarchic plots that led to the Reign of Terror. According to her, the idea to assassinate Louis XVI and Gustavus III of Sweden was initially hatched at a major Freemason gathering in Frankfurt-am-Main three years before the French Revolution. Interestingly, despite her critical stance on Freemasonry and the Illuminati, her writings garnered support from the Masons of the United Grand Lodge of England.
With these beliefs I can see why she fits in so well with the conspiracy culture of today. She might even have a popular podcast or large following on TikTok or instagram if still alive.
Arthur Koestler
Arthur Koestler (1905–1983) was a Hungarian-British author, journalist. Born in Budapest, Hungary, Koestler began his career as a journalist and worked in various European cities before settling in the United Kingdom. He is best known for his novels, essays, and works of non-fiction, and he made significant contributions to literature and political thought.
"The Thirteenth Tribe" is a book by Arthur Koestler, published in 1976. The book picks up where Nesta Webster left off, and explores the hypothesis that the majority of Ashkenazi Jews are descended from Khazars, a Turkic people who converted to Judaism in the 8th century. Koestler suggests that these Khazar Jews migrated into Eastern Europe and became the ancestors of Ashkenazi Jews.
The book is controversial, and it has been criticized by many historians and scholars. It is important to note that his theory about the Khazar ancestry of Ashkenazi Jews is not widely accepted among mainstream historians and geneticists. It's worth mentioning that Koestler was not a historian or a geneticist; he was a journalist and novelist. His book is considered more historical speculation rather than scholarly supported by extensive evidence.
The question remains. Did the Khazi’s convert to Judaism and migrate to Israel with the false claim of being the real Jews?
There are 2 ways to help determine the truth of this theory. We need to look at scientific evidence, and archeological evidence.
1st we should look at a long running study involving DNA and genetic sampling. According to a 2013 study done by Wayne State University and Doron M. Behar; Through integration of genotypes on newly collected samples with data from several of our past studies, we have assembled the largest data set available to date for assessment of Ashkenazi Jewish genetic origins. This data set contains genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphisms in 1,774 samples from 106 Jewish and non- Jewish populations that span the possible regions of potential Ashkenazi ancestry: Europe, the Middle East, and the region historically associated with the Khazar Khaganate. The data set includes 261 samples from 15 populations from the Caucasus region and the region directly to its north, samples that have not previously been included alongside Ashkenazi Jewish samples in genomic studies, and that there is no indication of a significant genetic contribution either from within or from north of the Caucasus region.[8]
2nd we should look at the archaeological evidence.
Physical evidence is lacking: The primary sources for understanding the history of the Khazars are limited, and there is a scarcity of direct archaeological evidence supporting the claim of mass conversion to Judaism. Much of our knowledge about the Khazars is limited and comes from sparse historical texts, including accounts from travelers, Arab chroniclers, and Byzantine sources.
In terms of archaeological evidence, there are Khazar artifacts, but they don't necessarily provide conclusive proof of religious conversion. Excavations at Khazar sites, such as Itil and Sarkel, have uncovered objects with possible Judaic symbols, but interpretations are often speculative, and alternative explanations exist.
We should keep in mind that when there are converts to Judaism it is common to see evidences in the form of synagogues and grave markers. According to the Jewish law it is required that any community of Jews have more than 10 adult males they need to build a synagogue. When they build cemeteries there would be specific and unique features that are exclusive to Jewish religion. These would include piles of small stones that are customarily laid upon the grave site. The way that the bodies are laid so that the feet would face the entrance to the grave yard, and the specific markings like the star of David, Cohanim Symbols on the headstones.
The lack of strong archaeological evidence makes it a subject of scholarly debate and certainly not conclusive as many today are suggesting, even reporting as fact.
So as we take inventory of everything, It just doesn’t add up. The evidence truly doesn’t point towards the Ashkenazi Jews replacing the “real” Jews and then slowly taken over the world in a subversive ruling with secret societies through a Satanic plan.
When we get to part 2 we will see how Replacement Theology fits hand and glove with this conspiracy theory. We should seek for discernment and a right dividing of the Word of God so that we can show ourselves approved.