"Because of thier nature we could almost affirm that they are Jews and a Hebrew people. I believe that I would not be committing a great error if I were to state this fact, considering thier way of life,thier ceremonies, thier rites and superstitions, thier omens and false dealings, so related to and characteristics of those of the Jews"
[Fray Deigo Duran]
The opening page of this next chapter alone should by itself attest to the fact that Fray Deigo Duran; Spansh missionary and historian was thouroughly convinced that the Aztecs of Mexico were descendants of one of the Lost Tribes of Israel. As you can see; his opening statements were direct and to the point abd he claims to substantiate his theory by using the Holy Scriptures. does it not make sense, that if you we were in search of these "lost tribes" of Israel and you needed to cross reference for any identifying characteristics, why not use the Bible? What book better tells us about God's chosen people, thier trials and tribulations, thier attributes and pecularities and most important of all thier past and what was prophesied to happen to them in the future. In opening Mr. Duran comments on the fufillments of the prophecy by these Aztecs in the book of Hosea alluding to the promise by God to multipy His holy nation, Israel as the sands of the sea. This prophecy occured with the Aztecs both in the past when the Spaniards first arrived in Tenochlitlan; the Aztec capital. They were shocked as to see the great population and advancement of this civilization. Even in modern day Mexico City; which stands on the ruins of Tenochlitlan; this city has one of the largest populatios in the world despte being virtually decimated during the Spanish conquest and years of revoultions and invasions from the French and American forces. Afterward on page 4 he states; "the Indian traditions regarding a great man, who after suffering many afflictions and persecutions on the part of his countrymen, gathered together a multitude of his followers and persuaded them to flee from the persecution to a land where they could live in peace. Having made himself leader of these people, he went by the seashore and moved the water with a rod that he carried in his hand, the sea opened and he and his followers went through.
This sounds like a scene straight out of Charlton Heston's "Ten Commandments". The scene; Moses leading his people the Israelites out of Egypt and out of bondage. We all know the story by now, but for a people to claim ancestry from that nation of runaway slaves I am sured shocked the Spaniards as it does some of our readers now. The Aztecs did not have copies of the Bible upon thier arrival. It was not until the Spanish missionaries in an effort to convert them to "Christianity" came over that the Aztecs ever saw a Bible. However as the opening sentence in this chapter tells us; "The Indians have "traditions"...meaning something that is immaterial, as a style or philosophy (or as in this case a religion) that is passed on from one generation to another. Put all this together with that speech of the great Aztec king Monteczuma
which we read earlier in chapter 1 "Jewes in America" and you have sound arguments validifying the theory of the Hebraic lineage of the Aztec Indians of Mexico. But there is still more...
There were other events recorded by the Spaniards that hinted towards the Israelitish extraction of the Aztecs. Such as an ancient Indian painting which dhows how sand and very fine hai rained upon them from the sky on thier forefathers during thier journey that they made to this land. Once again the biblical story of "manna from heaven" in Exodus 16th chapter is related as also happening to these Indians. One might ask himself if these Aztecs were some of the very same Israelites who helped build the majestic pyramids of Egypt. Many worl scholars have beenintrigued at the shocking similarities between the pyramids of Giza and those of "El Templo Mayor" and other temples that were found throughout Tenochlitlan. A magnificent and resplendent city that was said to have been by Hernando Cortes "by far the most beautiful city in the world, its beauty surpassing that of Constaninople, Rome or Madrid.
Afterwards, when finding Shields of david in the Aztec temples along with Hebrew inscriptions (see "Unexpected Faces in Ancient America" by Alexander von Wuthenau) and after hearing the accounts of these people which we just mentioned above Cortez realized who he was dealing with. With a barbaric cruelty seldom matched in history; except maybe by the
likes of Ghengis Khan, Alexander the Great, Vlad Dracul, Christopher Columbus or Adolf Hitler; he proceeded to destroy the city. Its ihabitants were systematically dealt lethal blow after lethal blow with the final defeat coming at the hands of the diseases brought over from Europe. Once again just as the biblical prophecy had stated it would happen to the Israelites.
Another example is an account an elderly Indan (most likely a tribal sage) gave Mr. Duran which states: In the beginning this world lay in darkness and shadows and was void of everything. It was all flat, without hill or ravine, surrounded on every side by wter, even eithout tree. And then, when the light and sun was born in the east, men of monstrous stature appeared and took possesion of this country... these giants not having a way to reach the sun they were so desirous of, built a tower so high that its summit would reach unto Heaven. He also told of the order of destruction of the tower given by god to his angels. It is clear as bottled spring water that the Aztec story of Creation was exactly the same one told in the book of Genesis to include the giants of chapter six and "Tower of Babel" in chapter ten. mr. Duran states "I am convinced and wish to convince others, that those who tell this account heard it from thier ancestors; and these natives belong, in my opinion, to the lineage of the chosen people of God". Furthermore he affirms; "seeing that thier stories are so like those found in the Holy Sçriptures I cannot help but believe that these are the children of Israel".
Finally the Spanish missionary maintains that"they made sacrifices in the mountains and under shade trees, in the caves and caverns of the dark and gloomy earth. They burned incense, killed thier sons and daughters and sacrificed them and offered them as victims to thier gods. They sacrificed children, ate human flesh, killed prisoners and captives of war. All of these were horrific ceremonies were practiced by the Biblical Israelites and were all carried out with the greatest ritual and superstitions that is impossible to concieve. What makes me firmly believe that these Indians are of Hebrew lineage is thier strange obstinacy in not casting out these idolatries and superstitions, for they pay much heed just as thier ancestors did".
Let us end this chapter with a scripture that should further convince you and demonstrate that these citizens of Mexica were indeed members of the Lost Tribes of Israel:
"PSALM 105"
...And they worshipped thier idols
which became a snare to them.
And sacrificed thier sons and daughters to devils.
And they poured out innocent blood:
The blood of thier sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Caanan.
A recent contribution to this area is the work of Brian D. Stubbs, one of the few linguists working with Uto-Aztecan languages (covering the US Southwest down to southern Mexico). He wrote a ground-breaking article, "Looking Over vs. Overlooking Native American Languages: Let's Void the Void," in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, Vol. 5, No. 1, Spring 1996, pp. 1-49, which makes serious, systematic comparisons of ancient Hebrew words and forms to those of Uto-Aztecan languages. Stubbs is among a small handful of people who know both Semitic languages and Uto-Aztecan languages. Most linguists dealing with the Book of Mormon have approached it with backgrounds rich in Semitic languages but lacking in New World languages. Stubbs' pioneering work opens the door for further studies, pointing to some interesting possibilities.
Among his tentative conclusions, Stubbs finds that Uto-Aztecan "as a language family exhibits more similarities with Hebrew than could be attributed to coincidence; nevertheless, that Hebrew element is obviously mixed with other language elements very different from Hebrew." While no UA [Uto-Aztecan] language shows the same level of derivation from Hebrew as Spanish does from Latin, there are still many traces of similarity suggesting some degree of contact or derivation. Over 1,000 similarities have been derived, enough to merit further investigation. Examples of similarities include the plural suffix "-im" in Northwest Semitic (the branch to which Hebrew belongs), and "-ima" in many UA languages; the passive prefix "ni-" in Northwest Semitic and the prefix "na-" in UA; Northwest Semitic "yasab" as the perfect form of the verb to sit or to dwell, compared to "yasipa" in UA; "adam" meaning man in Hebrew compared to "otam" in UA; Hebrew "katpa" for shoulder, compared to "kotpa" in UA; ya-'amin for "he believes" in Hebrew compared to "yawamin" in a northern UA language; etc. Stubbs' article delves into 100 of the over 1,000 areas of similarity. It is technical but worth the read.
It is truly amazing how many of the biblical passages the Aztecs along with thier aboriginal brothers of the western hemisphere, paralled. It is getting to the point where for anyone to dare to use the word "coicindental" would be to the point of madness or be in a state of total denial to the facts and evidence given. But as I have said before there is even more to come...
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