W. A. Matthew collection

1929-1979

Chief Rabbi Wentworth A. Matthew was born in the British West Indies, and began his ministerial career in a Black Pentacostal church which had endorsed the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) founded by Marcus Garvey. The first Black rabbi in New York City, Chief Rabbi Matthew founded the Commandment Keepers of the Living God. He trained and ordained many of the Black rabbis who later founded synagogues in various cities in the U.S. and the Caribbean.

Rabbi Matthew believed that the ancient Hebrews were Black, and that Judaism was as much a part of Black people's culture and religious heritage as Christianity. In bringing Judaism to Blacks, he believed he was reclaiming part of their heritage as opposed to converting them to Judaism. Although Matthew incorporated many customs, songs, and foods of European Jewish origin into the religious practices he taught, he also introduced African, Caribbean, and American traditions to his congregation. His teachings combined Jewish religious traditions with Black nationalism and Pan-Africanism as a method of instilling pride in Black people. For decades he tried without success to find common ground with white Jews by speaking at white synagogues around the country and at B'nai Brith lodges. He was also unsuccessful in his efforts to join the New York Board of Rabbis, but was accepted by the Tifereth Israel Rabbinical Academy of America. As an adjunct to his congregation, he created a masonic lodge called the Royal Order of Aethiopian Hebrews (1919) in Harlem, New York.