Bnei Menashe - Timeline (modern)

Timeline (modern)

• 1894: Christian missionaries commence work among the tribal populations in the territories now known as Manipur and Mizoram. By the 1980s, almost all the population of Mizoram had accepted Christianity; In Manipur, around 30% (this being essentially the proportion of the tribal population of the state)
• 1951: A tribal leader named Challianthanga had a dream in which his people returned to Israel, and shared it with his community, which led some members of the tribe to adopt Jewish traditions, combined with faith in Jesus as the Messiah.
• 1975: Several hundred Bnei Menashe begin practicing Judaism rejecting the faith in Jesus.
• 1980's: First contact with Israel made.
• 1994-2003: with the help of Jewish organizations, 800 Bnei Menashe make Aliyah to Israel, most settle in Jewish settlements.
• 2003: Israeli Interior Minister Avraham Poraz freezes their immigration indefinitely.
• August 2004: In response to the Israeli government decision to stop their immigration, Israeli Chief Sephardi Rabbi Shlomo Amar sends a rabbinical fact-finding committee to investigate the Jewish roots of the Bnei Menashe.
• March 2005: Historic decision is made by Israeli Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, announcing the state of Israel’s recognition of the Bnei Menashe as part of the lost tribe of Menashe, and therefore they can now immigrate to Israel under the Law of Return, but only after a complete Jewish conversion, because they have been separated from Judaism for millennia.
• August 2005: 146 Bnei Menashe are forced to evacuate the Gaza Strip as part of Ariel Sharon's disengagement plan.
• September 2005: A beth din fully converts 700 Bnei Menashe to Judaism (219 from Mizoram) . An estimated 9,000 people still await conversion.
• November 2005: Israel agrees to halt converting the Bnei Menashe after pressure from the Indian government. The entire rabbinical team is pulled out of the country.
• November 2006: First group of 100 Mizoram’s ‘lost Jews’ leave for Israel
• August 2007: More than 200 Bnei Menashe arrive in Israel
• January 2009: More than 200 Bnei Menashe make Aliyah.
• January 2010: The Israeli government announces that the remaining 7,200 can make Aliyah within a 1-2 year period after undergoing a conversion process in Nepal.