Exploring Anglo-Israelism, Part 3: What Can Genetic Evidence Tell Us?

This is the third in a series of articles in response to a particular issue discussed in a book called Preach the Gospel. This issue is British-Israelism. This is the doctrine or belief that the British nation together with its Commonwealth of Nations and the United States constitute the lost ten tribes of Israel (of at least a portion thereof). This is an intriguing proposition, but I have some reservations about accepting this teaching. I have only read the first chapter of the book, so the author may have already addressed some of these reservations.

The answer to the question “What Can Genetic Evidence Tell Us?” is a lot. This should give conclusive proof one way or another as to the answer to question of British-Israelism. Certain genetic markers can clearly mark one as being of Mediterranean origin.

First let’s consider the Y-chromosome. This is passed on, intact, from father to son. The reason why this is better to use than other chromosomes is because of “chromosome crossover”. This means that a typical chromosome can be “mixed”, that is it contains some DNA inherited from each parent. But the Y-chromosome does not “crossover”. Its entire genetic content is inherited from the father only—it is an exact copy of the father’s DNA. But the reason why every human male doesn’t have the exact same Y-chromosome DNA is because of mutations. We call these mutations markers because they can show how closely two human males are related.

Secondly the mDNA is not chromosomal DNA, but is contained in the mitochondria, an organelle located in the cytoplasm. It is passed in tact from a mother to her children (except in rare cases). Like the Y-chromosome, mutations can accumulate in this DNA. Thus, this is another reliable way to determine the ancestry of individuals.

There is a Y-chromosome marker that is not only specific to the Jews (or Israel), but it is also specific to the Cohanim. They are those of the priestly order, by tradition the descendants of Aaron. This Levitical priesthood is passed from father to son only. This Cohen marker has shown up in a few groups, such as the Lemba and the Marathi-speaking Bene Israel, who claimed to be Jews separated from the main group during the various dispersions. I haven’t seen any concrete evidence that the Anglo-Saxon people have any prominent Mediterranean markers and particularly not this Cohen marker. If the believers in this teaching have such evidence, why haven’t they produced it? Surely if it has been highly reported in certain groups, if it were prominent in the Anglo-Saxon race, then this would also have been reported. This same evidence disproves the Book of Mormon teaching that Native Americans are of Jewish descent. I do not believe in British-Israelism.