The End of History—Messiah Conspiracy

CHAPTER 16—Was Christopher Columbus a Messianic Jew?

“...I will leave within you the meek and humble, who trust in the name of the LORD.» These are the remnant whom the apostle calls to mind when he quotes from an ancient prophesy: «Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only the remnant will be saved.» These are the remnant of that nation who have believed in Christ.”¹ Christopher Columbus, discoverer of America

“Throughout the Book of Prophecies the Admiral makes frequent reference to Rabbi Samuel’s expositions of the Biblical texts. Rabbi Samuel was Nicholas of Lyra, a Jewish convert to the Christian faith, who was the greatest Hebraist of the Middle Ages and the author of the first printed commentary on the Bible. In his Glossa ordinaria, commenting on Matthew 24:14, Rabbi Samuel says: «And the Gospel of the kingdom will be preached, that is the Gospel of Christ, which shows the way to the kingdom of heaven... It must be taken into account that one thing is the future preaching of the gospel among all the peoples, as regards its effectiveness, and another [thing] that all the peoples will receive that faith in Christ. This will take place at the consummation of the world.» (Fol. 21 of [Columbus’] Book of Prophecies)”² Kay Brigham’s astute commentary on Columbus’quotation

of an interesting Jewish opinion on the Messiah’s return

16
WAS CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
A MESSIANIC JEW?

First, let’s examine the evidence which indicates Columbus was a Jew. Walter McEntire, author of Was Christopher Columbus a Jew, quotes a newspaper article which asked, “Was Columbus a Jew?” The article reads: “...‘to the best of our knowledge the blood that flowed in Columbus’ veins was three-quarters Jewish.’ ” McEntire then mentions that the editor adds: “...that ‘it wasn’t very safe in those days in Spain to call yourself a Jew, and Columbus knew that, and called himself ‘a Genoese navigator,’ without saying much about his origin’; that ‘investigation shows that his mother came of a well known Jewish family, the Ponti Rossi, and that the name ‘Colón,’ which is the real name of Columbus, was that of Jews.’ ”³ McEntire continues: “In two other papers we found editors saying that ‘as you honor Columbus, bear in mind the fact that in all probability three-quarters, if not all, of his blood was Jewish.’ ”⁴
McEntire points out that Don Garcia discovered: “...that the name of Columbus’ mother was Susanna [Shoshana in Hebrew, hnvwv], (a Jewish name)....”⁵ He (Garcia) also found: “...in the archives of Pontevedra, a record setting forth that in the fifteenth century, there lived in that city, a family by the name of Colon, ‘several members of which bore the same forenames as are to be found among the Colombos of Genoa, the kinsmen of Christopher Columbus. In 1434 and 1437, there was at Pontevedra a Domingo Colon; in 1438 a Bartolomé Colon; in 1496 a Cristobo Colon; in 1434 a Blanca Colon. As we shall see, Domenico was the name of Columbus’ father; Bartolomeo that of his younger brother; and Bianchinetta was the name of Columbus’ sister.”⁶ He also notes: “...the devoted friends of Columbus, Juan Cabrero, Luis de Santangel, Gabriel Sanchez, and Alfonso de la Caballeria, [were] all men of Jewish extraction.”⁷
Columbus’ portraits contain features common to people of Semitic origin, as can be seen here.

The Jerusalem Times/Jewish Press article entitled, “Why Should Catholic Church Honor Queen Isabella?” acknowledges that Columbus was Jewish, while rightly criticizing the fact that the Catholic Church “wouldn’t admit that Columbus was a Jew!” Arnold Fine notes: “...Colon, who changed his name to Columbus....was a Cohen. The name Colon, is the equivalent of Cohen....The fact remains that Columbus was a Jew.”⁸
J. R. Church, minister of the Southwest Radio Church, mentioned in a 1991 radio broadcast: “Columbus used the Jewish calendar in his logs and the Hebrew alphabet for numbers in some cases.”⁹
In a taped message, “Why We Honor the Jews,” the famous pro-Zionist American television minister, John Hagee, said: “Consider America’s debt to the Jewish people—would you be shocked to know that America was discovered by a Jewish sailor named Christopher Columbus? That’s a historic fact.”¹⁰

COLUMBUS HAD A SECRET AUTOGRAPH
THAT HAS BEEN A MYSTERY TO MANY

William Curtis, in his book, The Authentic Letters of Columbus, describes the confusion of historians regarding the interpretation of Columbus’ cryptic autograph: “The signature or rubric of Columbus which appears at the close of all his communications, as the sign of the cross appears at the beginning, has never been satisfactorily interpreted. It was the custom in his time for men of importance to adopt sign manuals of a peculiar sort, as they adopted mottoes for their escutcheons, which had some apparent or concealed significance.”¹¹

MORISON’S SPECULATION—“THE EXACT MEANING
WAS A SECRET THAT COLUMBUS TOOK TO HIS GRAVE”

Samuel Morison, in his book, Christopher Columbus, Admiral of the Ocean Sea, was also mystified about the meaning of Columbus’ autograph and relates that it “was a secret that Columbus took to his grave.” But was it really? In a moment, we will ask Maurice David! Morison tells us: “...these signatures of Columbus have been preserved, each with the pyramid of letters arranged in exactly the same way....Columbus attached great significance to it, and in his mayorazgo or entail instructed his heirs to continue to ‘sign with my signature which I now employ....’...he never revealed the meaning, which has aroused endless speculation. The problem has particularly interested those endeavoring to prove that Columbus was a Jew....Speculate as we may, it is unlikely that any certain solution of the cipher will be found; the exact meaning was a secret that Columbus took to his grave.”¹²

I believe Maurice David, in his book, Who Was “Columbus”?, has unraveled the mystery of Columbus’ autograph. He says: “...the mystic signature in the shape of a triangle, considered by Colón as his own family emblem, is nothing less than an abbreviation of the ‘last confession’ of the Jews and also a substitute for the Kaddish—in lieu of the real Kaddish, which was interdicted.
The abbreviation in this case should read:

. S . .`
. S . A . S . .`.a.`
. X . M . Y . .j .m .y
X . p . o . ferens .j .p .[ .a`wn

In Hebrew:

Shadai, Shadai y d `
Adonoy Shadai yd` ynda yd`
Yehova molai chesed dsj alm hwhy
Nauthai ovon, pesha, chatuo hafj [`p @w[ a`n”¹³

In a recent article entitled, “Was the Discoverer of America Jewish?”, by Newton Frohlich, it was noted: “...the letters stand for a Latinized Hebrew prayer: Sanctus. Sanctus, Adonai, Sanctus. Chesed Moleh Yehovah (God. God, Lord, God. Lord grant mercy). The last two lines are said to be Columbus’ signature: Xpo FERENS has been translated as a Greco-Latin form of his name and El Almirante means ‘the admiral.’ ”¹⁴

Maurice David and Mosco Galimir also reveal the comparatively unknown meaning of another insignia Columbus inscribed at the beginning of his letters to family members. David writes: “On all of these thirteen intimate letters but one, the attentive reader can plainly see at the left top corner a little monogram which may seem cryptic to him, but which is, in fact, nothing more nor less than an old Hebrew greeting or benediction, frequently used among religious Jews all over the world even to this day.
This monogram, consisting of two characters, ‘beth,’ and ‘hai,’ the second and fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet—written from right to left, like all Semitic script—is an abbreviation of the Hebrew words, ‘Boruch hashem’ (Praised be the Lord)....I have stated that the Hebrew monogram appears on all, but one, of the thirteen letters from Columbus to his son. Its omission from that one is probably more revealing than its appearance on the others. Because this particular letter begins with the traditional; ‘Muy caro fijo’ (My dear son), but its contents show that it was intended to reach the eyes of Queen Isabelle. Colón therein advises his son that he is sending him by special messenger two bags of large gold nuggets, the first found in India by the Spanish explorers, and directs him to hand them over to the Queen together with the letter, adding: ‘To you, I am writing another long letter, which will leave here tomorrow.’ ”¹⁵
Mosco Galimir also enlightens us: “The famous Admiral took special care to leave in obscurity and mystery his origin, ancestry and place of birth....In his thirteen letters to his son, he puts a small monogram at the upper left hand side of the paper, an old sephardic greeting, beginning with the Hebrew letters ‘B H’....”¹⁶

I believe Columbus omitted this Hebrew monogram from the letter to be read by Queen Isabella because she was ruthlessly ordering Jews and Moors to be burned.¹⁷ He also knew that Jews bearing the surnames Colón¹⁸ and Colom, the two names he had used, were being condemned.¹⁹ We believe Columbus kept his origin and identity a secret because he was both a true believer in Jesus and a Jew!!
Columbus obviously kept his (born-again) faith a secret from the Catholics, just as he kept his Jewish ancestry concealed, both of which remain a historical secret even today! But, for those of you who are brave and inquisitive enough to read between the lines, you will see for yourself the obvious fact—his words are unmistakenly those of one who has a personal relationship with and trust in God, as defined by modern evangelical standards.

The well-documented volumes, The Prophetic Faith of our Fathers, record the following facts, events and words of Christopher Columbus: “Chosen to Proclaim God’s Name in New World—Columbus was a voluminous writer, and kept a minute
diary of his voyages. These writings reflect a deep religious spirit. There is frequent citation of Scripture concerning Biblical characters and episodes. Columbus found land ‘with the aid of the Lord.’ He
took possession of San Salvador, the first land of the Western Hemisphere that he sighted, in these words: ‘O Lord, Eternal and Almighty God, by thy sacred word thou hast created the heavens, the earth and the sea; blessed and glorified be thy name, and praised be
thy Majesty, who hath designed to use thy humble servant to make thy sacred name known and proclaimed in this other part of the world’....The story is told that even before his voyages, while he lay ill near Belem, Portugal, an unknown voice whispered to him in a dream, ‘God will cause thy name to be wonderfully resounded through the earth, and will give thee the keys of the gates of the ocean, which are closed with strong chains!’....Columbus expressly declares that the discovery of the New World was not prompted by speculation, mathematics, or mere navigation, but by the compulsive conviction
that all the divinely inspired prophecies of Scripture must be fulfilled before the approaching end of the world,^[20] including the proclamation of the gospel to the ends of the earth. No trial or disappointment could turn him from his purpose....In September, 1501, Columbus began the preparation of his Libro de las Profecías (Book of the Prophecies)....He [in this work] continually invokes the Bible and the prophets, claiming to owe all he knew and all he had accomplished to the leading of God. He also quotes ecclesiastical writers, Christian and Jewish.
Columbus affirms the world must have an end, and a second advent of Christ, and that the Lord gave an account of the signs preceding it, which are mentioned in the Gospels....Libro de las Profecías contains a letter...a remarkable report, which reads like a theological treatise. ‘At this time I both read and studied all kinds of literature: cosmography, histories, chronicles, and philosophy and
other arts, to which our Lord opened my mind unmistakably to the fact that it was possible to navigate from here to the Indies, and He evoked
in me the will for the execution of it....All those who heard of my plan disregarded it mockingly and with laughter. All the sciences of which I spoke were of no profit to me nor the authorities in them....Who would doubt that this light did not come from the Holy Spirit, anyway as far as I am concerned, which comforted with rays of marvelous clarity and with its Holy and Sacred Scriptures....’...In this letter Columbus presses the providential guidance of his Western discoveries as a miracle intended to encourage the undertaking of the restoration of Jerusalem....‘...I have already said that in order to execute the enterprise of the Indies neither reason, nor mathematics, nor maps profited me; what Isaiah said was fully realized, and this is that which I wish to write here in order to bring to the mind of Your Highnesses, and in order that you rejoice of the other, which I shall tell you about Jerusalem through the same authorities, about whose enterprise, if there is any faith, hold victory for more than certain.’ ”²¹ Mosco Galimir raises the question: “Was not his heart beating for his lost fatherland, Palestine?”²²

We believe Columbus kept his true faith and Jewishness discreet, because in those days the Catholic Church used torture and inquisition to persecute people for their beliefs and heritage. Remember the newspaper articles quoted by McEntire which said: “...that it wasn’t very safe in those days in Spain to call yourself a Jew, and Columbus knew that, and called himself ‘a Genoese navigator’....”²³
We believe the words recorded in his diary, book of prophecies and other writings are the utterances of a true New Testament Bible believer rather than the thoughts of a ceremonial Roman Catholic. We believe Columbus was both a Jew and true believer in Jesus. That is why he kept his origin and identity a secret, while he treasured to the end of his days a book which proved Jesus to be the Jewish Messiah of the Old Testament. Walter McEntire shares some interesting details regarding this highly prized and beloved book of Christopher Columbus: “What may be another bit of evidence aiding us in our effort, is the record that Columbus prized most highly a book written by a Marano—not a ‘forced convert Jew,’ but a freely baptized earnest ‘convert Christian.’ Of this book a Jewish historian writes: ‘In Spain, he (Columbus) read with religious zeal the tract on the Messiah, which was written by the proselyte Samuel Ibn Abbas of Morocco, for the purpose of converting R. Isaac of Sujurmente; it had been translated into Spanish in 1339, and into Latin a hundred years later. This book interested Columbus so much that he excerpted three whole chapters.’ (Kayserling.) Think of the zeal of a ‘convert Jew’ who would write an erudite and scholarly treatise on the Messiah, for the purpose, and only purpose, of ‘converting’ another Jew.”²⁴
This brings to light two important revelations about Columbus: 1. If he were not a Jew, why would he be so fascinated in seeing Jesus from the perspective of the proofs in the Old Testament prophecies? 2. If he were only a Marano (who may not have believed in Jesus), why would he care? The book would have been of little interest to him! The same reasoning follows if he were merely a ceremonial Roman Catholic. His love and prized value of this book shows he had a deep spiritual evangelical faith and interest in Jesus from a Jewish perspective. It was something only a Jew who truly believed in Jesus—a true believer—could sincerely appreciate.

If it were the case that Columbus was a true believer in Jesus and a Jew, modern Messianic Jews can claim one of the most famous discoveries of all time. This illustrates more than ever the legitimacy
of the Jewish movement for Jesus! Columbus’ dying words were:
“Into Thy hands, Oh, Lord, I commit my spirit.”²⁵ These were the same words uttered by Jesus while He was on the cross. Walter McEntire comments beautifully: “...Columbus was deeply interested in the prophecies. To him they had a special meaning; and he frequently meditated upon them....[He points out that] A Jewish historian writes: ‘Some of his biographers have seen in his career not the triumph of science but that of religion; and a learned Spaniard^[26] has in all seriousness asserted that without his strong religious faith Columbus would never have discovered America’ (Kayserling).
Columbus’ career was the triumph of religion; and without the faith he possessed he never could have accomplished the wonderful work he wrought: that millions of the suffering sons of man might be made peaceful and happy in the world he found and gave them.”²⁷

¹ Kay Brigham, Christopher Columbus’s Book of Prophecies, Reproduction of the Original Manuscript with English Translation. Barcelona: Clie, p. 267, © for the English translation, used by permission. Clie books may be ordered from TSELF, Inc., POB 8337, Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA 33310. Tel. (800) 327-7933. In Brigham’s footnote, “LORD” is referenced with Zephaniah 3:9-12 and saved with Romans 9:27 (see Isa. 10:22).

² Kay Brigham, Christopher Columbus: His Life and Discovery in the Light of His Prophecies. Barcelona: Clie, © 1990, pp. 158-159, used by permission. [ ] mine. Clie books may be ordered from TSELF, Inc., POB 8337, Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA 33310. Tel. (800) 327-7933.

³ Walter F. McEntire, Was Christopher Columbus a Jew. Boston: The Stratford Company, © 1925, pp. i-ii, used by permission.

⁴ Ibid, p. ii.

⁵ Ibid, p. 8. [ ] mine.

⁶ Ibid, pp. 7-8.

⁷ Ibid, p. 63. [ ] mine.

⁸ Arnold Fine, “Why Should Catholic Church Honor Queen Isabella?” Jerusalem Times/Jewish Press, Fri., Jan. 18, 1991, p. 36, © used by permission.

⁹ Radio broadcast, Jan. 1991. J.R. Church’s material is available through his ministry, Southwest Radio Church, POB 1144, Oklahoma City, OK, USA 73101. Tel. (800) 475-1111.

¹⁰ John Hagee, Why We Honor the Jews.

¹¹ William Eleroy Curtis, The Authentic Letters of Columbus, Vol. 1, No. 2. Chicago: Field Columbian Museum Publication 2, 1895, p. 117.

¹² Samuel Eliot Morison, Christopher Columbus, Admiral of the Ocean Sea. London: Oxford University Press, © 1939, pp. 356-357, used by permission.

¹³ Maurice David, Who Was “Columbus”? New York: The Research Publishing Co., © 1933, p. 103, used by permission.

¹⁴ Newton Frohlich, “Was the Discoverer of America Jewish?”, Moment, Dec. 1991, p. 43, used by permission.

¹⁵ Ibid, p. 66. Bold mine.

¹⁶ Mosco Galimir, Cristobal Colón, The Discoverer of America. New York: Galimir, 1950, pp. 21, 23.

¹⁷ Dr. Meir Kayserling, Christopher Columbus and The Participation of the Jews in the Spanish and Portugese Discoveries. New York: Hermon Press, © 1968, p. 122. Available through Stephen Hermon Press, 1265 46th Street, Brooklyn, NY, USA 11219. Tel. (718) 972-9010.

¹⁸ Mosco Galimir writes: “In Tortosa, Salonica and Amsterdam, the name of Colón is found; all bearers of this name are Sephardic Jews.” Galimar continues: “Colombo is a Spanish name. The change of name was a custom amongst Jews. Palumbus, Palombo, Columbus, Colombo. Thus the evolution to Colombo, Colón. The Colombos were Jews from Catalonia. Colón is a common Jewish name found on the Mayorcas.” Mosco Galimir, Cristobal Colón, Discoverer of America, pp. 29-30.

¹⁹ He gives Columbus’ answer to Antonio about his final name change: “I belong to the family of the Counts of Colombo....It is to distinguish myself from other members of my family, that I call myself Columbus.” Ibid, p. 33.

²⁰ For Columbus’ exact words, see our caption at the opening of our chapter 28, “The Second Coming Event—Will He Yet Be Sent.”

²¹ Leroy Edwin Froom, The Prophetic Faith of our Fathers, Vol. I. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald, © 1948, pp. 167-171, 173, used by permission. [ ] mine.

²² Mosco Galimir, Cristobal Colón, Discoverer of America, p. 53.

²³ Mosco Galimir asked: “Was Cristobal Colón secretive about his past and origin out of fear of being spied upon by the inglorious Inquisition?” Ibid, p. 37. And W. F. McEntire notes that Mier Kayserling asked: “ ‘...What must have been the feelings of Christopher Columbus, or Colón, when he heard that members of the Jewish race bore his name, and had been condemned by the Inquisition?’ [McEntire says that] The connection of Cristóbal Colón with the Jewish family of Colom is not apparent until in a footnote to the above paragraph we find that ‘he was also called Colom.’ ” Walter F. McEntire, Was Christopher Columbus a Jew, p. 77. [ ] mine. McEntire continues: “In Spain the Christoforo Colombo of Genoa chose to call himself Cristóval Colón, and the Historie tells us that he sought merely to make his descendants distinct of name from their remote kin.” Ibid, pp. 77-78.

²⁴ Ibid, p. 66.

²⁵ Commemoration of the Fourth Centenary of the Discovery of America. From the Report of the Madrid Commission, 1892. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1895, p. 266.

²⁶ This biographer was S. de la Rósa y López, El Libros y Autografos de D. Chr. Colón, Seville, 1891.

²⁷ Walter F. McEntire, Was Christopher Columbus a Jew, pp. 142-144. [ ] mine.