Research Paper on:
Shintoism and the Lost Tribes of Israel

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
for these similarities lies in the story of the Jewish Diaspora that occurred around 722 BC. The following discussion examines these similarities and traces possible connections between Japanese culture and  Judaic influences, which may or may not indicate that the Lost Tribes of Israel settled in ancient Japan. When the Israelites were defeated by Assyrian forces, the invading army  leaders recorded on a plaque that 27,280 people were deported from Israels Northern Kingdom (Jones, 1996). The Southern Kingdom, of Judah, which consisted of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin,  survived. The tribes of Israel are the descendants of Jacobs twelve sons. Those tribes that became lost in history with the Assyrian invasion were the tribes of Reuben, Simon,  Issachar, Zevulun, Manasseh, Ephraim, Dan, Naphtali, Gad and Asher (Jones, 1996). However, the banishment of the tribes was only the beginning for the Jewish history of exile. In 586 BC,  Judah was conquered by the Babylonians and King Solomons Temple was destroyed (Jones, 1996). Fifty years alter, Babylon was itself conquered by Cyrus of Persia. While some Jewish captives returned  to the Holy Land, the majority of those liberated by the Persians dispersed over the globe (Jones, 1996). Again, in 70 AD, there was conflict between the Jews of Palestine  and their Roman conquers. This, again, led to another great scattering of the Jewish people (Jones, 1996). Although there has been a great deal of speculation concerning the identity of  the Japanese as members of the "lost tribes," Jewish influence in Japan may have also resulted from later expulsions of Jewish people into the world. However, the Makuyo sect  in Japan claims a direct relationship with Judaism. Furthermore, they assert that their Shinto Temples are direct copies of the Second Temple in Jerusalem (Jones, 1996). This assertion, naturally, substantiates