This article looks at the field of Black Judaism, with a viewto understanding how scholars articulate the distinctionbetween Black Judaism and the Hebrew Israelite move-ment. The Hebrew Israelites are an autonomous AfricanAmerican movement who identify themselves as descen-dants of the Israelites and some of whom self-identify asJews, probably originating in the late 19th-century Ameri-can South. Although scholars have been working on thisarea for three generations, there is still little agreement andyet the implications of whether and where lines are drawnare important to understand; they go to the heart of per-sonal identities and investments.