Are you a Recabite?

This is an ancient and marvellous story
found in chapter 35 of Jeremiah, (in the Bible).
It goes like this:

Jeremiah was just about the only person around who was honest and brave.  He had been chosen by the Creator of  all things (in Britain we still use the Norse term 'God') to be the person who would hear important messages and convey them to the leaders and the people.

The city was brewing for an almighty fight with the neighbouring superpower.  A group of nomadic Gypsies, called the Racabites had come into the city to try to find safety.  The Racabites lived in the surrounding deserts in tents.  They took an oath abstinence from alcohol.  We might call them 'Bedouin' today.

Jeremiah invited the Racabites to attend a feast in the palace.  These people must have been somewhat bemused because their life was not one of grandeur.  Jeremiah set out a feast for them with plenty of wine.  He invited them to enjoy themselves.  To a person they refused to drink alcohol, making clear that they would never break their oath, not even for kings and rulers.  Jeremiah was very impressed by their strength of character.  These people were exceptional, proving that it was still possible to be uncorruptible.  Their example was explained to the people as an illustration what the Creator was requiring of them.  All along these people had been assured that if they would turn from evil and corruption they would protect their lives from the impending catastrophe.  Sadly the people assumed these were just words, but they were wrong.  Their city was overrun and most of the people were carried off to a different county.

In 1835, as part of a Victorian campaign against corruption, and to find ways to protect financial investments from being tainted by unethical practices, the Independent Order of Rachabites was created.  It continued well into the twentieth century in the English speaking world.  Here are objects now found in museums.

Our Bedouin Forefathers

David Cannadine (Historian) recalled be taken to a meeting with
 his grandparents in Birmingham. 

The meeting places were called 'tents'.
Account of the meeting house in Canterbury is here.