Introduction: Descent from I srael and J ewish Identities in the P acific, Past and Present

This Introduction to this Special Issue of O ceania, ‘Descent from I srael: J ewish Identities in the P acific, Past and Present’, sets the historical context of E uropean interest in P acific peoples as descended from the ‘Lost Tribes’ of the biblical H ebrews. After surveying the way in which P acific C hristians in the past and present have adopted a J ewish identity, whether through genealogy, biblical and theological interpretation, and/or deep interest in the S tate of I srael, we then contextualise and summarise the scholarship that follows: on J ewish identity as adopted by churches and religious movements in F iji, S olomon I slands and P apua G uinea, as well as a final reflection on their significance for J udaism today.