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NEW YORK — Michael Lubrin felt heartbroken when police told him his son, 31-year-old Kim Lubrin was dead. Years earlier, when his son joined the Black Hebrew Israelite group, the father saw a change.
On a windy, 40-degree day on Nov. 2, Kim jumped off the roof of an apartment building in West Harlem, a short walk from the religious group’s headquarters and his own home, according to family members, police reports and surveillance footage. The Lubrin family believe there are more elements to Kim’s death than simply a suicide.
Kim had progressed up the ranks of the secretive, close-knit Israelite Church of God in Jesus Christ (ICGJC) in Harlem, which has a history of financially and emotionally pressuring members and ousting members for alleged transgressions. Family members said church members obtained Kim’s cell phone immediately after his death. Days before his jump, Kim had expressed fear of repercussions from the church over some sin he had committed, family members told Religion Unplugged.
“My son called, and he says, ‘Daddy, I’m struggling with my spiritual life. I was supposed to be more focused but I didn’t stay focused, I sinned in the flesh,’” Michael told Religion Unplugged. He asked Kim if he had a girlfriend. No. A boyfriend? No. Is the church going to kick you out? “I said, Kim, what is the problem? He tells me, Daddy, you don’t know my church… you never know what they can do.”
Shortly after that call, Kim met with church officials on Zoom to discuss his sin, according to his father.
Black Hebrew Israelites are known for their confrontational-style street preaching of unusual beliefs that Black Americans, West Indians, Latinos and Natives are the true, biblical Jews of the Bible. Most Hebrew Israelites, including ICGJC, teach that Caucasians, Asians, Jews and gay people are heathens and enemies akin to Satan himself. Last year, the fringe group made national news for being linked to the fatal shooting of two Orthodox Jews in Jersey City, N.J., and for their role inciting the Covington Catholic standoff at the Lincoln Memorial initially misreported in the media.
Michael, who attends a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Brooklyn, tried to talk to his son about the Black Hebrew Israelite faith, but that always seemed to cause arguments. The son remained a member of the church for more than a decade.
“I begged him to show me the church, but he never showed me,” Michael said.
Continued below.
Sect and Suicide: Father of a Black Hebrew Israelite Bishop Mourns Loss of His Son
NEW YORK — Michael Lubrin felt heartbroken when police told him his son, 31-year-old Kim Lubrin was dead. Years earlier, when his son joined the Black Hebrew Israelite group, the father saw a change.
On a windy, 40-degree day on Nov. 2, Kim jumped off the roof of an apartment building in West Harlem, a short walk from the religious group’s headquarters and his own home, according to family members, police reports and surveillance footage. The Lubrin family believe there are more elements to Kim’s death than simply a suicide.
Kim had progressed up the ranks of the secretive, close-knit Israelite Church of God in Jesus Christ (ICGJC) in Harlem, which has a history of financially and emotionally pressuring members and ousting members for alleged transgressions. Family members said church members obtained Kim’s cell phone immediately after his death. Days before his jump, Kim had expressed fear of repercussions from the church over some sin he had committed, family members told Religion Unplugged.
“My son called, and he says, ‘Daddy, I’m struggling with my spiritual life. I was supposed to be more focused but I didn’t stay focused, I sinned in the flesh,’” Michael told Religion Unplugged. He asked Kim if he had a girlfriend. No. A boyfriend? No. Is the church going to kick you out? “I said, Kim, what is the problem? He tells me, Daddy, you don’t know my church… you never know what they can do.”
Shortly after that call, Kim met with church officials on Zoom to discuss his sin, according to his father.
Black Hebrew Israelites are known for their confrontational-style street preaching of unusual beliefs that Black Americans, West Indians, Latinos and Natives are the true, biblical Jews of the Bible. Most Hebrew Israelites, including ICGJC, teach that Caucasians, Asians, Jews and gay people are heathens and enemies akin to Satan himself. Last year, the fringe group made national news for being linked to the fatal shooting of two Orthodox Jews in Jersey City, N.J., and for their role inciting the Covington Catholic standoff at the Lincoln Memorial initially misreported in the media.
Michael, who attends a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Brooklyn, tried to talk to his son about the Black Hebrew Israelite faith, but that always seemed to cause arguments. The son remained a member of the church for more than a decade.
“I begged him to show me the church, but he never showed me,” Michael said.
Continued below.
Sect and Suicide: Father of a Black Hebrew Israelite Bishop Mourns Loss of His Son