NARA historian Anthony "Amp" Elmore has ignited controversy with his assertion that "Christ was A Buddhist," a claim rooted in 19th-century scholarship that challenges conventional religious narratives and highlights what he calls the systematic erasure of Black history. Elmore's research draws from British historian Sir Godfrey Higgins' 1833 work "Anacalypsis," which concluded that the foundation of all human civilization and spirituality is the "Negro Religion" of Buddhism. This perspective posits that the "celebrated Black Buddha" was humanity's primary savior figure, with ancient icons across Asia and the Nile Valley depicting distinct African features.
Elmore's work establishes what he calls a "Line of Demarcation" between traditional Asian-led Buddhism and what he terms "Black Buddhism"—a sovereign category that acknowledges Buddhism's Cushite (Kushite) origins. According to his research, the "Elder Buddha" was Hermes Trismegistus (the African Thoth), who codified the first systems of writing, mathematics, and spiritual science in the Nile Valley. Thousands of years later, the "Younger Buddha," known as Shakyamuni of India, emerged to revitalize this same Cushite science. Higgins' forensic breakthrough was realizing that the life stories of these figures are identical to the narrative of Jesus, suggesting the "Roman Christ" is a Eurocentric adaptation of the primary "African Christ."
The implications of this research extend beyond academic circles to contemporary religious practice. Elmore argues that the Proud Black Buddhist World Association is not practicing an "adopted" Asian faith but reclaiming a lost Cushite heritage. This distinction became physically manifest in 2019 when Elmore was expelled from the Facebook Black Buddhist Society, an event he documents in a video titled "NARA Historian Anthony Amp Elmore Kicked out of Facebook Black Buddhist Society for being too Black". Elmore describes this expulsion as evidence of "cultural indoctrination" where Black leaders trained by foreign sects suppress attempts to reclaim an African-centered Dharma.
Elmore's framework integrates local Memphis history with global spiritual narratives, connecting the 1879 founding of Orange Mound—a historical African American community in Memphis—to broader struggles for cultural sovereignty. He criticizes what he sees as the erasure of Black Memphis history, noting that the city has a "Cotton Museum" but no Black Memphis history museum. This local context serves as a microcosm for what Elmore identifies as a global pattern of historical suppression.
The historian's approach redefines Buddhism as a "Sacred Science" rather than a traditional religion. In his lecture "Black Folk Introduction to the Science of Buddhism," Elmore argues that Buddhism represents where "God and Science meet," with the term "God" redefined as the "Mystic Law" of the universe itself. He emphasizes that "True Buddhism is Education, not Meditation," suggesting the Buddha was a master physicist who understood laws of cause and effect long before Western science discovered them. This perspective is detailed in his video "NARA Historian Anthony Amp Elmore Black Folk Introduction to the Science of Buddhism".
Elmore's work challenges what he calls the "systematic extrication" of Black history from Buddhist narratives by Asian sects. He points to specific deities on the Gohonzon (the Mandala of the Lotus Sutra) that he identifies as originally ethnically African, including Fudo Myo-o and Aizen Myo-o. According to Elmore, modern Asian Buddhist organizations prioritize Sanskrit—which he calls a "Brahmanical" version of history—over the Pali language of original Black practitioners, effectively erasing African origins. This argument is central to his video "The Black Gods on the Gohonzon".
The historical claims have significant implications for religious identity and cultural sovereignty. Elmore's research suggests that for the African Diaspora, the story of Christ is not a foreign import but a reclaimed ancestral record of a Black spiritual hero. By documenting what he calls the "Missing Link" between ancient African civilizations and modern religious traditions, Elmore provides an alternative narrative that empowers Black practitioners to see Buddhism not as an adopted culture but as a restored legacy. This work represents what he terms a "forensic shift" in understanding spiritual history, moving beyond religious dogma to establish a "Scientific Record" of the African Diaspora's contributions to global spirituality.
