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Chosen People Ministries (CPM) is an evangelical Christian nonprofit organization which engages in evangelization of Jews.[1] It is headquartered in New York City and led by Mitch Glaser,[2] who was raised Jewish and converted to Christianity.>[3]
Its stated mission is to "pray for, evangelize, disciple, and serve Jewish people everywhere and to help fellow believers do the same".[4] It supports the establishment of Messianic Jewish congregations, which it describes as "faith communities that stress the Jewish context of the Gospel of Jesus".[5]
History
editLeopold Cohn, a Hungarian-Jewish immigrant to the United States who became a Christian, founded the Brownsville Mission to the Jews in 1894. The Brownsville Mission later expanded to the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York and became the Williamsburg Mission to the Jews from 1897 until 1924. In 1897, the Williamsburg Mission headquarters housed a medical clinic, boys' club, Girl Scouts, and sewing and English classes, in addition to evening Gospel services.[6]
From 1924 until 1984 it was known as the American Board of Missions to the Jews. Since then it has been known as Chosen People Ministries.
Methods and locations
editChosen People Ministries has staff in 16 countries.[7] It also sends out missionaries and conducts evangelism in areas of high Jewish concentration, teaches in churches, and produces evangelical literature and media.[8]
Centers
editBrooklyn, New York - The Charles L. Feinberg Center
editIn 2010, Chosen People Ministries attracted attention when it acquired a former funeral home in the heart of an Orthodox Jewish community located in Midwood, Brooklyn. This acquisition sparked anger from the Jewish community in New York.[9] The Center opened in 2014 and houses an English-speaking congregation, a Russian-speaking congregation, and an accredited seminary program.
The seminary program, The Charles L. Feinberg Center for Messianic Jewish Studies, is co-sponsored with Talbot School of Theology and offers an accredited Master of Divinity program in Messianic Jewish Studies.[10] The program is designed to train Messianic congregational leaders, outreach workers and educators. In addition to the full Master of Divinity program, it offers a 6-course Certificate in Messianic Jewish studies. Classes are held in Brooklyn at the Feinberg Center, though the summer program includes classes at Talbot's Los Angeles campus.[11]
Berlin, Germany
editIn 2012, the organization a building dedicated to Jewish evangelism in Berlin, Germany. The Berlin center hosts a hospitality network, Shabbat fellowships, tandem language partnerships, and friendship ministries.[7]
Ramat Gan, Israel
editIn 2017, Chosen People Ministries opened a Messianic Center in the Ramat Gan area of Greater Tel Aviv. The center hosts seminars on parenting, financial management, biblical counseling, as well as a bi-weekly women's Bible study.[7]
Toronto, Canada
editIn 2019, Chosen People Ministries opened the Toronto Messianic Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The centre houses the headquarters of Chosen People Ministries in Canada, as well as serves as the meeting place for Kehillat Eytz Chaim (Tree of Life Congregation).[citation needed]
Church affiliations and memberships
editChosen People Ministries states that it is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability, CrossGlobal Link, the Canadian Council of Christian Charities, the Christian Stewardship Association and the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.[12]
References
edit- ^ "Chosen People Ministries: Doctrinal Statement". Archived from the original on October 6, 2011. Retrieved September 12, 2011.
- ^ "President's Introduction". Chosen People Ministries. Retrieved 2018-02-21.[dead link]
- ^ Glaser's statement on his conversion
- ^ "Mission Statement | Chosen People Ministries". Chosen People Ministries. Retrieved 2018-02-21.
- ^ "Messianic Congregations: Messianic Congregations". Archived from the original on February 15, 2014. Retrieved September 12, 2011.
- ^ Ariel, Yaakov Shalom (September 13, 2000). Evangelizing the Chosen People: Missions to the Jews in America, 1880 - 2000. H. Eugene and Lillian Youngs Lehman Series. Vol. 1358. The University of North Carolina Press. p. 32. doi:10.1007/b62130. ISBN 978-0-8078-4880-7.
Not the sort to be satisfied with being just an ordinary mission among the many, Leopold Cohn set about expanding his mission. In 1896 the mission opened a second branch, also in Brooklyn, and moved its headquarters to Williamsburg, and changed its name in 1897 to the Williamsburg Mission to the Jews. Its new headquarters was much larger and included, among other things, a medical clinic that offered needy Jews free medical services. Contrary to a prevailing myth, Jews did not boycott missions, and the physicians working at the clinic were nonconverted Jews who worked for pay. Like the patients who patronized the clinic, they did not consider the mission to be a danger. The mission's program included "Gospel services" on Sunday and Monday nights and sewing and English classes on other nights. The establishment of a boys' club and a Girl Scout troop indicated a growing attempt to evanglize youth.
- ^ a b c "International Ministries | Chosen People Ministries". Chosen People Ministries. Retrieved 2018-02-21.[dead link]
- ^ "About Us | Chosen People Ministries". Archived from the original on 2011-10-06. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
- ^ "Jewish leaders angry over Chosen People Ministries' Messianic outpost." (October 11, 2010).New York Daily News[dead link]
- ^ "Charles Feinberg Center for Messianic Jewish Studies". 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
- ^ "The Charles L. Feinberg Center for Messianic Jewish Studies".
- ^ "Chosen People Ministries: Accountability". Archived from the original on October 6, 2011. Retrieved September 12, 2011.