June 2022 President’s Letter
Thank you for your prayers and support! Chosen People Ministries’ staff could not do this great work of reaching Jewish people for Jesus in these last days without your partnership.
Your Mission to the Jewish People is continuing to implement our Foundations ’22 campaign.
We are reaching out to Jewish people and focusing on personal evangelism, discipleship, and training those who come to faith to be lifelong, fruitful followers of the Lord.
MY PERSONAL JEWISH STORY
My family is from eastern Europe, which is why I identify with Ukrainian Jewish people today. My grandparents left eastern Europe during the rapidly deteriorating dark days of pre-Holocaust Europe.
My father’s parents were from Ukraine. My grandfather was loving and kind and wanted nothing more than to assimilate into American life. While he was not religious, he instilled a love for the Jewish people in his sons. They also had a concern for continuing those cultural and family-based values and traditions woven into the fabric of the Jewish soul.
My maternal grandmother was from a similar Jewish social circle. Unlike my paternal grandparents, they were far more religious and practiced Orthodox Judaism. They ate kosher food, observed the Sabbath, attended synagogue as often as they could, and practiced Jewish rituals daily.
They had hoped the rest of their family would follow and join them in the United States, but they did not. Eventually, they would all perish in concentration camps.
Again, my grandparents tried to scrupulously keep the Torah as they understood it. But the culture of the new world and its philosophy of assimilation resulted in none of their children becoming observant Jews.
I am sure this was heartbreaking for them, but all their children—including my mom—still proudly affirmed their Jewishness, celebrated the holidays, and participated in the Jewish community.
BEING RELIGIOUS IS ONLY
ONE SLICE OF BEING JEWISH.
For my family and so many others, Judaism is not always about God or theology. Being Jewish is more often about focusing on family values, tradition, and the need to provide Jewish education and continuity for our children.
The religious side of Jewish life for so many Jewish people today has become watered down.
Still, it should not surprise you if your Jewish friends feel somewhat threatened when you speak to them about Jesus.
You might think, “If they are not religious, why are they responding so negatively?” It is partly because of the tragic history of interactions between Jews and Christians and because you might have inadvertently threatened their lack of religious knowledge about Judaism. When they think others view their faith as deficient, they often feel helpless to respond.
THE BELIEFS AND VALUES OF
SECULAR JEWISH PEOPLE
Being Jewish is not as much a function of belief as it is a matter of community identity. A person could retain that identity as long as they do not cross certain lines.
However, if you breach one of these unseen parameters, you could easily cross over and out of the Jewish community. Believing in Jesus is one of those lines, perhaps the boldest of the lines, and once you cross over, you cannot return unless you renounce those beliefs.
You can help Jewish believers in Jesus by providing friendship and support, as the Lord can use you to ease the pain of community rejection that is sure to follow their acceptance of the Messiah.
We are eager to help you reach your Jewish friends!
SPECIAL FREE BOOK OFFER
We can send your Jewish friend a free copy of Isaiah 53 Explained—all you need to do is ask, and we will send you the book to give to your friend, or if you prefer, you can provide us with their address, and we will send the book to them directly.
Again, we are always available to help you share the gospel with your Jewish friends. If you want to talk it over, please call our office at 212-223-2252.
SUPPORTING FOUNDATIONS ’22
By supporting Foundations ’22, you will be helping us reach His chosen people in many countries and from different Jewish backgrounds—from the secular to the ultra-Orthodox.
We need $60,000 per month for Foundations ’22 over and above our regular operating costs. Your generous support enables us to produce websites and printed materials, maintain facilities, employ staff across the globe, and allow our missionaries to focus on evangelism, discipleship, and training. Thank you for caring!