Jewish Voice Ministries International

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Jewish Voice Ministries International (JVMI) is an international non-profit Messianic Jewish Organization based in Phoenix, Arizona, as well as its associated ministries in Canada and the United Kingdom. The mission of Jewish Voice is to proclaim the gospel that Jesus (“Yeshua” in Hebrew) is the Messiah of Israel to the Jewish people and the Nations, and to educate the Christian church about the Jewish roots of their faith. To accomplish these goals, Jewish Voice provides humanitarian aid through recurring medical and dental clinics to impoverished Jewish people around the world, including Russia, Ukraine, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, India, and Israel. Since 1993, Jewish Voice has established local Messianic congregations led by indigenous leadership with whom they maintain a continuous relationship to build, sustain and grow the Messianic Jewish movement abroad.^[1]

The ministry also performs large-scale international festivals of Jewish music and dance, frequently in Eastern Europe and South America and uses the opportunity to share their faith with attendees.

JVMI produces a daily television show, Jewish Voice with Jonathan Bernis, to educate viewers in the U.S. and abroad on the Jewish roots of the Christian faith, Bible prophecy and world events relating to Israel and the Middle East.

Jewish Voice also educates and shares their message through social media, webcasts and print publications, including Jewish Voice Today Magazine.

JVMI contributes financially to numerous other like-minded organizations in Israel and abroad. JVMI is accredited by the Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability and maintains the highest possible rating from Charity Navigator.^[2]

History

Evangelist Louis Kaplan began airing a daily 15-minute radio program in Phoenix, Arizona called the Jewish Voice Broadcast in 1967. By 1968, the broadcast had spread to 20 radio stations across the United States and by 1971, it was airing internationally. That same year, Mr. Kaplan began publication of the monthly Jewish Voice Prophetic Magazine.

In 1978, the ministry began airing a weekly half-hour television program on The Christian Broadcasting Television Network and The Praise the Lord Television Network. It featured the testimonies of Jewish people who had accepted Yeshua (Jesus) as their Messiah.

When Kaplan passed away in 1998, Jewish Voice Broadcast combined with Hear O’ Israel Ministries, a non-profit founded by Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Bernis. Hear O’ Israel Ministries conducted large festivals of Jewish music and dance internationally, focusing on Eastern Europe, with the aim of spreading the gospel to the Jewish people. When the two ministries merged following Kaplan’s death, Bernis became President and CEO.^[1]

Beliefs

JVMI believes the Bible (Old and New Testaments) is the only infallible and authoritative Word of God. They believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the Jewish Messiah (Yeshua HaMashiach in Hebrew), that was prophesied in the Hebrew scriptures, and that He came to save the Jewish people and redeem mankind.

JVMI believes that those who are Jewish by heritage (descendants of Abraham through Isaac, whether through the bloodline of the mother or father) and place their faith in Yeshua remain Jewish and have not cut themselves off from their race or Judaic heritage. They state that both Jewish people and Gentiles make up the body of believers in Jesus the Messiah, that Jesus broke down the former wall of separation by His death and they are now to worship together. They encourage Jewish followers of Jesus to maintain their Jewish biblical heritage and culture, and they encourage non-Jewish believers to learn about the Jewish roots of the Christian faith.

JVMI also believes they are called to care for vulnerable Jewish people around the world. Bernis teaches that “people don’t care what you know until they know that you care,” and for that reason the ministry has a heavy focus on international medical missions and humanitarian aid to the poor. JVMI believes in empowering Jewish believers in the nations they work to build their own indigenous Messianic Jewish Communities and national movement. To date, over 60 Messianic Jewish congregations have been planted in Russia, Ukraine, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia.^[1]

Leadership

Jewish Voice Ministries International is led by Jonathan Bernis, its President and CEO since 1998. A Jewish believer in Jesus, Mr. Bernis has been involved in worldwide missions since 1984 and has been a leader in the Messianic Jewish movement. He is the author of numerous books, including A Rabbi Looks at Jesus of Nazareth, A Rabbi Looks at the Last Days, Is Peace Possible?, A Rabbi Looks at the Afterlife Confessing the Hebrew Scriptures (series. and several other publications. He was the founder and Senior Messianic Rabbi of Congregation Shema Yisrael in Rochester, New York from 1984 to 1993. He was also the founder of the Messianic Center of St. Petersburg, Russia, where he led the congregation from 1993 to 1997.^[3]

Prior to the formation of Jewish Voice Ministries International, Mr. Bernis was Executive Director of Hear O’ Israel Ministries, which hosted its first International Festival of Jewish Music and Dance in St. Petersburg in 1993. Mr. Bernis is the host of Jewish Voice with Jonathan Bernis television program and is a frequent speaker at conferences in the U.S. and worldwide.^[3]

JVMI currently has offices in Canada, UK, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe

Television and Media

Jewish Voice with Jonathan Bernis is a half-hour television program that features teaching and interviews with experts in the Jewish roots of the Christian faith, Middle East and Israel current events, and Last Days Bible prophecy. The program is broadcast on multiple outlets both in the U.S. and overseas.^[3] JVMI has been involved in the production of special television programs intended to reach general audiences with the message of Messiah. In 2014, JVMI released an award-winning one-hour special, “The Miracle of Israel,” narrated by Leonard Nimoy. The program provides an historical view of the Jewish people and presents Bible prophecies regarding the Messiah and the Last Days. To date the program has aired in 30 major cities and according to Neilson ratings has had a viewership of nearly two million households.^[4]

Jewish Voice Today is a quarterly magazine published by JVMI with a readership of over 100,000. It features articles written by a variety of authors who examine topics such as Bible prophecy, how it relates to current events in the Middle East, and the Jewish roots of the Christian faith.^[1] Connections is a newsletter produced by JVMI that keeps readers informed about upcoming outreaches and prayer needs.^[5]

International Missions

JVMI began producing Hear O’ Israel Festivals of Jewish Music & Dance in 1993. Over half a million people have attended 30 festivals throughout Eastern Europe, India, Mexico and South America. Television broadcasts of these events have reached millions more. JVMI reports that over 250,000 people have responded to invitations to acknowledge Jesus as their Messiah, and that over half of these people have been Jewish.^[3]

Since 1999, JVMI has provided free medical, dental, and optical clinics to impoverished Jewish communities in India and Africa. The first took place in Gondar, Ethiopia in 1999. Thirteen hundred people were treated. Staffed by volunteers, JVMI’s short-term medical outreaches now typically treat over 10,000 patients during a one-week clinic. As of 2014, the ministry had treated over 250,000 patients.^[6]

Organization Information

JVMI’s mailing address is P.O. Box 6, Phoenix, AZ 85001-5001. Its phone number is (602) 971-8501.^[1]

Notable People

Louis Kaplan
Jonathan Bernis

Sources

References

1 2 3 4 5 "Jewish Voice Ministries International". www.ministrywatch.com. Retrieved 2015-12-22.
↑ "Charity Navigator Rating - Jewish Voice Ministries International". Charity Navigator. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
1 2 3 4 "Jonathan Bernis Author Profile | Biography And Bibliography | NewReleaseToday". www.newreleasetoday.com. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
↑ "Jonathan Bernis - Jewish Voice - Daystar Television". Daystar Television. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
↑ "About Jewish Voice Ministries International Rescue Jewish Property". www.rescuejewishproperty.org. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
↑ "JVMI - Jewish Voice Ministries International | A MedicalMissions.com organization". www.medicalmissions.com. Retrieved 2015-12-23.

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