CMJ'S History
The work of CMJ began among the poor Jewish immigrants in the East End of London and soon spread to Europe, South America, Africa and Israel. CMJ became the biggest mission organisation in the world with over 250 missionaries.
CMJ has its foundations in the establishment of the London Missionary Society (LMS) in 1795. Like other missionary societies founded in the late 1790s, LMS was concerned about reaching all nations with the message of salvation though Jesus, the Messiah, and the 'imminent' restoration of Israel and the return of the Jewish people to their land. The vision (and heart) of LMS can be seen in the early writings of their periodical, the Evangelical Magazine, in 1796, in which the following was written:
'The deplorable state in which the Jewish nation is now found, has a loud claim upon Christian philanthropy…The Jews were, however, the natural branches of the spiritual vine; and notwithstanding, in consequence of their being broken off, the Gentiles were grafted in, yet there will arrive a time, in which all Israel shall be saved; in which there shall be one fold of Jew and gentile, and Christ, the great head of the Church, become the shepherd of the people…But, amongst all the benevolent plans which have been formed to secure the s alvation of sinners, how little attention has been paid to the state of the Jews! They have lived and traded with us, and we have scarcely reflected on their melancholy state, as outcasts of God.' (Excerpts taken from Evangelical Magazine, 1796, pp. 403-5)
Providentially, in 1795, a, a young Jewish man, Joseph Levi, from Maynstocheim in a province of Franconia in Germany had a divine appointment with a pietist Christian and heard clearly about the promise of a new covenant with the house of Israel (Jeremiah 31). A few short years later in 1798, he came to faith in Jesus (Yeshua) as Messiah and was given a new name, Joseph Samuel Christian Frederick Frey, a well known name in CMJ history.
In time, differences in approach to supporting new Jewish believers resulted in Frey founding a separate society, London Society for Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, in 1809. The name was later shortened to London Jews Society (LJS) and has evolved since that time to Church's Ministry among Jewish People (CMJ). Many others came alongside Joseph Frey, including such prominent members of British society as William Wilberforce, Thomas Babbington (colleague in the British Parliament), Charles Simeon, and Lewis Way. And still other influential and distinguished members of society from all ranks joined CMJ to aid it in fulfilling its mission: Duke of Devonshire, Earl of Bessborough, Crawford, and Lindsay, and several lords and bishops.
The efforts and generosity of CMJ's early members laid a strong foundation. And CMJ continues to uphold the mission to sow into the spiritual rebirth of the Jewish people.
For more information on the history of CMJ, two excellent resources are 'For the Love of Zion' and 'The Restoration of the Kingdom to Israel' from Olive Press (email enquires@cmj.org.uk).