CMJ was founded in 1809 by a group of leading Christians, including Lord Shaftesbury, William Wilberforce and Charles Simeon. Initially working in London and then on the Continent, this group was involved in sharing the love of the Messiah and in bringing practical help to those in need.
CMJ founded Christ Church, Jerusalem in 1841. This, the oldest Protestant Church in the Middle East, saw former Rabbi Michael Solomon Alexander installed as the first Anglican Bishop of Jerusalem, with all main services conducted in Hebrew. CMJ also built a hospital and schools in Jerusalem.
The 20th Century saw the horrors of the Holocaust, the return of the Jewish people to Israel, and the change in perception of Jewish Christians as Messianic Jews rather than Hebrew Christians. Thankfully, there is no longer a need for mission hospitals or "soup kitchens" in the East End of London (though relief help is still needed for Jewish people in Eastern Europe).
Today the need continues to take the good news of the Messiah to His own people.
Our mission remains to:
encourage Jewish people to come to faith in Jesus as their Messiah; to support them in serving Him as Lord in the light of God's purposes for them; and to equip the Church to be involved in this mission.