The History of the International Messianic Jewish Alliance IMJA: The First 100 years (1925-2025)

The History of the International Messianic Jewish Alliance IMJA: The First 100 years (1925-2025)Messiah Conference, Grantham PA Wednesday, July 1 Thursday, July 2 1 PM 5 PM Dr. Richard Harvey, Instructor This course examines the history, identity, and legacy of the International Messianic Jewish Alliance (IMJA), founded in 1925 as the first major global network of Jewish believers in Yeshua. Building on earlier effortsthe Hebrew Christian Alliance of Great Britain (1866) and America (1915)the IMJA gathered Jewish disciples who affirmed both

Messiah Conference, Grantham PA
Wednesday, July 1 - Thursday, July 2 
1 PM - 5 PM

Dr. Richard Harvey, Instructor

This course examines the history, identity, and legacy of the International Messianic Jewish Alliance (IMJA), founded in 1925 as the first major global network of Jewish believers in Yeshua. Building on earlier efforts—the Hebrew Christian Alliance of Great Britain (1866) and America (1915)—the IMJA gathered Jewish disciples who affirmed both their faith in Yeshua and their continuing Jewish identity. Students will trace the movement’s development through the 19th and early 20th centuries, the pivotal 1925 London founding conference (with delegates from 18 nations), key leaders (e.g., Mark John Levy, Leon Levison, Hugh Schonfield), and major documents. The course explores the IMJA’s role in Jewish-Christian relations, mission to the Jewish people, the rise of modern Messianic Judaism, and the tensions between “Hebrew Christian” and “Messianic Jewish” identities, especially after the 1970s. Special attention is given to the Alliance’s journey through the Shoah and its ongoing significance as a “living sign” of Jewish disciples of Yeshua within Israel and the nations.

Vice President – IMJA Dr. Richard Harvey writes and teaches on the history and theology of Messianic Judaism. He holds a PhD in Religious Studies from the University of Wales (Lampeter), where his dissertation “Mapping Messianic Jewish Theology: A Constructive Approach” was supervised by Rabbi Professor Dan Cohn-Sherbok and published in 2009. He was previously Academic Dean and Director of Postgraduate Studies at All Nations College, UK, and continues to direct the Masters in Messianic Jewish Studies, the first post-graduate program on Messianic Judaism in the United Kingdom, validated by the Open University (UK). His recent publications include “Towards a Messianic Jewish Theology and Practice of Reconciliation” and “Holocaust Theology in the Light of Yeshua? Messianic Jewish Reception of Eikah.”