Who are we? We will start by saying that our history is not important without first mentioning the real HIS STORY, began 2,000 years ago when the Messiah was born. Yeshua is the Hebrew name for Jesus as He is called by Christians today. Yeshua is the name Jewish people called him by when he walked on this earth long ago. The English language did not exist until much later and even then the letter "J" was not originally in the Old English language.
Yeshua is uniquely Jewish and practiced a form of Judaism as witnessed in the Brit Hadashah (New Testament/Covenant). He followed the commandments of His Father to observe all Appointed times, also called the Festivals of Leviticus 23. Although, many Jewish people have been persecuted for many hundreds of years and have rejected Yeshua as their Messiah, a small remnant still clung to their original faith. No doubt there were Deaf people during Yeshua's time as witnessed in a few passages of the Brit Hadashah but for the purpose of this ministry, our focus is only on those who have been part of the ACHARIT-HAYAMIM or "latter days" movement.
Deaf Jews who believe Yeshua as their Messiah and savior have been around since the beginning of Messianic synagogues, fellowships and conferences, as far back as the 1960's when the Messianic movement first grew in fervor among Jewish people. Deaf people in general have not been reached with the Gospel until the formal development of sign language in schools around 200 years ago. In review, we have two groups of people who previously have not been open to the Gospel, the Deaf and the Jews. That indeed is an awesome sign that tells us of Yeshua coming to set up His Kingdom very soon.
Messianic Judaism is a movement of Jews and Gentiles who worship Yeshua as their Messiah in the context of a Jewish lifestyle and who are committed to restoring the Hebraic or Jewish roots of the Christian faith, by worshiping the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Our vision is one of God's everlasting faithfulness to Israel and the Jewish people. As witnessed in the growth of Messianic Jews in the land of Israel and worldwide, God is indeed bringing more Jews to Himself and has a plan to make them part of the end time revival. There are currently well over 200 Messianic congregations in the United States, all located in major metropolitan centers, and an unknown number in Europe, about 70 known Messianic congregations in Israel and countless more fellowships. There are also many growing churches who have a heart for Israel and who are turning to the Hebraic roots of their faith for a better understanding the Almighty Creator 's overall plan for the ages.
The first formal group of Deaf believers, both Jews and Christians, first met in Flaunders, New Jersey in 1995 and it was there that the first organization was named Deaf Messianic Jews. The first conference was held at Gallaudet University in 1996, following by more conferences in Pennsylvania and Chicago. Out of this small group was born the fruit of this mission by one Deaf member. This website/blog not affiliated to the organization "Deaf Messianic Jews" but we continue the work the Lord called us to do, to encourage each other and to expand God's kingdom here on earth through the work of the Holy Spirit.
The reason we choose the name, Signs and Wonders, is because as a Deaf ministry, sign language is a wonderful gift from God. It is the native language we communicate with and it is also a sign from God, a blessing! Communication is about sharing and learning from each other! It is a play on words, "Sign language is a wonderful sign." This is the name we choose for our first Deaf Messianic Jews newsletter and was later adopted by the founder of this deaf ministry.
Yeshua is uniquely Jewish and practiced a form of Judaism as witnessed in the Brit Hadashah (New Testament/Covenant). He followed the commandments of His Father to observe all Appointed times, also called the Festivals of Leviticus 23. Although, many Jewish people have been persecuted for many hundreds of years and have rejected Yeshua as their Messiah, a small remnant still clung to their original faith. No doubt there were Deaf people during Yeshua's time as witnessed in a few passages of the Brit Hadashah but for the purpose of this ministry, our focus is only on those who have been part of the ACHARIT-HAYAMIM or "latter days" movement.
Deaf Jews who believe Yeshua as their Messiah and savior have been around since the beginning of Messianic synagogues, fellowships and conferences, as far back as the 1960's when the Messianic movement first grew in fervor among Jewish people. Deaf people in general have not been reached with the Gospel until the formal development of sign language in schools around 200 years ago. In review, we have two groups of people who previously have not been open to the Gospel, the Deaf and the Jews. That indeed is an awesome sign that tells us of Yeshua coming to set up His Kingdom very soon.
Messianic Judaism is a movement of Jews and Gentiles who worship Yeshua as their Messiah in the context of a Jewish lifestyle and who are committed to restoring the Hebraic or Jewish roots of the Christian faith, by worshiping the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Our vision is one of God's everlasting faithfulness to Israel and the Jewish people. As witnessed in the growth of Messianic Jews in the land of Israel and worldwide, God is indeed bringing more Jews to Himself and has a plan to make them part of the end time revival. There are currently well over 200 Messianic congregations in the United States, all located in major metropolitan centers, and an unknown number in Europe, about 70 known Messianic congregations in Israel and countless more fellowships. There are also many growing churches who have a heart for Israel and who are turning to the Hebraic roots of their faith for a better understanding the Almighty Creator 's overall plan for the ages.
The first formal group of Deaf believers, both Jews and Christians, first met in Flaunders, New Jersey in 1995 and it was there that the first organization was named Deaf Messianic Jews. The first conference was held at Gallaudet University in 1996, following by more conferences in Pennsylvania and Chicago. Out of this small group was born the fruit of this mission by one Deaf member. This website/blog not affiliated to the organization "Deaf Messianic Jews" but we continue the work the Lord called us to do, to encourage each other and to expand God's kingdom here on earth through the work of the Holy Spirit.
The reason we choose the name, Signs and Wonders, is because as a Deaf ministry, sign language is a wonderful gift from God. It is the native language we communicate with and it is also a sign from God, a blessing! Communication is about sharing and learning from each other! It is a play on words, "Sign language is a wonderful sign." This is the name we choose for our first Deaf Messianic Jews newsletter and was later adopted by the founder of this deaf ministry.
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