Christian Training, Part I

There are a number of Christian colleges, seminaries and universities which have trained Messianic leaders. However, there are a few that stand out as being "Christian training hubs" for people who lead Messianic congregations. The Moody Bible Institute is one of the first and most involved Christian schools in the Messianic training process.

Dwight Moody, the founder of Moody Bible Institute, often talked about the importance of converting Jews. The Moody Bible Institute first started a program aimed specifically at training missionaries to evangelize Jews in 1923. Some of the funding for this program came from the Hebrew Christian Alliance of America (now called the Messianic Jewish Alliance of America). Moody continues to have a major in Jewish Studies, which includes ministry internships, designed for students who want to be missionaries to Jews and work in the Messianic movement.

On a historical level, a number of well-known missionaries to the Jewish people studied at the Moody Bible Institute. This includes Joseph Cohn, who led the American Board of Missions to the Jews (now called Chosen People Ministries) for thirty years, beginning in the 1920's.
Here are a few current Messianic leaders who have trained at Moody:

Larry Feldman of Beth Ariel Fellowship in California, a Evangelical Free Church of America congregation. Larry has also planted approximately half a dozen Messianic congregations through Chosen People Ministries. Moody graduate Jeff Gross is an elder at Beth Ariel.
David Brickner, the leader of Jews for Jesus and an ordained Baptist minister
David's uncle, Harold Brickner of Beth Messiah in Michigan
Steve Shermett of Beth Sar Shalom of Arizona, which is part of the Scottsdale Bible Church
Michael Campo of Christian Jew Foundation Ministries. He is a church planter of several Messianic congregations including Rock of Israel, a North American Baptist Conference congregation
Rob Styler of 2nd Adam, a ministry of the Christian Jew Foundation Ministries
Loren Jacobs of Congregation Shema Yisrael in Michigan
Dan and Arlene Rigney, non-Jewish missionaries for Ariel Ministries
Jeffrey Seif, an ordained Christian minister who runs Zola Levitt Ministries and it's Institute of Jewish-Christian Studies

It is clear that the impact of evangelical Christian schools such as the Moody Bible Institute have influenced and will continue to influence the direction of the Messianic movement.