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10 The Chosen People | JULY 2019
Sevener writes, “One thing is certain—God never intended
for the Mission founded by Rabbi Leopold Cohn to cease in
its tireless efforts to bring the gospel to the Jewish people. The
work begun by the fearless rabbi, and expanded by his determined
son, has continued to be blessed of God so that now, one
hundred twenty-five years after its founding, it is still a vibrant
testimony reaching Jews everywhere with the gospel.”
After Joseph Cohn: 1953—1990
The second half of the 20th century saw the Mission
expanded into many cities and new programs started. The
Mission began to reach Jewish people through media. In
1964, the Mission opened an evangelism booth at the New
York World’s Fair. During the turbulent years of the 1960s
and early 1970s, the Mission stayed attuned to the times
and the shifts in the Jewish community and reached Jewish
young people through new and creative ways.
A branch was opened in San Francisco, which was a mecca
for countercultural hippies, many of them nice Jewish boys
and girls from the East Coast. These young people often
came from traditional Jewish homes, and some of them
were even children of Holocaust survivors. They grew up
with an active memory of the “old country” of their parents
and grandparents, yet wanted to explore the new ways of
thinking and believing that the current times offered.
There was also a Brooklyn Branch and a Chicago Branch,
which still reach the Jewish people today.
Some memorable moments from these years include mentions
from Time magazine and The New York Times in 1971,
and in 1986 President Harold Sevener presented thousands
of signed petitions in support of Israel and the Jewish people
to the Prime Minister of Israel at a special meeting of the
Knesset. The Lord was certainly at work!