Joseph Hoffman Cohn
In 1911, Leopold’s second eldest son, Joseph Hoffman Cohn, came to work alongside him in
the ministry. Joseph’s head for business and administration brought his father’s vision into
the next generation, and together they began to start international branches. During the
turbulent pre-war years of the 1930s, Joseph was instrumental in rescuing Jewish families out
of Nazi Germany and providing benevolence to Jewish refugees fleeing Europe. The work of
the Mission continued to provide aid to Holocaust survivors after the war was over.
Leadership through the Years
In 1937, Rabbi Cohn passed away, and Joseph was appointed the General Secretary of the
Mission until his passing in 1953. Joseph was trained by his father to understand the Scriptures
in Hebrew and Yiddish, and as he grew, he became an excellent communicator in both written
and verbal communication. Joseph was also a deeply practical man, and believed that sound
business principles could and should be applied to the Mission’s work. Joseph’s philosophy and
direction enlarged the vision of his father and directed the course of the Mission’s future.
In his history of Chosen People Ministries, A Rabbi’s Vision, Harold Sevener writes,
“Rabbi Leopold Cohn was a visionary, a scholar, and a missionary. While Joseph shared his
father’s vision, he also had a keen sense of organization, of promotion, and of business.”
It was under Joseph’s leadership that Chosen People Ministries started an endowment fund to
stabilize its finances and also expand the work of the Mission through its monthly publication,
which at that time was called The Shepherd of Israel.
After Joseph Cohn passed away in 1953, Mr. Harold Pretlove assumed the title of Executive
Secretary. Two years later, in 1955, the Mission changed its leadership style, being led coequally
between three people: Emil Gruen, the Conference Director; Daniel Fuchs, the
Dr. Charles Lee Feinberg (left), a Jewish scholar who came to faith through the Mission, was the
Jewish Studies in Brooklyn is named after him.
The Chosen People | JULY 2019 9
Director of Missionary Activity; and Harold Pretlove, the Executive Secretary.