Jonathan Bernis is a Jewish Believer in Jesus who has been a leader in Messianic Jewish ministry for more than 30 years. He currently serves as President and CEO of Jewish Voice Ministries International (JVMI).
Jewish Voice exists to transform lives and see all Israel saved. Their mission is to proclaim the Gospel, grow the Messianic Jewish community, and engage the Church concerning Israel and the Jewish people.
Jonathan hosts JVMI’s syndicated television program, “Jewish Voice with Jonathan Bernis,” which airs on Christian networks and by satellite throughout the world. It is also available via live streaming on the internet.
Jewish Voice conducts humanitarian/medical outreaches to some of the most impoverished Jewish communities on Earth, including regular outreaches in Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, and other points of need around the world. Through these outreaches, JVMI has provided medical, dental and eye care that has restored eyesight and saved lives.
In the course of caring for hundreds of thousands of Jewish people and their neighbors, JVMI has been given the opportunity to share the Gospel message of the Messiah. As a result, dozens of Messianic congregations have formed. Through its Congregation and Leadership Development team, Jewish Voice comes alongside new believers and emerging leaders with discipleship, training and support.
JVMI ministers through large-scale international Festivals of Jewish Music & Dance throughout Eastern Europe, India, Africa, and South America. Millions more have participated through television broadcasts. Thousands have responded to the Gospel message, and more than a dozen new Messianic Jewish congregations arose in the former Soviet Union as a result of these outreaches.
Jonathan is founding Rabbi of Congregation Shema Yisrael in Rochester, New York, where he served as Senior Messianic Rabbi from 1984 to 1993. He also founded and pastored the Messianic Center of St. Petersburg, Russia, where he lived and ministered from 1993 to 1996. In 1998, Jonathan was called upon to take up the mantle of leadership for Jewish Voice Broadcasts, a ministry founded by Louis Kaplan. The ministry merged with Jonathan’s Hear O’ Israel Ministries to become Jewish Voice Ministries International.
As a Jewish Believer, Jonathan is passionate about fulfilling the call of sharing the Gospel with his Jewish brothers, knowing that there is salvation in no one else, and there is no other name under Heaven than the name of Jesus by which all men – Jew or Gentile – are saved (Acts 4:12).
In addition to the Phoenix headquarters, Jewish Voice has offices in 5 nations, including Israel, where JVMI staff works with more than 60 ministry partners.
Jonathan is the author of numerous books including A Lasting Peace, Unlocking the Prophetic Mysteries of Israel, and several titles in his best-selling Rabbi series (A Rabbi Looks at the Afterlife, A Rabbi Looks at the Last Days, A Rabbi Looks at Jesus of Nazareth, and more).
Jonathan and his wife, Elisangela, live in Phoenix, Arizona, with their two daughters.
