Rabbi Jim Appel

Rabbi Jim has been a Jewish believer in Yeshua (Jesus) since 1977. He has served Congregation Shema Yisrael as Elder, Home Group Leader, Prayer Leader, Outreach Coordinator, Youth Group Leader, Special Events Coordinator and Head Usher. Rabbi Jim has been the full time Messianic Rabbi of Shema Yisrael since 1996. Prior to entering full time ministry Rabbi Jim worked for Xerox Corporation in Webster, NY for 24 years as an Optical Engineer and Engineering Manager. He holds more than 45 patents in the areas of copier imaging systems and laser printing. Rabbi Jim received a Bachelor's degree in Optical Engineering from the University of Rochester in 1967 and a Master's degree in Physics from the University of Southern California in 1970. He is ordained by the IAMCS (International Alliance of Messianic Congregations and Synagogues). Jim and his wife Diane live in Brighton and they have two grown children. Rabbi Jim's parents were atheists who taught him that God did not exist, and that organized religion deceived and oppressed people. He began his search for spiritual reality when he left his parents' home to go to college in 1963. His search took him into the world of mind-altering drugs and Yoga meditation. It ended with a dramatic encounter with the Messiah who revealed Himself to Jim in the privacy of his bedroom without the assistance of any other person. Rabbi Jim has published four books on deep spiritual meaning of the Moadim, or Jewish Holidays, which can be purchased online at www.figtreegiftbooks.com. They are Yom Teruah (The Day of Sounding the Shofar), Yom Kippor (The Day of Atonement), Pesakh (Passover) and Firstfruits/Resurrection Day Rabbi Jim has also been involved in several community efforts. He has served on the Leadership Team for the March for Jesus, the New York State Prayer Summit, the Day of Revolution, the Field of Miracles and as President of GRAE (Greater Rochester Association of Evangelicals).