Welcome to the Ami Yisrael Fellowship!

Ami Yisrael ("My people Israel") is a Torah pursuant Hebrew Roots fellowship, firmly grounded on the teachings and example of Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ).  Over 3500 years ago, God gave His Torah, instructions for a happy and meaningful life, to His people Israel, but over the years Israel added to, took from, and changed this beautiful set of instructions to where they became a burdensome set of regulations that, in many ways, separated God's people and became a yoke too hard to bear.

When Yeshua came on the scene, He set out to re-establish the proper application of Torah and re-define the Hebraic walk.  His students, the disciples, were commissioned to follow in His footsteps, teaching this walk to the thousands of Jewish and non-Jewish people who came to believe that Yeshua was indeed the long expected Jewish Messiah, the Savior of Israel.

Our desire is to continue in the task given to the disciples by studying and teaching about The Messiah from a first century Jewish perspective, the perspective from which the entire New Testament was written.  We do this via regular Sabbath worship services and Torah Studies as well as numerous seminars given by Torah based - Messiah centered teachers.  In addition, we host a number of celebrations throughout the year including the Biblical (Leviticus 23) festivals, traditional Jewish festivals (Hanukkah, Purim, etc.), and monthly New Moon celebrations.

Located in Gladewater, Texas,  Ami Yisrael is a non-affiliated fellowship. Our people come from all backgrounds and cultures.  Come join us in our somewhat "out of the box" Sabbath fellowship as we study to "grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Yeshua haMaschiac - Jesus The Messiah.

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Disagreeing Without Being Disagreeable -

Have you ever wondered why when you go to many churches today, some of the topics of discussion between members include things like politics, sports, recipes, the last school board meeting, etc.?  Probably one of the last things you'll hear discussed is . . . THE BIBLE!  Why?  Because people just don't want to "argue about the Bible" . . . and that's GOOD!  Arguing is simply not acceptable.  But should that keep us from having a healthy discussion of Biblical topics?  Certainly not! 

At the Ami Yisrael Fellowship, we have lively open discussions about various Biblical topics.  Our Torah Study session is a moderated interactive study where participants are able to bring up questions, offer opinions, and provide supporting evidence of their "take" on the scriptures being discussed.  After giving a teaching, speakers are required to take and answer topic-pertinent questions.  We believe that if a person speaks to the congregation, he must be willing to support his or her views.

How do we do it without arguing?  It's quite simple.  Our "statement of beliefs" is very concise, thus no one has to fit into our "theological box".  In addition, our discussions and Q&A sessions are conducted with this overlying rule - "be orderly, respectful of each other's opinion, and considerate of the speakers" . . . after all, the Torah teaches that "you shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Lev. 19:18).

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What is Hebrew Roots?

According to scripture, Abraham was a righteous man.  He was not Jewish and he was not Christian.  He was a Hebrew (Gen. 14:13).  The term " Hebrew " is rooted in the concept of crossing over.  Abram forsook the ways of his father and crossed over the Jordan River into a new life - a life of following the Creator of the Universe.  Nearly 400 years later, the Israelites left Egypt and eventually crossed over that same Jordan into the promised land to begin a new life as free men.  Though Abraham was neither Jewish nor Christian, both Judaism and Christianity are rooted in and are called to be a part of the covenant God made with this righteous man, Abraham the Hebrew.  Thus God calls Himself "the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 

Hebrew Roots is simply a recognition of that fact and an attempt to pattern one's life after the model God gave to the Hebrew people - especially the Hebrew of Hebrews, Messiah Yeshua.