Rabbi Chaim Urbach
Chaim Urbach was born and raised in Israel. His father, Eliezer Urbach, was a Holocaust survivor. His parents, both Polish Jews, came to know Yeshua early in his childhood. Under their influence, he met Yeshua in 1963 at a vacation Bible school in Jerusalem. The family emigrated to North America in 1964.
He studied at Oklahoma Baptist University (BS in 1975) and at the University of Northern Colorado (MA in Zoology, in 1979). After graduation, Chaim worked in clinical research labs, including three years at the National Jewish Hospital AIDS lab.
Over a period of years, he became more deeply involved in ministry. It began with a summer evangelistic outreach in Denver’s Jewish community in 1971, and serving as assistant camp director at Camp Sar Shalom. He taught and preached at Beth Sar Shalom Fellowship, the precursor to Congregation Roeh Israel (CRI). He was one of CRI’s founding elders in 1980, and served as the assistant pastor. In 1987, he was ordained there into messianic Jewish ministry. In 1988, he coordinated the UMJC national conference in Denver.
Chaim received an MA in Biblical Studies with a New Testament concentration from Denver Seminary in 1991 [Thesis: “Hebrews 9-10: A repudiation of the Cultus?”]. The previous year, he was ordained in a Conservative Baptist Church. Since then, he founded Congregation Yeshuat Tsion (1990), served as the vice president of the Fellowship of Messianic Congregations and taught extensively in messianic and Protestant congregational settings. He serves as an adjunct professor at Denver Seminary, teaching in the Messianic Judaism studies program.
Chaim Urbach is married to Joy (nee Goldwasser), is the father of Hope, and grandfather of Isaiah and Sarah.