Jewish Beliefs: The Messiah Overview What this section covers: Meaning & Origin Concept Role of Elijah Characteristics of the Messiah Characteristics and importance of the Messianic Age Common and Divergent views 1
Meaning & Origin The meaning of the word משיח - Mashiach - or the anglicised term Messiah, literally means anointed. The word itself only occurs 11 times in the whole of Tenach. It originally referred to the method of anointing a Jewish king that is a ceremony that involved anointing the king with oil. The Kohen Gadol, and sometimes prophets too, were also anointed when they took office. Aprt from these uses, the term Mashiach now refers specifically to a future leader of the Jewish People who will bring far-reaching positive changes to the world. Concept It should be noted that the concept of the Messiah as we know it today has grown over time. Originally there was no such concept widespread in Jewish ideals. Instead, originally, the Jewish ideal was to serve G-d with four different elements involved - the Torah, in the Land of Israel, with a king and a Temple. This ideal should have been realised in the times of Moshe, but it did not happen. Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik a 20 th century Rabbinic scholar explains that the people, through their complaining and lack of faith/belief, were not worthy of Moshe becoming the Messiah. This gives us an important insight, namely that the Messiah is not just dependent on there being a person capable of such leadership, but also that the people themselves need to be worthy of having such a leader. Eventually, the Jewish People did have the four elements. From the time of Moshe through to the reign of King Solomon a timespan of around 350 years the Jewish People received the Torah (under Moshe s leadership), conquered the Land of Israel (under Joshua s leadership), established a monarchy (first through King Saul and followed by King David), and built a temple in Jerusalem the capital (under King Solomon s rule). At this point, there was no need for the concept of a Messiah as we know it as all the conditions for a complete and proper serving of G-d were in place. The idea of the Messiah as we know it began when the Jewish People started to lose three of the four elements over a timespan of around 600 years. The Temples were destroyed. They were exiled from the Land of Israel, and the monarchy was stopped. The only thing that remained was the Torah. Repeatedly, prophets warned the people of the imminent destruction of the Temple if they did not keep the Torah. These prophecies are recorded in the Tenach. But even as they warned of a destruction, they also said that G-d would not completely forget and destroy the Jewish People, and that there would be a time in the future when He will 2
remember them and console them. It is in these verses that the concept of the Messiah is based. Many of these prophets, such as Isaiah and Jeremiah, talked of a futuristic time when the world would be filled with the knowledge of G-d, and things such as war and conflict would cease to exist. Behold, days are coming, says the L-rd when no person need to teach another saying, Know the L-rd, for they will all know Me (Jeremiah 31) And nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore (Isaiah 2:4) Since these prophecies have not yet come to pass, and since G-d s prophecies are to be considered eternal, Jews believe that these prophecies are about a time yet to arrive a time that is known as the Messianic era. The role of Elijah Elijah the Prophet (known as Eliyahu Hanavi in Hebrew), has a special place in the Messianic beliefs. Elijah, whose life can be found recorded in the second Book of Kings, ended his life by ascending to Heaven in a fiery chariot. For this reason, mystically, it is believed that Elijah did not die and that, in fact, his presence at times can still be found on earth spiritually, if not sometimes physically. Accordingly, Elijah is the prophet for whom a fifth cup is poured at the seder every Pesach, and who, it is believed, spiritually visits every seder. At every Brit Milah, there is a special chair set aside for Elijah who, it is believed, spiritually visits every Brit Milah ceremony. At the conclusion of Shabbat, the end of the Havdalah service includes words sung about Elijah hoping that he will arrive, speedily, in our days along with the Messiah, son of David, to redeem us. Many interpretations of the Messianic age believe that Elijah will precede the Messiah, announcing the Messiah s arrival. Characteristics of the Messiah In Rabbinic writings, there are various characteristics specified that will prove the Messiah to be true (these, incidentally, are why Jews do not believe that Jesus was the Messiah, since he did not fulfil these characteristics). Maimonides sets out what these characteristics are: The Messiah will be a male descendent of King David 3
He will gain Jewish sovereignty over the Land of Israel He will lead the Jewish People back to Israel He will lead the Jewish People back to observance of the Torah He will lead the world into recognising the sovereignty of G-d and into an era of world peace Importance, and characteristics of, the Messianic Age Whatever the origins of the Messianic belief, for Orthodox Jews for the past 2000 years, the belief in the Messiah is a fundamental one. Maimonides, the 12 th Century Rabbi, scholar and physician, wrote that the 12 th of his 13 Principles of Faith is the full belief in the arrival of the Messiah and the Messianic age. Since the Messiah and Messianic age has not yet come about, no-one can say with certainty about what the Messianic age will look like. In fact, Rabbis have consistently avoided going into too much detail, including banning any attempt to force the Messiah s arrival before his allotted time (Babylonian Talmud) because they say the Torah is mostly concerned with how people live their day-to-day life, rather than delving into the mysteries of the Messianic age. Throughout the ages, the importance of the belief in the Messianic age has been expressed in many ways. Some of them include: Rabbi Israel Meir Kagan 1839 1933 (known as the Chafetz Chaim) was believed to have had a suitcase packed by the door of his house so that he could without delay when the Messiah arrived. Other rabbis used to write on invitations to celebrations they were making e.g. weddings that the wedding will be in Jerusalem unless the Messiah has not arrived, in which case it will be somewhere else In the weekday Amidah, there are blessings asking G-d to rebuild Jerusalem and reestablish the throne of King David At the end of weddings, and on weekdays before Grace after meals, a psalm is read or sung that expresses the Jewish yearning for a rebuilt Jerusalem, without which we cannot express full joy Outside the United Nations building in New York, a quotation from Isaiah, referring to the Messianic era, is inscribed. It reads, They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2) 4
The characteristics of the Messianic age are similar to what will mark out an individual as being the Messiah, namely: The Jewish People will return to live in Israel The Temple will be rebuilt in Jerusalem The entire world will acknowledge the sovereignty of G-d Jealousy, war and hatred will cease to exist and all peoples will live in peace The resurrection of the dead will take place Common & Divergent views of the Messiah Since the Messianic age has not yet come to pass, the views on what it will be like are divergent. Personal Messiah vs Messianic era There is a difference of opinion as to whether the Messiah will be personal or an era. Most authorities are of the opinion that the Messiah will be personal i.e. a human being who will lead the Jewish People and the world into a new age. However, there are some authorities that hold that the Messiah could be G-d Himself, or that it won t be any one individual, but rather an era i.e. a time when the conditions of the Messianic era will take place. Orthodox vs Non-Orthodox The Orthodox view is mainly the traditional view as mentioned above i.e. that the Messianic era will involve a far-reaching shift in world conditions, including geographical changes (Jews living in Israel) and sociological changes (world peace). All Orthodox sects will believe in the Messiah and the Messianic era. Perhaps the most well-known Orthodox sect connected with the Messiah is Lubavitch. It is perhaps their most central theme that every mitzvah that is performed helps to bring the Messiah closer. Many Lubavitch followers actually believed (and some still believe) that the last Lubavitcher Rebbe was the Messiah (see false Messiahs below). Non-Orthodox sects have a different theology behind the Messiah. By and large, they reject the concept that the Temple will be rebuilt, and hold that the conditions that the Jewish People had thousands of years ago will not be repeated (for this reason, non- Orthodox prayers will not include prayer rituals connected to the Temple e.g. stating the sacrificial orders). They also do not believe that all the Jewish People will go to live in Israel in the Messianic era. 5
Instead, non-orthodox sects tend to focus on the Tikkun Olam (fixing the world) aspect of the Messiah. For many non-orthodox communities, the idea of the Messiah means Jews and non-jews peacefully co-existing in a world free from conflict. For this reason, many non-orthodox communities are heavily involved in social action groups. Non- Orthodox communities may maintain that the fact that Jews now have full civil rights set in law in most, if not all, Christian countries something that has never happened before in history is proof that mankind is moving towards this more peaceful coexistence. False messiahs Throughout history there have been a number of false Messiahs. A false Messiah is someone who claims, or whose followers claim, that he is the Messiah, but he does not fulfil the conditions as set out by Maimonides. In Jewish history there are three more well-known examples of false Messiahs: 1. Shimon Bar Kochba Bar Kochba lived at a time when the destruction of the second Temple was still fresh in memories, and indeed there would have been people alive who remembered the Temple still standing. He led a revolt against the Romans between the years around 132 135 CE, about 65 years after the destruction of the Temple. He was successful for a while, and was able to temporarily push the Romans out of Israel and set up a Jewish state. One of the greatest sages of the time Rabbi Akiva hailed him as the Messiah, ascribing a verse in Bamidbar 24, "There shall come forth a star (kochav) out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite through the corners of Moab." However, he was defeated when the Romans fought back, and killed in battle. 2. Shabbetai Tzvi Shabbetai Tzvi was born on 9 Av (Tisha B Av the saddest day in the Jewish calendar when the destruction of both Temples is mourned. It is believed that the Messiah will be born on this day, as a symbol of overturning the destructions) in Turkey. He was ordained as a Chacham a member of the Rabbinic elite when he was only a teenager. He began to study Kabbalah Jewish mysticism during which he became convinced that he was the Messiah. Initially his claims were met with indignation. He was banished from his hometown and spent time travelling through Turkey and Greece, and eventually into Egypt. However, a turning point came when he met a man called Nathan of Gaza a self-proclaimed prophet. Nathan declared that Shabbetai Tzvi was the Messiah and a Messianic fever 6
swept the Middle Eastern communities (note that this came around the time of Cossack massacres of Jews in Ukraine and desiring the Messiah is always more publicly pronounced during times of crisis. See also Bar Kochba). Shabbetai Tzvi returned to Turkey where he was imprisoned, and he eventually converted to Islam. Even this conversion was seen by his followers as a sign of his being the Messiah as many believed that he would unite the Jewish and Muslim world. 3. Lubavitcher Rebbe The last Lubavitcher Rebbe was the seventh, and final, Rebbe in the Lubavitch dynasty. Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson took over the leadership of the Lubavitch sect in 1951. During his 45 years as leader, until his death, he built the Lubavitch outreach movement into a worldwide force. The Rebbe, who spoke several languages including Yiddish, English, Hebrew, French, Russian and German, was renowned for his personal scholarship, piety and knowledge. In his pre-world War 2 years he studied mechanics, electrical engineering, mathematics, physics and philosophy at university level in Berlin and Paris, before he emigrated to the United States in 1941. He was regularly visited by influential figures both Jewish and non-jewish as well as having short meetings with ordinary people from all over the world. Although he himself did not claim to be the Messiah, many of his followers did. In his later years, especially after he suffered a stroke, it became a matter of opinion as to whether he continued to deny claims that he was the Messiah. Even after his death, some followers remain convinced that he is the Messiah, and that he will return to lead the world into the Messianic era. 7