[New post] “Masiach (The Messiah) in Jewish Thought”
Jonathan Caswell posted: " Mashiach (The Messiah) In Jewish Thought ON SEPTEMBER 6, 2023 BY MINDFUL MYSTIC (MM)IN MINDFUL MYSTIC, WILDERNESS WISDOM There is no one, single authoritative belief about redemption in Judaism. Throughout the generati" By the Mighty Mumford
There is no one, single authoritative belief about redemption in Judaism. Throughout the generations, Jewish philosophers have conceptualized the Mashiach (Moshiach in Yiddish) in different ways.
A number of messianic concepts developed during the later part of the Second Temple period. All derive from the abiding Jewish belief that with the correct kind of leadership, humankind will radically transform and experience paradise on earth.
Perhaps the Mashiach (Messiah) will be grass root collectives of everyday folks who are sick and tired of living in dominant and traditional "top-down" power structures that do not prioritize the human dignity and well-being of the people. Grass roots movements can transform societies with alternative models of governance and bottom-up, rather than top-down, decision-making. Will people uniting to create safe and sustainable communities be our Savior?
Orthodox streams of Judaism adhere to the classic view of the Messiah, while non-Orthodox streams of modern Judaism adopted the idea of a "Messianic Age" that will result from human activism in the Jewish tradition of Tikkun Olam (World Repair). The Sages defined Tikkun Olam as repairing the 'world' microcosmically at the points closest to us, then extending outward from there.
Various concepts of the Messiah in contemporary Judaism are outlined below:
Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz: "Yeshayahu Leibovitz explained, based on his read of the Rambam, that Moshiach is not a person or event, rather it is a process. We have made too many mistakes throughout history, thinking that the Messiah is a person or event."
Chabad (Hasidic): The conditions preceding the imminent arrival of the Mashiach are rampant insolence and impudence, oppressing inflation, impudent and irresponsible leadership, destitution, callousness, family-breakups, a dearth of scholars, abandonment of truth, evil decrees, hunger and famine, epidemics, poverty and scarcity, cursing and blaspheming, international conflicts and wars.
Described collectively as "the bottom of the pit" we can certainly see why many Jews and Christians believe the Mashiach is about to arrive.
On the flip side, positive signs of Mashiach's imminent arrival will be unity and increased acts of teshuva and interpersonal kindness within our Jewish world. Orthodox Jews believe we hasten Mashiach's arrival through the performance of mitzvot and amplified acts of kindness. Hasidism proposes there is a Tzadik Ha-Dor (Righteous of the Generation) born in each generation with the potential to become the Messiah if our mitzvot and acts of kindness warrant it.
Reform Judaism replaced the classic rabbinic vision of a personal Messiah with a "Messianic Age" that is brought about through human actions and activism, not a divinely sent messenger.
Conservative Judaism supports the stance that every Jewish person is free to interpret the classic concept of the Mashiach as literal or metaphorical, while upholding the core principle that every Jewish person is to live life as if he or she has the responsibility to bring about the messianic age.
Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz: "I would like to suggest that we are Moshiach—we are the ones we have been waiting for." I resonate with that, yet I cannot fully dismiss classic Jewish prophecy. Even within the classic belief, the traditional Jewish question is "What do you do if the Mashiach arrives while you're planting a tree? You keep on planting the tree." In other words, repair is still a team effort. The arrival of the Redeemer doesn't mean we cease doing our part.
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