This week we didn't really have a chance to have class. Instead, we did some research on Mashiach. I think this a very interesting topic because of how many views and opinions and ideas there are concerning this mysterious time. I call it mysterious because no matter how great the Rabbi or how seemingly correct the logical the ideas might sound, we will never truly know what/who the Mashiach will be until he comes. Machiach is one of those things that only G-d holds the answers to. We can only hope that through our actions and beliefs, we can hasten the arrival. Especially right now considering the situation in Israel, we can only strive to work harder to bring the Mashiach as soon as possible.
We learned that the Mashiach will come from the descendants of Dovid HaMelech. He will be the greatest leader we have had yet, both in spirituality and politically. He will influence the people to follow G-d and his Mitzvot. He will cause the Jews to unite in Israel, as well as the exiled ones. He will also cause all the nations in the world to believe in G-d and realize that their previous beliefs were false. There will be world peace and wisdom and knowledge of G-d will be widespread. Kingship will be restored and the king will be even more famous and wiser than King Shlomo.
The people will be closer to G-d and will understand the difference between right and wrong. Free will be be transformed into a natural desire to do good. The Yetzer HaRa will be weakened and no one will have any desire to sin. All of this will cause all the Jews to merit Olam HaBa. The Messianic era is a bridge between the world and the world to come.
What this all means is that what most of the commentators and philosophers agree on is that the Messianic era will be a time of complete and utter perfection. There will be no more sin. Everyone will recognize G-d and there will be no obstacles or anything in the way to serving Him. The Beit Hamikdash will be rebuilt by the Mashiach and the nations that despise the Jews will be destroyed. The righteous and basically everyone, will be resurrected (how it's possible that we will all fit on this earth is another question). One idea I found fascinating was the idea that during this era the Jews will be moving up in ranks. There will incredible spiritual growth, no desire to do wrong, complete and widespread recognition and belief in G-d, and all will merit the world to come. We will continue to move up from the lowly, sin-inclined people we are today to the perfect, spiritual, moral beings G-d hoped to create from the beginning. This new generation of perfect beings along with the perfect world will bring the world to its final stage which Adam was meant to reach but could not due to the introduction of sin. This is the type of world G-d had always planned on. From the beginning, we learned last year that G-d had expected man to be moral and follow Him at all costs. Unfortunately, this did not work out as planned. There was the Dor HaMabul and the Dor HaFlagah and eventually He was forced to write out the Sheva Mitzvot Bnei Noach will spell out the moral code which He expects us to follow.
This idea of a perfect world is mesmerizing. A world in which there is only peace and no war is all we could ever hope for. In this world the Jews are not hated nor as they discriminated against or accused of having false beliefs. All the nations will finally see the truth and recognize G-d as the true leader and creator of our world. Earlier today a rocket hit right outside of Jerusalem. Yesterday the sirens were going off in Tel Aviv. We do not live in a safe or peaceful world right now which makes the idea of the arrival of Mashiach even more appealing. Today we have to pray for our people and our land. We have to hope that G-d will help us survive this war. Today we have to sit helplessly thousands of miles away as our brothers and sisters fear for their lives in our homeland. Hopefully tomorrow we will all live together in peace in Israel. Hopefully we can serve G-d and reach this perfect stage in life. We are not completely helpless. We can continue following the Mitzvot and treating each other correctly and hope that our actions will bring the Mashiach as soon as possible because right now we need all the help we can get.
I truly find it interesting to see Alyssa's perspective on Mashiach. I agree with her reflections about the current time and about the perfect world. Here's my view: the concept of Mashiach was first introduced to me when I was five. I loved the concept then but couldn't wrap my mind around how and when it would come. In true five-year-old fashion, I put all of my most prized possessions into bags which I tied to myself. That way, when Mashiach came, I would be prepared with all of the stuff that I cared about. That lasted about three hours. I finally decided that the stuff was too heavy to carry around all day so I left it all in my room. That was my ideal world: a place where I can be safe and happy with all of my material things and family. Obviously, my perception of the ideal world has changed quite a bit. Now, my focus has changed from what to do when Mashiach comes to what can I do that will hasten its coming. Only time and the actions of people will tell if the current generation merits Mashiach. We can and will keep trying to do good regardless. On another note, I see Mashiach as the world growing up. Just like me and my bags of stuff, the world has to realize what its priorities are and how the people are going to act. Once Mashiach is achieved, the world will have grown into its mature adult self which knows good from bad and only acts for good.
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