Many people ask: The Tanna is telling us that we will eventually have to stand judgment in front of Hashem. The ultimate judgment will be in the times of Moshiach. If so, why should I want Moshiach?
Dear Readers sh’yichyu,
The Mishna tells us at the end of the fourth chapter of Pirkei Avos: “Those who are born will die, and the dead will live. The living will be judged, to learn, to teach and to comprehend that He is G-d, He is the former, He is the creator, He is the comprehender, He is the judge, He is the witness, He is the plaintiff, and He will judge. Blessed is He, for before Him there is no wrong, no forgetting, no favoritism, and no taking of bribes; know that everything is according to the reckoning. Let not your heart convince you that the grave is your escape; for against your will you are formed, against your will you are born, against your will you live, against your will you die, and against your will you are destined to give a judgment and accounting before the king, king of all kings, the Holy One, blessed be He.”
Many people ask: The Tanna is telling us that we will eventually have to stand judgment in front of Hashem. The ultimate judgment will be in the times of Moshiach. If so, why should I want Moshiach?
Regarding the day of judgment in the times of Moshiach we find various opinions:
1) Ramban (Seifer Hagmul) writes that there will indeed be a day of judgment.
2) Abarbanel (Mayanei Ha’yeshua 8:7) writes that there will not be a day of judgment in the days of Moshiach. (Abarbanel’s interpretation of the above-mentioned Mishna is beyond the purview of this article.)
3) Arizal (Nishmas Chaim 1:17) writes that the day of judgment will be only for non-Jews.
Parenthetically, the Frierdike Rebbe writes in Likkutei Dibburim that there will be a day of judgment for the Jewish people, but it will be a positive judgment. Hashem will judge – and excuse – all our sins! Seeing the tremendous pain the Jews experienced in exile, he will give the Jewish people the “benefit of the doubt” and excuse our sins.
I will share a story that I was a witness to:
When I was learning in Yeshivas Lubavitch Toronto, I gave the daily class in Inyanei Moshiach. One day, one of the local members of the Lubavitch community came in to speak with me. He told me that his daughter is learning in a non-Lubavitch girls’ school. That morning, the teacher had asked the class what they were looking forward to in their lives. Most girls answered something personal like a sibling’s wedding and the like, but his daughter answered that she was looking forward to the imminent arrival of Moshiach. Instead of being all impressed by the girl’s spiritual longing, the teacher began yelling at her! She said “Why do you want Moshiach to come? Don’t you know that there will be a big Judgment Day when Moshiach comes? Are you looking forward to being judged for your aveiros?”
The girl came home in tears. She told her father what the teacher had said, but the father did not have a response. When I showed him that the Rebbe writes (Igros Kodesh Vol. 2 p. 65) that the “Judgment Day” is only for non-Jews, he was very excited.
The point is clear: The more we are informed, the more we will anticipate the Geula. And the more we anticipate the Geula the quicker Moshiach will come. That is why the Rebbe says (Tazria-Metzora 5751) that learning about Moshiach is the “Direct Path” to bring Moshiach.