What & WHY?

“היסוד השנים עשר – ימות המשיח,
והוא להאמין ולאמת שיבוא ולא יחשוב שיתאחר”

הקדמת הרמב”ם לפרק חלק

1

Every letter of the Torah is central to Judaism, but there are some basic beliefs that are so fundamental that one who rejects them is considered to have rejected Judaism, even if he accepts everything else in the Torah. For example, one who accepts all the mitzvos, Halachos, and practices of Judaism but does not consider them to be of Divine origin does not believe in Judaism. 

There are thirteen such principles of faith as codified by the Rambam. (While this specific enumeration was originally a topic of debate, they ultimately came to be accepted by all Jewish circles.) The twelfth one is the belief in the coming of Moshiach. One who believes in G-d and in the Torah but does not accept that Moshiach will come, in essence denies all of Judaism, even if he is a fully observant Jew.

Why indeed is Moshiach so central to Judaism?

Moshiach is the Purpose of Creation

“אמר ר’ יוחנן: לא איברי עלמא אלא למשיח”
סנהדרין צח, ב

2

“Rabbi Yochanan said: ‘The world was created solely for Moshiach.’” That is to say, G-d had a purpose in creating the world; the era of Moshiach will represent the fulfillment of that purpose. And Torah and mitzvos are the tools by which that purpose is achieved.

Moshiach is a Topic in Torah

3

The Jewish people have always been “obsessed” with Moshiach—it has been their national dream and their hope. As is the way with dreams and hopes, many of the facts about Moshiach have become mingled with rich and marvelous folklore. To distinguish between fact and fiction, the stories and traditions must be carefully examined in the light of Torah sources.

Much of the Torah’s discussions about Moshiach are to be found in aggados and Midrashim. Midrashic literature is often cryptic and metaphorical, and one Midrash may even appear to contradict a second Midrash. As such, a clear picture of the concept of Moshiach will not emerge from an analysis of midrashic sources.

For the most part, this is not problematic, for the lack of clarity on most aspects of this subject did not trouble our Torah authorities. Indeed, the Rambam goes so far as to say that many details concerning the coming of Moshiach cannot be known until they happen, and one should not delve into them.

Moshiach has a Halachically Defined Role

“וראיתי לחלק חבור זה הלכות – הלכות בכל ענין וענין”
הקדמת הרמב”ם למשנה תורה

4

There are specific aspects of Moshiach’s coming that are indeed very important for us to know clearly, so that we will know how to respond when these events come to pass in the period before and during Moshiach’s arrival.

Indeed, there are Halachos about Moshiach that are clarified by the Poskim (primarily the Rambam, who wrote two entire halachic chapters on Moshiach in his Mishneh Torah).

In general, the Halachos of Moshiach concern the following issues:

1.        The belief in Moshiach;

2.        The order of the events surrounding his revelation, and

3.        The identity of Moshiach.

All these are based on a halachic definition of Moshiach.

o HOW? p

We Must Await Him

“וכל מי שאינו מאמין בו או שאינו מחכה לביאתו, לא בשאר נביאים בלבד הוא כופר  אלא בתורה ובמשה רבינו”
משנה תורה, הלכות מלכים פי”א ה”א

5

One of the halachos concerning Moshiach is that we must not only believe that he will come someday, but we must await and anticipate him. When we understand the halachic criteria of Moshiach, we will appreciate why we must await him, and why we must take an active role in hastening his coming.

We Must Daven for and Demand Moshiach

“אל תתנו דמי לו עד אשר יכונן ועד אשר ישים את ירושלים תהלה בארץ”
ישעי’ סב, ז

6

There is a common misconception that we mustn’t “push” G-d to bring Moshiach—G-d will bring Moshiach when He so chooses and we are not to interfere! This error stems from a lack of knowledge concerning what Moshiach is all about and why his coming is so important. When one knows what Moshiach is about, however, he appreciates how much he needs Moshiach—from a physical and spiritual perspective. And given that it is a mitzvah mi’deoraisa (a biblically ordained commandment) to ask G-d for one’s needs, such a person cannot but beg G-d to bring him immediately.

The prayers established by the Anshei Knesses Hagedolah are an outstanding illustration of the need for Moshiach: no less than five of the 19 blessings of the daily Amidah prayer are dedicated exclusively to implore G-d to bring Moshiach immediately!

Our Actions Create the Geulah

“תכלית השלימות הזה של ימות המשיח . .
תלוי במעשינו ועבודתינו בכל זמן משך הגלות”
תניא פרק ל”ו

7

Not only must we implore G-d to bring Moshiach, we must take action to hasten his arrival. Our sages compare the Geulah to Shabbos and say that “he who has toiled before Shabbos will eat on Shabbos.” In other words, our Avodas Hashem (Divine service) in Galus is what creates the environment for Moshiach. This is because the era of Moshiach will be characterized by G-dly revelation within the physical reality, and it is the mitzvos we perform with physical objects in the current—pre-Moshiach—era, that create that Divine revelation.

In this context, it is noteworthy that certain activities are especially conducive to hastening the Geulah, for various reasons given by Chazal and by Gedolei Yisrael throughout the generations. Some examples include giving tzedaka, observing Shabbos, refraining from talking lashon harah, reciting Kiddush Levanah, studying pnimiyus haTorah (Kabbalah and Chassidus) and most of all, studying about Moshiach.

Our Avodas Hashem in Galus is what creates the environment for Moshiach, for when Moshiach comes, G-d’s oneness will be evident to all, and using physical objects—of this material world—for mitzvos, does exactly that: showing how this object isn’t independent of G-d, rather totally dependent on Him by becoming subservient to Him through serving as a means to fulfill His Will, thus becoming a hallowed object.

o WHEN? p

(1) Moshiach Could Come Any Moment 

“אחכה לו בכל יום שיבוא”
נוסח “אני מאמין”

8

Faith in the coming of Moshiach entails believing that he can arrive at any moment. Nevertheless, history is divisible into three general periods with regard to this belief:

When Moshiach was not expected to arrive;

When Moshiach’s arrival is to be anticipated; and

A time period during which Moshiach must arrive.

Torah sources (R’ Yitzchak Abarbanel in Yeshuos Meshicho p. 18; see Rashi and Maharsha on Sanhedrin 97a) describe the latter as the seventh millennium, corresponding to Shabbos, the seventh day of creation. At present, of course, we find ourselves in the sixth millennium — Erev Shabbos— when according to Halacha we may usher in Shabbos.

(2) Opportune Times for the Geulah – (Kitzin)

“אמר רב: כלו כל הקיצין
ואין הדבר תלוי אלא בתשובה”
סנהדרין צז, ב

We find throughout Torah literature various time periods in which Moshiach could have come: yetzias Mitrzayim and matan Torah, the Chizkiyahu-Sancheriv crisis, and so on. We also find among the talmudic sages—and later among the Geonim, Rishonim, and Acharonim many who calculated and predicted kitzin—auspicious times for Moshiach to arrive. These kitzin served to strengthen the people’s anticipation of Moshiach, and indeed, many Moshiach-related events—some positive, others not so positive—happened at these times. [These kitzin do not fall under the category of ketz-calculating  that the sages greatly discouraged for various reasons, as we will discuss in further issues.] These kitzin may be likened to the stages of labor a woman experiences when giving birth; they are evidence that a baby is on the way, but the exact time of arrival remains unknown.

There are Signs that Indicate Moshiach is Near

“בעקבתא דמשיחא חוצפא יסגא וכו’”
סוטה מט, ב

9

The Gemara gives various signs that will serve as a prelude to Moshiach’s arrival. Most of these indicators describe periods of great physical and spiritual crises on the part of the Jewish people. Recent and present-day Gedolei Yisrael of all the various kehilos agree that these signs have come to pass and it is therefore a certainty that Moshiach’s arrival is imminent.

Many more signs appear in various Midrashim which seem similar to world events transpiring lately. However, since, as stated above, the Midrashim don’t always convey a clear and detailed picture, it is only Gedolei Yisrael of the highest caliber who can associate these events with those mentioned in the writings of the prophets and Midrashim. 

o WHO? p

Moshiach is a Person

“ויצא חוטר מגזע ישי…” 
ישעי’ יא, א

10

Moshiach is not only an era, but also a person. As mentioned above, the Rambam devotes two chapters of his Mishneh Torah to the Halachos pertaining to Moshiach. Following are some pointers about Moshiach distilled from these Halachos:

Moshiach is a human being of flesh and blood; not a deity or an angel.

Moshiach’s role is to redeem the Jewish people from exile.

Moshiach is a Jewish king and his kingship is a restoration of Malchus Beis Dovid (the monarchy of the davidic dynesty), which is a representation of G-d’s Kingship in the world.

A Jewish king must be a great tzaddik , sage and great leader who strengthens observance of Torah and mitzvos among the Jewish people. He must also fight the wars of G-d—i.e. he must fight against the physical and spiritual enemies of the Jewish people.

There is a Moshiach in Every Generation

“בכל דור נולד אחד מזרע יהודה
הראוי להיות משיח לישראל”
פירוש הר’ עובדי’ מברטנורא על מגילת רות

11

Since Moshiach can come at any moment, there must always be a potential Moshiach among us—that is, a tzaddik from Beis Dovid, who, when the moment arrives, will assume the role of Moshiach and bring the Geulah. Indeed, over the course of the generations, we find many tzaddikim whose disciples considered them to be this potential Moshiach.

There is an Order of Events Surrounding Moshiach’s Arrival

“המלך המשיח עתיד לעמוד
ולהחזיר מלכות דוד לישנה וכו’”  
משנה תורה להרמב”ם הל’ מלכים פי”א ה”א

12

The process of Redemption may unfold in a natural manner; if it does, the following is the sequence of events relating to Moshiach’s appearance:

The potential Moshiach arises as a great Jewish leader.

He influences Jews of all levels of observance to strengthen their commitment to Torah and mitzvos.

He fights for the physical and spiritual welfare of the Jewish people.

At this stage, he is presumed to be Moshiach (“b’chezkas Moshiach”).

He is successful in the above endeavors, and subsequently rebuilds the Beis HaMikdash and gathers all Jews to Eretz Yisrael.

At this stage, we know without a doubt that he is Moshiach (“Moshiach b’vadai.”)

He will then focus his attention and influence on the entire world, to bring all of its inhabitants to serve G-d in unity, thus creating true world peace. ■

Principles Magazine features content based on the teachings of the Rebbe, with an emphasis in Moshiach matters, developed in a style that frum Jews with little or no background in Chassidus can appreciate. Archives can be viewed at PrinciplesMagazine.com.