WHY IS LEARNING ABOUT MOSHIACH SO CRITICAL

“…we are living in a time of instability, whether economically, because of Israeli leadership, or world events. People are looking to hear a clear message. When they learn about Moshiach and the period of Geula, they find the stability they are looking for.”

The sight of a minyan of moshavniks sitting around a young man and heatedly discussing the meaning of the Rambam’s “compel all Israel,” would not be unusual if you knew R’ Meir Wilschansky and his work at Moshav Amuka. 

For several years now, R’ Meir Wilschansky, teacher and mashpia in the Chabad yeshiva in Tzfas, has been reaching out to Jews in the small moshav of Amuka, which is famous because it is near the burial place of the Tanna, Rabbi Yonasan ben Uziel. The highlight of his activities is definitely his shiur.

“The shiur is on Tanya and parsha, but it is always connected to Geula. Sometimes we learn a sicha of the Rebbe that connects the parsha to Geula and sometimes we simply learn an inyan in Geula directly from the Rambam or other s’farim.”

Aside from the shiur in Amuka, R’ Wilschansky is well known for his wonderful shiurim on inyanei Moshiach and Geula that he regularly gives among Anash and to others. We spoke to him about learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula, about hafatza among various types of people and about the impact of the learning on mekuravim.

Today, every shiur in Chassidus is slickly packaged as courses on psychology according to Kabbala. How do you just drop the topic of Moshiach and Geula on people’s heads?

First, those who market their shiurim in an interesting way can do the same thing for inyanei Moshiach and Geula. Second, and most importantly, from my experience I see that the topic of Moshiach and Geula is something that people are always interested in.

How do you explain this?

Simply. You see that it is something that attracts everyone, sometimes even more than parsha. It’s because people talk about it all the time, and not just in Chabad. There is no group or sector that does not believe and talk about Geula as something imminent. But many people don’t really know what Geula is and what it entails. People are very curious about it and this draws them to classes.

Furthermore, we are living in a time of instability, whether economically, because of Israeli leadership, or world events. People are looking to hear a clear message. When they learn about Moshiach and the period of Geula, they find the stability they are looking for.

Why is it important to learn these topics, why isn’t Tanya and parsha enough and if possible, some Gemara or halacha?

In general, the Rebbe talks about learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula in three places: Parshas Tazria-Metzora 5751, Balak 5751, and VaYeitzei – Yud-Tes Kislev 5752. If we examine these sichos we will see that each time the Rebbe speaks about another aspect of learning.

In Tazria-Metzora the Rebbe says that in order to merit the coming of Moshiach the most direct way and the easiest and quickest way of all the ways of Torah is by learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula. In other words, it’s a segula which hastens the Geula.

In Balak, the Rebbe does not mention learning as a segula to hasten the Geula but in order to live with Geula right now. We want to live in a Geula state now and in order to do this we need to learn a lot. The learning engenders a chayus and the ability to “live Moshiach.”

Then, in VaYeitzei, the Rebbe talks about a much higher level. The Rebbe says that the Geula is already a reality in the world and we just need to open our eyes in order to see it. How do we open our eyes? Through learning p’nimius ha’Torah and specifically, inyanei Moshiach and Geula. Learning p’nimius ha’Torah on the subject of Geula gets us to open our eyes.

It is interesting that in these three ways the Rebbe also provides us with direction in what to learn. In Tazria-Metzora, the Rebbe talks in general about learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula as they appear throughout Torah and especially in the maamarim and sichos of our Rebbeim.

In Balak, where the Rebbe talks about learning as a means to living Moshiach, the Rebbe emphasizes that the meditating upon inyanei Moshiach and Geula needs to be “in order to know and be aware that we are already standing at the entrance to the Yemos HaMoshiach … as in all the details that were said above.” This is about learning the Rebbe’s sichos of the last year in which the Rebbe talks about our time as the entranceway to Yemos HaMoshiach.

In VaYeitzei, the job is to open our eyes. So the Rebbe talks there about learning p’nimius ha’Torah, including learning inyanei Geula, the part of Torah that shows us the inner workings of things. This is in order to teach us to adopt a Geula perspective to reality which outwardly looks like galus but inwardly, we are already living Geula. 

Beyond the segula properties which you just mentioned, does learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula have an influence in drawing a person to avodas Hashem, to Torah and mitzvos?

I think that every shliach who works with mekuravim can say that there is a big difference between a mekurav who learns and one who doesn’t. A mekurav starts really changing only when he starts learning Torah. As long as the connection remains on the level of mivtzaim and doing mitzvos here and there, it stays on a makif level. When a person learns, the learning penetrates his understanding and it influences his way of thinking, his feelings, and ultimately his actions. Then it’s his. It comes from inside of him.

The same is true for inyanei Moshiach and Geula. We can talk about Moshiach, believe he needs to come any minute, and cry out slogans, but as the Rebbe said, it has no effect. It’s not that he does not believe. He is a big believer and he is even willing to be moser nefesh for this belief. But as it is explained in Chassidus about the emuna of the thief who prays even as he is about to steal, a Jew is willing to be moser nefesh for his emuna while in daily life it is not a sure thing that his emuna will be expressed. The same is true for the belief in Moshiach. We are big believers, but without learning the belief remains on the level of makif.

When a person learns inyanei Geula all that emuna permeates him. It becomes a part of him. He identifies with it. He understands it and can explain it to others. It enters him with a p’nimius. It also permeates his intellect, his emotions and from there straight to action.

I taught a group of Anash and at the end of the shiur some of them came over to me and said, “Now we understand for the first time what we are proclaiming, teaching and claiming all these years. It was as though until now we heard about it and now for the first time we see it. We see it in a structured way, firmly based on the sources in Chazal.”

There is another advantage in learning. Time passes and the yetzer ha’ra does its thing and often people say, for twenty years you’ve been telling us that he is coming today. Even a strong believer can get tired of this. But when you learn and see that it’s all firmly grounded, it is all written in s’farim in great detail, this knowledge helps you go on and strengthen the faith in the Besuras Ha’Geula.

Does learning inyanei Moshiach and Geula have to include the belief that the Rebbe is Moshiach?

I will divide my answer into two parts. As I mentioned, the Rebbe delineates three main levels in belief in the coming of Moshiach: to anticipate, to live and to see, i.e. to anticipate the Geula in a general way which includes demanding and requesting, living Geula, and seeing Geula.

In order to attain the first level of general anticipation of the Geula, it is enough to learn general things about Geula, but in order to attain the level of living it and more, seeing it, you need something tangible. You need to know and learn who Moshiach is.

Another point is that when we learn inyanei Moshiach with people in a comprehensive way, it often happens that they conclude who Moshiach is on their own. Even if they don’t, after they learn it is much easier to explain it. Those who try to publicize the identity of Moshiach without properly teaching the material set themselves up for a hard job. After someone learns it at length and in detail, he himself can conclude who it is. 

If I want to start a shiur on inyanei Moshiach and Geula, what would you recommend we learn?

It all depends on who the audience is and what level of learning they are on. There are people who need points of chizuk and emuna which can be done through sichos of 5751-2, and there are those with whom you can develop more complicated topics in the Rambam and Chazal. What’s important is giving as much background as you can and constructing the shiur in a structured way. People love hearing things built up, in one logical step after another.

It is relevant to everyone. Everyone can teach to the extent of his abilities and beyond that he can arrange a shiur, invite a rav or lecturer. I think that everyone, including talmidim in yeshivos, need to be involved with this. Everyone must learn these topics in depth. Even someone who thinks he’s an expert and knows it all can always broaden his knowledge and understanding.