Expert: Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner - 5/9/2004

Question
B"H!
Dear Rabbi Dov!
Shalom Aleichem!

You wrote in your post that confronted the "Jesus as Messiah" idea:

"The Hebrew Bible according to Jewish interpretation was describing a national savior who would arrive in the time of the Bible at the time of the exile to Babylon and restore the nation of Israel with a capital at Jerusalem."

Does this therefore mean that no Messiah is going to come? Because we no longer live in that age?

B'ahavah!
Andrew Clarke


Answer
Dear Andrew,

Thanks for writing.

While the idea of a messianic figure began as I described it, following the destruction of the Second Temple the concept took on new emphasis.

Consider the following from the Encyclopedia Judaica - available in every library:

"MESSIAH, an anglicization of the Latin Messias, which is borrowed from the Greek Messiaj, an adaptation of the Aramaic meshiha (Aram. aHyQm), a translation of the Hebrew (ha-melekh) ha-mashi'ah (Heb. HyQFh [KlFh]), "the Anointed [King]"; a charismatically endowed descendant of David who the Jews of the Roman period believed would be raised up by God to break the yoke of the heathen and to reign over a restored kingdom of Israel to which all the Jews of the Exile would return. This is a strictly postbiblical concept. Even Haggai and Zechariah, who expected the Davidic kingdom to be renewed with a specific individual, Zerubbabel, at its head, thought of him only as a feature of the new age, not as the author or even agent of its establishment...."

Thereafter, the idea of a "Messiah" took on a broader and more pressing meaning in the Second Temple period, dreaming of freedom from Roman occupation - especially after the defeat of Bar Kokhba in 135 CE. Then the messianic idea was "spiritualized" into the messianic ideal that appears in various Rabbinic interpretations, liturgy and literature.

"The Messiah was expected to attain for Israel the idyllic blessings of the prophets; he was to defeat the enemies of Israel, restore the people to the Land, reconcile them with God, and introduce a period of spiritual and physical bliss. He was to be prophet, warrior, judge, king, and teacher of Torah."

I, for one, agree with the interpretation of "messiah" that we no longer await one particular person, but rather an ideal age for humanity and a just social order. It is to be achieved by our human efforts, application of our human skills and talents applied to creating such a society for all. It is a motivating dream and aspiration, not a religious ideal for which we only pray and hope.

Please note that under no circumstances does any Rabbi or Jewish movement or philosophy accept Jesus, such as those who call themselves "messianic Jews." These people are Christians, for as soon as Jesus is introduced, then they have crossed over from Judaism to Christianity, no matter how they wish to believe that they are still Jews. My only concern with this group - whom I call "Hebrew Christians" - and their interpretation is that they deliberately attempt to mislead uninformed Jews into their Christian beliefs.

You are free, however, to find and accept any Jewish messianic ideal.

I'd urge you to seek out and read responsible literature on the range of authentic Jewish ideas.

"There Is No Messiah and You're It: The Stunning Transformation of Judaism's Most Provocative Idea" by Robert N. Levine - a Reform and modern approach

"The Messianic Idea in Judaism : And Other Essays on Jewish Spirituality" by Gershom Scholem

Best wishes

Rabbi Dov