Soon and Very Soon - Moshiach!

It's not as if we're completely in the dark. The Jewish nation actually knows quite a bit about what's coming up. That's why the Jews are always optimistic in spite of our challenges.

The 14 Essential Elements of Future Days

Don Isaac Ben Judah Abarbanel (1437-1508) was a Jewish statesmen and scholar. He lived during the idyllic age of Spanish Jewry before the exile of 1492 (Spanish Inquisition). By his late twenties, The Abarbanel — a descenant of King David — was recognized as a learned and prominent member of Lisbon's Jewish community, having written books on various facets of Jewish philosophy. He also wrote a commentary on the Haggadah and three books on the subject of the Messiah.

One of his works, Mashmia Yeshuah contains a list of 14 "essential elements" of the future "redemption" (see sidebar --> ) of the Jewish nation gleaned from the Prophets.. And now, here are the 14 Essential Elements that will happen as we move closer to the days when God and the Jewish people become one again.

The 14 Essential Elements of the Jewish Redemption

WHAT WAS SAID?

BY WHOM?

1

GOD WILL TAKE REVENGE UPON THE IDOLATERS. What is an "Idolator"? Back in Bible-days there were people who used statues of wood or metal as the focus for occult practices. They were not stupid people — they were evil people. They were learned in methods of using forces of Touma (impurity). God put forces of Touma in the world as tests/temptations for people to reject them. So, these idolaters decided it was more beneficial for them to use these forces for whatever pleasure or protection the forces of Touma provided. But this is forbidden to the Jews. We look to God only for all of our needs. And God instructs us to be ever-mindful that He alone determines every aspect of existence. Does idol worship exist today? It has been suggested that money and materialism is almost like idol worship, when a person stops praying to God for his life's needs and instead puts his efforts in acquiring wealth and possesions to solidify his standing. God wants us to depend on Him for our security and to amplify our God connection through prayer, Jewish studies, acts of kindness and all the mitzvot we can do.

So prophesied almost all of the prophets — there were 48 of them!

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2

THE REVENGE AGAINST EDOM WILL BE GREATER THAN THE OTHER NATIONS and there will be no remnant of the house of Esau (Edom): Ovadyah 1:18. There are (were) 4 great empires or world cultures; Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. Babylon was destroyed, Persia was taken over and vanished, and Greece was assimilated into Rome. That leaves us today with many world cultures of Roman origin and with Roman "values" that place 'outer-form' over 'inner-content' But the Torah commands Jews to place special emphasis on developing rich inner-lives and deep connections to God. So now we can understand why the idealism of the Jewish people conflicts with "Western Culture". These cultures are destined for an attitude change when God reveals his desires to the world.

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yoel, Amos, Ovadyah, Michah & Chavkkuk

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3

THE JEWISH PEOPLE WILL BE REDEEMED and return from their exile. From the time of the destruction of the 2nd Temple, around the year 70 CE (3828 years from Creation) the Jewish people were scattered ("exiled") to the four corners of the globe, settling in widely dispersed places. This was all in God's plan, in part so that His people could be a positive influence on all of humanity. When the time arrives we'll all be gathered back to Jerusalem for the next era in world history.

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yirmiah, Yechezkel, Hoshea, Yoel, Amos, Ovadyah, Michah, Chavkkuk, Tzefanyah, Chaggai, Zecharyah, & Malachi

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4

THE TEN LOST TRIBES OF ISRAEL WILL BE RETURNED from their exile. After the death of King Solomon, Israel is split into two countries Israel in the north, and Judea in the south. The 10 tribes that lived in the north countries are eventually carried into exile by the Assyrians (more than 2,700 years, 8th century B.C.E.), and scattered into Irag, Persia and Afganastan. They assimilated into other cultures and were lost. At the end of days they will return.

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yirmiah, Yechezkel, Hoshea, Ovadyah, Michah & Tzefanyah

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5

THE FINAL REDEMPTION WILL BE SIMILAR TO OUR EXODUS FROM EGYPT No Jew will be left in exile Our oppressors will be destroyed The redemption will be with miracles and through a great prophet (like Moshe in Egypt) God will do a miracle similar to the splitting of the sea

Prophesied Yeshayah, Hoshea, Zecharyah & Michah

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6

THE REDEMPTION WILL OCCUR AT THE APPOINTED TIME despite the fact that there may be Jews who do not deserve to be redeemed. This means that no matter how many mistakes or "sins" the Jews make in their lives it won't affect God's timetable. He has a plan for the world, and that plan (story) will be played out no matter what. Understand it this way; This world is a story. From God's point of view, since he is outside the "system of time", He sees all history as a complete entity — a complete story. But for us, who are living within the system of time we just experience this story day by day. At Creation God made a "schedule", and nothing will alter it. At the appropriate time, evil doers will be destroyed and the righteous will come to the Land of Israel and inherit its greatness.

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yoel, Michah, Chavkkuk, Tzefanyah & Zecharyah

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7

THE REDEMPTION WILL FOLLOW PROLONGED SUFFERING in the exile. We were scattered amongst the other nations after the destruction of the 2nd Temple, and it's been a long, hard exile under the tyranny of powerful and oppressive world forces. Our sages explain the purpose in our suffering is the development of character traits and refinements that our challenges bring to us. The war of Gog and Magog is a part of the end of days, and may be one of the sources for the suffering mentioned here.

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yirmiah, Chavkkuk & Tzefanyah

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8

THE DIVINE PRESENCE (SHECHINAH) WILL RETURN TO DWELL AMONG THE JEWS EVEN MORE FULLY THAN AT MOUNT SINAI. To put it another way, the Jewish people, who during the era of the Two Temples (offsite info. on the Beit HaMikdash) had an open and visible spiritual role in world affairs will once again regain their favored nation status and a new world era will have begun. Included in this is the age of the Messiah (Moshiach) who will arrive on the world scene to set things straight, and eliminate the conflict between people's good nature and their lower "animal" nature. That means no more wars, no more conflict between people. And this was promised to the world community by God, and given over to us through the words of the Jewish Prophets — who else? The spirit of Prophecy will return to those who are prepared for it and the entire Jewish people will have limitless wisdom and knowledge. Therefore teaching will cease, because the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of God (Yeshayah 11:9)

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yirmiah, Hoshea, Yoel, Ovadyah, Michah, Chavkkuk, Tzefanyah, Chaggai & Zecharyah

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9

THE JEWS WHO ASSIMILATED WILL RETURN TO GOD. Whether because of compulsion, coercion, persuasion, etc. everyone on the planet will get a big wake-up, adjust their lives and return to God with all their heart. It's really good news and we're all praying it happens soon and peacefully — but the world's present situation is troubling. This website was created to educate people and tip the scales in favor of a wonderful, peaceful transition. The more people know about the Jewish future the more they can create a grassroots effort to make this world work smoothly and peacefully.

Prophesied Yeshayah

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10

A KING WILL REIGN FROM THE HOUSE OF DAVID AND THE SPIRIT OF GOD WILL REST UPON HIM. And this is the Earthly leader of it all — the Messiah (Moshiach). And we've been waiting for him for thousands of years. The Messiah will administer justice and his laws will be obeyed throughout the world. Did you know Messianic beliefs were a Jewish concept before anyone else got a hold of them?

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yirmiah, Yechezkel, Hoshea, Amos & Zecharyah

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11

THE REDEMPTION WILL BE PERMANENT.World history has been winding up to this point in time, all world events have been organized for this purpose. God will purify the hearts of the Jews and they will never return to foolishness or sin. That means that at this time our hearts are very much influenced and swayed by factors of this physical world. At this point it can't be any other way. But as the world transforms to a more spiritual place, God will actually remove from our human heart and psyche the tendency for evil. Eternally righteous, the Jewish people will inherit the land forever (Yeshayah 60:21).

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yirmiah, Yoel, Amos, Michah, Tzefanyah & Zecharyah

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12

THE MAJORITY OF THE REMAINING NATIONS WILL ACCEPT AND SERVE GOD AND TURN TO HIS TORAH. When God makes "big noises" in the world some folks get the message and some don't. On 9/11 when the Twin Towers fell some people understood God did that for a reason, and some people are still in denial that God is even around. But as we move closer to the end of this stage of history our Prophets and Sages tell us there will be more big noises and the world leaders will be forced to finally accept the whole package, God, Torah and the Jews.

Prophesied Yeshayah, Hoshea, Yoel, Tzefanyah, Zecharyah & Malachi

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13

THERE WILL BE PEACE THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. "And they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning shears; no nation will raise up a sword to another and none will learn the art of war anymore" (Yeshayah 2:4). It's the promise of a world without war that we've all been waiting for. But in order to have it, you've got to have God along with it to persuade us all that life is serious enough to save and cherish. Before, all the anti-war movements wanted a peaceful world but without a moral imperitive. That means people wanted freedom to do whatever they wanted to, without the admission that there is God, and He expects humans to be aware of Him and yes, to pray.

Prophesied Yeshayah & Chaggai

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14

THE WORTHY DEAD WILL BE RESURRECTED. Would you have thought it's a Jewish concept? When God sees fit, those people who developed themselves sufficiently will come back to live in the perfected world community — the world free of lower, evil influences. We don't know too much about this — we can't — yet. But it was promised to us by the Prophets and this concept is woven throughout all Jewish mysticism and Kabbalah. SOURCE

Prophesied Yeshayah, Yechezkel & Malachi

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Leiby: Yosef Hatzadik in Our Times (A Capella)

Donate 99 cents to The Leiby Kletzky Fund by downloading the song :

MOSTLYMUSIC.com

Singer: Yisroel Amar

Video: CJ Studios 718.781.6405

Lyrics Esty Shemtov, Dina Amar

Concept & Ideas Rabbi Chay Amar

Studio engineering Ron BenHaim

Consultant Mendel Amar

Original melody of Vehoo Keili "Rabbi Baruch Levine"

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Who is a "Righteous Gentile?"

Who is a "Righteous Gentile?"

23 Tamuz 5771


This is similar to the question which continues to plague Israel---Who is a Jew? There are those who like to say, so-and-so may not be halachicly Jewish, but he would have qualified for the gas chamber in Hitler's Germany.

While that is tragic, it is not a reason to abandon the halacha. Hitler, y"sh does not define for us who is a Jew. Only Hashem does. To allow the Nazis to define Jewishness is to allow them to continue the shmad against us by other means and for all time. And just as we do not allow them to define who is a Jew, neither do we allow Yad Vashem to define who is a righteous Gentile.

Despite that Yad Vashem confers "righteous" status on Gentiles who assisted Jews, even to saving their lives, during the holocaust, we are duty-bound to employ the halachic criteria because while we may owe a debt of gratitude to such people, it is the Master of the World who defines this status and it is judged based on the person's relationship to HASHEM, not to Jews.

Today, this is a terribly misunderstood subject and it is causing no dearth of trouble for Am Yisrael as a result. Today, anyone who is "pro-Israel" is called a righteous Gentile, even down to those who would ocnvert us all to their idolatry if given half a chance. It's not only wrong, it cheapens the demands it requires of those who truly earn it. It is a slap in the face to all truly righteous Gentiles, who often have made great personal sacrifices to attain that level. We owe it to them and to the truth and we owe it to Hashem to set the record straight.

Again, "Jew" and "righteous Gentile" are legal statuses defined by Jewish Law as handed down from the Creator at Har Sinai. We are not free, out of some false sense of obligation or gratitude, to move the boundaries Hashem has set in His limitless wisdom.

Before getting into what makes one a "stam" goy and another a "righteous goy," I ought to address another issue which coincides with this. Perhaps, before we can distinguish between goy and goy, we ought first to understand what separates the goy and the Jew. Is there a real distinction or are we "all brothers in the family of Mankind?"

Let's hear Rabbi David Bar Chayim on the subject: The Distinction between Jews and Gentiles in Torah

Introduction

Over the past few years, there has been a recognizable trend amongst different circles in the religious community -- a humanistic/universal inclination. There are many who have written in praise of love, “for all men who were created in the image of G-d.” We have even been “graced” with a pamphlet of this name, Chaviv Adam Sh’nivra B’tzelem, composed and edited by Mr. Yochanan Ben Ya’acov, the Director General of the Bnei Akiva Youth Movement. The explicit goal of those who share this outlook is to prove that all men are equal, that it is forbidden to discriminate against any man on the basis of his race, and that anyone who claims the opposite is nothing but a racist, distorting the words of the Torah in order to fit them to his “dreadful” opinions.

...As will be further clarified, this outlook completely contradicts the Torah of Moses, and stems from an absolute lack of knowledge, permeated with foreign Western “values.” There would not be any need to respond were it not for the many who are mistaken and lead astray by it.

This outlook has even been expressed by some rabbis whose goal is to show how great and important the stature of the Gentile is in our Torah, and who thereby violate the truth by taking things out of context and inaccurately interpreting the words of Chazal and the Rishonim.

(Space does not allow. See the list of halachot which distinguish between Jews and Gentiles here.)

In the book "Derech Hashem," part 2, section 4, the Ramchal explained at length the difference between Israel and the nations of the world:

One of the deepest concepts of G-d's providence involves Israel and the other nations. With regards to their basic human characteristics, the two appear exactly alike. From the Torah's viewpoint, however, the two are completely different, and are treated as ones belonging to completely different genera…

Before Adam sinned, he was on a level much higher than contemporary man… In that state, man was on a very lofty level, fit for a high degree of eternal excellence…He would have then sired future generations while still in that state of excellence. Their number would be accurately determined by G-d's wisdom, depending on how those enjoying His good should best be perfected...

However, when Adam sinned, he fell from his original high level, and brought upon himself a great degree of darkness and insensitivity…. Mankind in general also fell from its original height, and remained on a degraded level…He was thus only prepared and receptive to a much lower level, and it was in this state that his children were born…they were all born into this degraded state…

Until Avraham Avinu who raised himself back up to the higher level through his spiritual work and earned the right to pass this trait on to his progeny through Yitzchak and Yaaqov. Thereafter, his physical descendants and any individuals from among the nations who followed Avraham's path and raised themselves up to his level (converting) would be a separate people---Jews.

...According to the Highest Judgment, it turned out that none of them deserved to rise above the degraded level…not even a little bit. But Abraham, being the only exception, succeeded in elevating himself through his deeds, which led to him being chosen by G-d. Abraham was therefore permanently made into a superior and excellent tree, conforming to man's highest level. It was further provided that he would be able to produce branches [and father a nation] based on his characteristics. The world was then divided into seventy nations, each on its own particular level in the general scheme. All of them, however, remained on the level of man in his fallen state, while only Israel became men in the elevated state.

The verdict, however, was not that the other nations should be destroyed. It only meant that they would have to remain on the lower level that we have discussed. This lower state of man should never have existed, had Adam not sinned… These nations still have the human aspect, blemished though it may be, so G-d desired that they should at least have a part of what was actually appropriate for the true mankind. He therefore granted them a divine soul somewhat like that of the Jew, even though it is not on the same level as Jewish souls are, but on a much lower level. They were likewise given commandments through which they could attain both material and spiritual advantages appropriate to their nature -- the Seven Commandments given to the children of Noah.

In the World to Come, however, there will be no nation other than Israel. The souls of righteous Gentiles will be allowed to exist in the Future World, but only as an addition and attachment to Israel. They will therefore be secondary to the Jews, just as a garment is secondary to the one who wears it. All that they attain of the ultimate good will have to be attained in this manner, since by virtue of their nature they can receive no more.

Which brings us back to our original question---Who is a righteous Gentile?

...Maimonides stated explicitly in chapter 8 of The Laws of Kings (halacha 10): 'Moses our teacher was commanded by the Mighty One to force the Gentiles to accept the commandments of the sons of Noah…Anyone who accepts the Seven Commandments and is careful to fulfill them is considered a righteous Gentile and receives a portion in the World to Come. This depends upon him accepting and fulfilling them because G-d had so commanded in the Torah…'

Meaning that while the actions of some gentiles might be noteworthy and commendable, if he does not obey the sheva mitzvot b'nei Noah, he is a "stam" goy. Additionally, if he observes the sheva mitzvot because he thinks they are nice and good, but not because they were commanded, he is not entitled to the status of "righteous" gentile.

Being precise in our language is also part of being people of truth.

SOURCE

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How is Chassidus different from Kabbalah?

At first glance, both Kabbalah and Chassidus explain Hashem’s greatness. How are they different, and if Kabbalah had already been revealed, what did Chassidus come to add?

This is a large topic, and of course, an article of this length cannot begin to do it justice, but I will touch on one aspect of it below.

Although Kabbalah offers explanations of G–dliness, when these ideas are examined, the explanations it gives are incomplete. This wisdom is so lofty that it does not truly descend into human intellect; thus, a regular person cannot grasp it, even if he is highly intelligent. Who then is able to understand it? One who is somehow connected to a level that transcends intellect. This exalted spiritual state “fills in the gaps,” enabling one to properly grasp these rarefied concepts.

There are two ways of possessing this level of sensitivity.

From above: A Jew who is born with a particularly lofty neshamah may be endowed with the power to grasp these lofty concepts.

From below: A Jew who has invested tremendous effort to rectify all his sins and failings and has succeeded, and then gone still further and reached an advanced level of self-refinement, may manage to elevate himself to this level.

Until Chassidus was revealed, in order to truly grasp the explanations of the sublime levels of G–d’s greatness found in Kabbalah, one had to be a fit “vessel” by fulfilling at least one of the above requirements. The revelation of Chassidus, however, made it possible for any Jew to grasp Hashem’s greatness, even without having satisfied either of these requirements.

But what is so different and special about Chassidus? What quality does it have that Kabbalah lacks, making it accessible to every Jew? The answer:Chassidus in general, and Chassidus Chabad in particular, brings Hashem’s greatness down into sechel enoshi, human understanding.

How does it do this? It is written, “From my flesh I see Hashem.”[1] This encapsulates the entire goal of Chassidus—to explains in great depth and detail the faculties of the soul, and how they interact with one another. Since the Jew’s soul descends from the higher spiritual worlds,[2] everything in our inner selves parallels the world at large, and can thus be used to understand it. Thus Chassidus uses as its mashal, analogy (pl.meshalim), the soul’s faculties—“my flesh”—in all its intricacies, through which we are able to “see Hashem”—to understand the nimshal (concept being explained by the analogy) of sublime levels of Hashem’s greatness.

Although Kabbalah also employs analogies from the soul to explain G–dliness, it does not explain these analogies, nor does it necessarily explain exactly which aspect of them corresponds to the nimshal in what way; it merely states the analogies simply. If there is any explanation, it is minimal.

This is one reason that it is considered dangerous to study Kabbalah without being a vessel for it. The lack of down-to-earth explanation makes one liable to fall into the trap of construing the analogies in Kabbalah literally. This is called hagshamah—lit., “making material,” or “corporealization.” Its opposite is hafshatah, lit., “divestiture,” or “abstraction.” Hafshatah is the ability to “see through” the details of themashal to the nimshal of G–dliness that it is coming to inform us of. Since this is a requirement for studying Kabbalah, we find that the Baal Shem Tov instructed those whom he saw as susceptible to hagshamah—apparently, the vast majority of people—not to study Kabbalah.

Now, let’s explain hagshamah more. On the lowest level of hagshamah, one believes that Hashem literally has a hand or foot, or the like, G–d forbid. A less coarse, but still forbidden level of hagshamah is to believe that Hashem is some kind of limited entity, albeit a very sublime one, such as one of the Sephiros (divine attributes), and to pray to a Sephirah, G–d forbid, instead of to Hashem Himself.[3]

An even more abstract kind of hagshamah, but hagshamah nonetheless, is even an incomplete understanding of an analogy, applying aspects of it to Hashem that were not meant to be applied, and neglecting to apply aspects of it to Hashem that were meant to be applied, may result inhagshamah, G–d forbid.

And when one “coarsens” Hashem, G–d forbid, while studying Kabbalah, this in turn greatly “coarsens” the student of Kabbalah; in other words, it has a very detrimental spiritual effect upon him (along the lines of the words of our Sages that if one learns Torah inappropriately, it becomes a “potion of death”[4] for him). This is highly unfortunate, for his intention in his studies was surely to become more refined.

This explains further what was quoted earlier that to learn Kabbalah one must either have a lofty neshamah or be very refined, for only then can we be confident that the person will not fall into hagshamah.

In contrast, the analogies offered in Chassidus are always accompanied with explanations[5] that make clear that not only does Hashem in His Essence (“Atzmus”) have no physical form, but He has no spiritual form either. Likewise, the explanation offered makes clear which aspects of the analogies are relevant, and which ones are not.

Once one has acquired a broad knowledge in Chassidus, one may be equipped to study Kabbalah as well, and understand it properly.[6] Conversely, Chassidus protects one from erring in one’s understanding of the works of Kabbalah. Thus, for someone to learn Kabbalah without the explanations of Chassidus and “make his own way” in Kabbalah would be presumptuous—he would be presuming that he is not in the category of those whom the Baal Shem Tov warned against learning works of Kabbalah lest they commit hagshamah and thereby become greatly coarsened.[7] Thus, learning Chassidus before Kabbalah is vital.[5]

Based on Kuntres Inyanah Shel Toras HaChassidus, p. 1. Toras Sholom, pp. 113, 185.

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[1] Iyov 19:26.
[2] Tanya, ch. 3, beg.
[3] Derech Mitzvosecha, Shoresh Mitzvas HaTefillah, 115b. Cf. Shivchei HaBesht, p. 250.
[4] Yoma 72b.
[5] Igros Kodesh, Vol. 22, pp. 58-59.
[6] Likkutei Sichos, Vol. 35, p. 295.
[7] Igros Kodesh, Vol. 8, p. 223. Also, see ibid. Vol. 13, p. 403.

This post was written by the author in honor of the third birthday of his daughter, Shaina bas Atara Arielle, on 22 Tammuz. It was also dedicated by Rivkah Katz and family, so that it be a merit for the refuah sheleimah of HaRav Meir HaKohen ben Rochel Dilkah. Lastly, this post was dedicated by Ephraim Tunaick in honor of his mother, Miriam Shaina bas Asher ע"ה.

SOURCE

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