Hope of Peace and Harmony

Here is a Hebrew translation of some reflections of Rabbi Avraham Skorka, rector of the Rabbinical Seminary of Latin America in Buenos Aires, known for his personal relationship with Archbishop Jorge Mario Bergoglio, later Pope Francis. These reflections were published on Zenit and we translated them:

https://fr.zenit.org/articles/la-venue-du-messie-reflexion-du-rabbin-skorka-dans-losservatore-romano/

The hope of a world of peace and harmony, where the intrinsic spiritual potential of human beings is manifested in its highest degree, reached its full expression amongst the Jewish people in the generation of Isaiah, Hosea, Micah and Amos. It is in their texts that we see clearly for the first time the image of a king who would guide the Jewish people with justice and benevolence, imagining a reality where peace would be attained by all of humanity and where God would be fully revealed to all peoples and nations.

Since then, the concept of the Messiah - the “anointed”, in Hebrew (because oil was used to anoint the head of the king in the coronation rite) – has become a central theme in the faith of Israel. It was linked to the “last day”, the eschatological time in which these prophetic images were to materialize, becoming real. These concepts are fundamental events in the writings of all the succeeding prophets, up through the texts of Haggai, Zacharia and Malachi, as well as in Daniel, in the Dead Sea scrolls and in the apocryphal writings. They are essential to the understanding of the life of Jesus and the Gospels, as well as of the other writings in the Christian Bible. The controversy between Jesus’ first disciples and those Jews who did not accept what was said of him after his death derived from their differing opinions of these prophetic texts. Once the first Christian communities were established in the Middle East, the debate continued in other ways.

In the Sanhedrin treaty of the Babylonian Talmud (99a-b) there are various commentaries on the coming of the Messiah. One of the sages affirms that his name will be Menachem, he who consoles. Others give him different names. In the Jerusalem Talmud (Berachot, chap 2, page 5, column 1, halachah 4), there is a story, probably dating to the third century of the Christian era, concerning the birth of the Messiah, who was supposed to come on the 9th of Av, the same day as the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, and to be called Menachem. The story tells of the suffering of the mother who, in the end, loses her son because he is carried off by winds and tempest. In a seventh century account, the Sefer Zerubabel, where the stories of the future redemption are told, the Messiah’s mother bears the name of Heftzibah. She battles the forces of evil to help in forming a world where her son and God can be fully revealed. The accounts in which the Jewish authors tell of the figure of the mother of the Messiah, which bring to mind the Gospel texts but are not found in the Hebrew Bible, are probably due to the ancient disputes between Jews and Christians.

In his great codification of the Jewish law, the Mishneh Torah, Maimonides describes the messianic era as a time when the Jewish people will not be dominated by any empire. A world of peace and mutual understanding will be established and a genuine spirituality will guide the actions of individuals, peoples, and nations. They will be closer to their Creator and their Creator will be closer to them. Then, says Maimonides, a king from the line of David will reign over Israel. He will be the awaited Messiah. One of the thirteen articles of faith in which Maimonides sums up the Jewish faith speaks of having perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah (the twelfth article). However, it should be emphasized that he is referring not only to an individual with particular characteristics, but rather to a time where each lives with a spiritual awareness of existence. To accomplish this reality, neither human nor animal nature needs to undergo change. It is rather the personal priorities which need to be different; people must seek justice, faith and mercy. The Messiah is seen by this great sage as a special being who lives in a particular time, structured by the quality of human dignity and moral courage. The importance of the Messiah is tied to the reality in which he lives.

The Talmudic sages discussed when the Messiah would come. There are multiple opinions on the subject. We are told that the rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi asked the prophet Elijah - he who went up to heaven in a chariot and later revealed himself to wise and just persons in different generations – when the Messiah would come. Elijah answered: go and ask him yourself, since he is seated before the gates of Rome with the poor and the sick. Rabbi Yehoshua went there and asked him when he would come, and he answered: today. The rabbi said to Elijah: the Messiah lied to me because he told he would come today and he did not. To which the prophet replied: you did not understand the message, he was referring to the verse which says: “Today, if you hear [the commandments of] his voice” (Psalm 95:8).

In the twentieth century, Martin Buber retells this account adding a very important element: “When I was a child, I read an old Jewish fable which I couldn’t understand. It said this and nothing more: ” Before the gates of Rome sits a leprous beggar, waiting. He is the Messiah.” I then met an old man whom I asked: “For what is he waiting?” And the old man gave me an answer which I didn’t manage to understand, an answer which I only learned to understand much later. He said: “He is waiting for you”.

Jews and Christians await the coming of a special person at a period in which human miseries must be overcome. But the expectation, based on what was said above, should not be simply passive. Christians as well as Jews are committed to the challenge of working, each one personnally, for the healing of their human miseries. We must strive to realize the time of kindness that people are yearning for. The Messiah may already be among us, but spiritual blindness prevents us from seeing him.

I offer these reflections and I affectionately greet the Christian communities celebrating Christmas. May their celebrations be full of meaning and spiritual enrichment.