Who was the great sage and miracle worker Rabbi Meir? What was so special about his message and his teachings? Find out in this class as we explore the enigmatic figure and uncover how his profound, mystical, and universal Torah is the key to the forthcoming Final Redemption of the world. Plus: Did Roman Emperor Nero convert to Judaism? Where does 666 really come from? And who was the greatest of Greek philosophers, Oenomaus of Gadara?
Tag Archives: Final Redemption
Seven Names or Seven Messiahs?
In this week’s parasha, Tzav, we find the interesting term hakohen hamashiach, the “anointed priest”, referring to the kohen gadol, “high priest”. This term appears a total of four times in the Torah; three times in last week’s parasha, and once at the beginning of this week’s parasha. These happen to be the only four instances of the term mashiach anywhere in the Chumash. Superficially, they do not refer to the Messiah, but rather to the high priest. The Chumash itself never explicitly speaks of hamelekh hamashiach, the anointed messianic king of Israel at the End of Days. However, it does allude to a messianic figure here in the parasha, because one of those future figures whose arrival we expect is the Kohen Tzedek, the “righteous priest” who will serve as the first kohen gadol in the rebuilt Jerusalem Temple.
At the start of the Second Temple era, the hope was that Zerubbabel would be Mashiach. Continue reading
What Does Authentic Judaism Look Like?
Today, there are so many different subgroups and denominations within Judaism – which is the most “authentic”? How can we determine what makes Judaism authentic? Find out as we explore the ten major qualities of Judaism based on the framework of the Ten Sefirot, and conclude with a list of ten critical questions for every Jew to ask about their Judaism.