Jewish eschatology
Encyclopedia
Jewish eschatology is concerned with the Jewish Messiah, afterlife
, and the revival of the dead. Eschatology
, generically, is the area of theology
and philosophy
concerned with the final events in the history of the world, the ultimate destiny of humanity, and related concepts.
idea of the Messiah
. Like the English word Messiah, Mashiach means anointed.
The Jewish messiah
refers to a human leader, physically descended from the Davidic line
, who will rule and unite the people of Israel
and will usher in the Messianic Age
of global and universal peace. While the Jewish messiah is considered to be one of the things that precede creation, he is not considered to be divine nor is he considered to be Jesus, in sharp contrast to Christian belief.
In biblical times the title mashiach was awarded for somebody in a high position of nobility and greatness. For example, means High Priest. In the Talmudic era the title Mashiach or מלך המשיח, (in the Tiberian vocalization
pronounced ), literally meaning "the anointed King", is referred to the human Jewish leader and king who will redeem Israel in the End of Days and who will usher in a messianic era of peace and prosperity for both the living and the deceased.
, although requirements are mentioned in other prophets as well.
, contains a long discussion of the events leading to the coming of the Messiah, for example:
Throughout Jewish history Jews have compared these passages (and others) to contemporary events in search of signs of the Messiah's imminent arrival, continuing into present times. For example, many Orthodox Jewish leaders have suggested that the devastation among Jews wrought by the Holocaust may represent a sign of hope for the Messiah's present imminent arrival.
The Talmud tells many stories about the Messiah, some of which represent famous Talmudic rabbis as receiving personal visitations from Elijah the Prophet and the Messiah. For example:
(Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon), also known as the Rambam, wrote a commentary to tractate Sanhedrin
stressing a relatively naturalistic interpretation of the Messiah and de-emphasizing miraculous elements. His commentary became widely (although not universally) accepted in the non- or less-mystical branches of Orthodox Judaism
:
, the Midrash
, and the Kabbalistic work, the Zohar
, the 'deadline' by which the Messiah
must appear is 6000 years from creation. A majority of Orthodox and Hasidic Jews believe that the Hebrew calendar dates back to the time of creation; the year 2009-2010 (the Hebrew New Year beings during September or October) of the Gregorian calendar corresponds to the Hebrew year 5770.
There is a kabbalistic tradition that maintains that the 7 days of creation in Genesis 1 correspond to seven millennia of the existence of natural creation. The tradition teaches that the seventh day of the week, Shabbat
or the day of rest, corresponds to the seventh millennium (Hebrew years 6000 - 7000), the age of universal 'rest' - the Messianic Era.
The Talmud
comments:
The Midrash
comments:
"Six eons for going in and coming out, for war and peace. The seventh eon is entirely Shabbat
and rest for life everlasting ".
The Zohar
explains:
Elaborating on this theme are numerous early and late Jewish scholars, including the Ramban
, Isaac Abrabanel
, Abraham Ibn Ezra
, Rabbeinu Bachya, the Vilna Gaon
, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Ramchal, Aryeh Kaplan
, and Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis
.
is a universal tenet of faith among Orthodox Jews and one of Maimonides
' thirteen principles of faith.
Some authorities in Orthodox Judaism believe that this era will lead to supernatural events culminating in a bodily resurrection of the dead. Maimonides
, on the other hand, holds that the events of the messianic era are not specifically connected with the resurrection. (See the Maimonides
article.)
varies in its teachings. While it retains traditional references to a personal redeemer and prayers for the restoration of the Davidic line
in the liturgy, Conservative Jews are more inclined to accept the idea of a messianic era:
generally concurs with the more liberal Conservative perspective of a future messianic era rather than a personal messiah. Reflecting its philosophical position, Reform Judaism, unlike Conservative Judaism, has altered the traditional prayers to refer to "Redemption" rather than "a Redeemer" and removed petitions for restoration of the House of David.
rejects the ideas of both a personal messiah and a divinely instituted messianic age. It does teach that human beings can help bring about a better future world. Like Reform Judaism, Reconstructionist Judaism has also altered traditional prayers so that they no longer refer to a personal Messiah.
and brotherhood on earth, and one conducive to the furtherment of the knowledge of the Creator. In this context, the earliest meaning of the word "messianic" is derived from notion of Yemot HaMashiach meaning "The Days of the Messiah", meaning "related to the Jewish Messiah
". The Jewish Messiah ushering in an era of universal peace is given expression in two scriptural passages from the Book of Isaiah
:
", העולם הבא in Hebrew), and related to concepts of Gan Eden (the Heavenly "Garden of Eden", or Paradise) and Gehinom
. According to religious Judaism, any non-Jew who lives according to the Seven Laws of Noah is regarded as a Righteous Gentile
, and is assured of a place in the world to come, the final reward of the righteous.
.
, beliefs about the ultimate fate of the individual were diverse. Pharisees believed in resurrection
, while Essenes believed in the immortality of the soul, and Sadducees
, apparently, believed in neither. The Dead Sea Scrolls
, Jewish Pseudepigrapha and Jewish magical papyri
reflect this diversity.
(c. 200) lists belief in the resurrection of the dead
as one of three essential beliefs necessary for a Jew to participate in it:
The Gemara
(Berachos 18b) relates several stories of people who visited cemeteries and either overheard conversations among dead people or actually conversed with the dead themselves, and received information that was later verified as factually correct.
The Shem HaGedolim by the Chida, (entry on Rebbe Eliezer bar Nosson), relates and discusses several incidents of dead Sages returning to our world to visit their families and friends.
dispute the nature of existence in the "End of Days" after the messianic period. While Maimonides
describes an entirely spiritual existence for souls, which he calls "disembodied intellects," Nahmanides
discusses an intensely spiritual existence on Earth, where spirituality and physicality are merged. Both agree that life after death is as Maimonides describes the "End of Days." This existence entails an extremely heightened understanding of and connection to the Divine Presence. This view is shared by all classic rabbinic scholars.
There is much rabbinic material on what happens to the soul of the deceased after death, what it experiences, and where it goes. At various points in the afterlife journey, the soul may encounter: Hibbut ha-kever, the pains of the grave; Dumah, the angel
of silence; Satan
as the angel of death; the Kaf ha-Kela, the catapult of the soul; Gehinom (purgatory
); and Gan Eden (heaven
or paradise
). All classic rabbinic scholars agree that these concepts are beyond typical human understanding. Therefore, these ideas are expressed throughout rabbinic literature through many varied parables and analogies.
Gehinom
is fairly well defined in rabbinic literature. It is sometimes translated as "hell", but is much closer to the Catholic view of purgatory than to the Christian view of hell
, which differs greatly from the classical Jewish view. In Judaism, gehinom — while certainly a terribly unpleasant place or state — is not hell
. The overwhelming majority of rabbinic thought maintains that souls are not tortured in gehinom forever; the longest that one can be there is said to be eleven months, with extremely rare exception. This is the reason that even when in mourning for near relatives, Jews will not recite mourner's kaddish for longer than an eleven month period. Gehinom is considered a spiritual forge where the soul is purified for its eventual ascent to Gan Eden ("Garden of Eden").
maintains the tenet of the bodily resurrection of the dead, including traditional references to it in the liturgy. In explaining the Orthodox view of the afterlife, Irving Greenberg
, a Modern Orthodox rabbi, discussed both the "world to come" and the belief in punishment and reward in a Moment Magazine "Ask the Rabbis" forum:
has generally retained the tenet of the bodily resurrection of the dead, including traditional references to it in the liturgy. However, many Conservative Jews interpret the tenet metaphorically rather than literally. Conservative Judaism both affirms belief in the world beyond (as referenced in the Amidah
and Maimonides' Thirteen Precepts of Faith) while recognizing that human understanding is limited and we cannot know exactly what the world beyond consists of.
, explains the Reform attitude towards the afterlife by quoting Abraham Joshua Heschel
:
The "this world" orientation is not limited to the Reform and Reconstructionist movements. Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, in expounding the Chabad
view of the afterlife, also affirms the necessity of focusing on one's legacy, along with Chabad's traditional belief in bodily resurrection in the Messianic era:
("Hebrew Bible"), the classical rabbinic works (Mishnah
and Talmud
), or Maimonides
' 13 Principles of Faith. While one might contend the idea of reincarnation is not outlined in the Tanakh, there exist references to resurrection throughout Isaiah. However, books of Kabbalah
— Jewish mysticism — teach a belief in gilgul
, transmigration of souls, and hence the belief is universal in Hasidic Judaism
, which regards the Kabbalah as sacred and authoritative.
Among well known Rabbis who rejected the idea of reincarnation are Saadia Gaon
, David Kimhi
, Hasdai Crescas
, Yedayah Bedershi (early 14th century), Joseph Albo
, Abraham ibn Daud
and Leon de Modena. Among the Geonim
, Hai Gaon
argued with Saadia Gaon in favour of gilgulim.
Rabbis who accepted the idea of reincarnation include, from Medieval times: the mystical leaders Nahmanides
(the Ramban) and Rabbenu Bahya ben Asher
; from the 16th-century: Levi ibn Habib (the Ralbah), and from the mystical school of Safed Shelomoh Alkabez, Isaac Luria
(the Ari) and his exponent Hayyim Vital; and from the 18th-century: the founder of Hasidism Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, later Hasidic Masters, and the Lithuanian Jewish Orthodox leader and Kabbalist the Vilna Gaon
.
With the 16th-century rational systemisation of Cordoveran Kabbalah by the Ramak, and the subsequent new paradigm of Lurianic Kabbalah by the Ari, Kabbalah
replaced "Hakirah
" (Rationalistic Medieval Jewish Philosophy) as the mainstream traditional Jewish theology, both in scholarly circles and in the popular imagination. Isaac Luria taught new explanations of the process of gilgul, and identification of the reincarnations of historic Jewish figures, which were copiled by Haim Vital in his Shaar HaGilgulim.
In Kabbalistic understanding of gilgul, which differs from many Eastern-religious views, reincarnation is not fatalistic or automatic, nor is it essentially a punishment of sin, or reward of virtue. In Judaism, the Heavenly realms could fulfill Maimonides' Principle of faith
in Reward and Punishment. Rather, it is concerned with the process of individual Tikkun
(Rectification) of the soul. In Kabbalistic interpretation, each Jewish soul is reincarnated enough times only in order to fulfil each of the 613 Mitzvot
. The souls of the righteous among the Nations may be assisted through gilgulim to fulfil their Seven Laws of Noah. As such gilgul is an expression of Divine compassion, and is seen as a Heavenly agreement with the individual soul to descend again. This stress on physical performance and perfection of each Mitzvah, is tied to the Lurianic doctrine of Cosmic Tikkun of Creation. In these new teachings, a Cosmic catastrophe occurred at the beginning of Creation called the "Shattering of the Vessels" of the Sephirot in the "World of Tohu (Chaos)". The vessels of the Sephirot broke and fell down through the spiritual Worlds until they were embedded in our physical realm as "sparks of holiness" (Nitzutzot). The reason in Lurianic Kabbalah that almost all Mitzvot involve physical action, is that through their performance, they elevate each particular Spark of holiness associated with that commandment. Once all the Sparks are redeemed to their spiritual source, the Messianic Era begins. This metaphysical theology gives cosmic significance to the life of each person, as each individual has particular tasks that only they can fulfil. Therefore, gilgulim assist the individual soul in this cosmic plan. This also explains the Kabbalistic reason why the future eschatological Utopia
will be in this World, as only in the lowest, Physical realm is the purpose of Creation fulfilled.
The idea of gilgul became popular in folk belief, and is found in much Yiddish literature
among Ashkenazi Jews.
Afterlife
The afterlife is the belief that a part of, or essence of, or soul of an individual, which carries with it and confers personal identity, survives the death of the body of this world and this lifetime, by natural or supernatural means, in contrast to the belief in eternal...
, and the revival of the dead. Eschatology
Eschatology
Eschatology is a part of theology, philosophy, and futurology concerned with what are believed to be the final events in history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world or the World to Come...
, generically, is the area of theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
concerned with the final events in the history of the world, the ultimate destiny of humanity, and related concepts.
The Messiah
The Hebrew word Mashiach (or Moshiach) refers to the JewishJudaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
idea of the Messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
. Like the English word Messiah, Mashiach means anointed.
The Jewish messiah
Jewish Messiah
Messiah, ; mashiah, moshiah, mashiach, or moshiach, is a term used in the Hebrew Bible to describe priests and kings, who were traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil as described in Exodus 30:22-25...
refers to a human leader, physically descended from the Davidic line
Davidic line
The Davidic line refers to the tracing of lineage to the King David referred to in the Hebrew Bible, as well as the New Testament...
, who will rule and unite the people of Israel
Israelite
According to the Bible the Israelites were a Hebrew-speaking people of the Ancient Near East who inhabited the Land of Canaan during the monarchic period .The word "Israelite" derives from the Biblical Hebrew ישראל...
and will usher in the Messianic Age
Messianic Age
Messianic Age is a theological term referring to a future time of universal peace and brotherhood on the earth, without crime, war and poverty. Many religions believe that there will be such an age; some refer to it as the "Kingdom of God" or the "World to Come".- Terminology: "messianic" and...
of global and universal peace. While the Jewish messiah is considered to be one of the things that precede creation, he is not considered to be divine nor is he considered to be Jesus, in sharp contrast to Christian belief.
In biblical times the title mashiach was awarded for somebody in a high position of nobility and greatness. For example, means High Priest. In the Talmudic era the title Mashiach or מלך המשיח, (in the Tiberian vocalization
Tiberian vocalization
The Tiberian vocalization is a system of diacritics devised by the Masoretes to add to the consonantal Masoretic text of the Hebrew Bible; this system soon became used to vocalize other texts as well...
pronounced ), literally meaning "the anointed King", is referred to the human Jewish leader and king who will redeem Israel in the End of Days and who will usher in a messianic era of peace and prosperity for both the living and the deceased.
In the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible)
Most of the textual requirements concerning the messiah, what he will do, and what will be done during his reign are located within the Book of IsaiahBook of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
, although requirements are mentioned in other prophets as well.
- The SanhedrinSanhedrinThe Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
will be re-established (Isaiah 1:26) - Once he is King, leaders of other nations will look to him for guidance (Isaiah 2:4)
- The whole world will worship the One God of IsraelGod in JudaismThe conception of God in Judaism is strictly monotheistic. God is an absolute one indivisible incomparable being who is the ultimate cause of all existence. Jewish tradition teaches that the true aspect of God is incomprehensible and unknowable, and that it is only God's revealed aspect that...
(Isaiah 2:17) - He will be descended from King DavidDavidDavid was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
(Isaiah 11:1) via King SolomonSolomonSolomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
(1 Chron. 22:8–10) - The Moshiach will be a man of this world, an observant Jew with "fear of God" (Isaiah 11:2)
- Evil and tyranny will not be able to stand before his leadership (Isaiah 11:4)
- Knowledge of God will fill the world (Isaiah 11:9)
- He will include and attract people from all cultures and nations (Isaiah 11:10)
- All Israelites will be returned to their homelandLand of IsraelThe Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
(Isaiah 11:12) - Death will be swallowed up forever (Isaiah 25:8)
- There will be no more hunger or illness, and death will cease (Isaiah 25:8)
- All of the dead will rise againResurrection of the deadResurrection of the Dead is a belief found in a number of eschatologies, most commonly in Christian, Islamic, Jewish and Zoroastrian. In general, the phrase refers to a specific event in the future; multiple prophesies in the histories of these religions assert that the dead will be brought back to...
(Isaiah 26:19) - The Jewish people will experience eternal joy and gladness (Isaiah 51:11)
- He will be a messenger of peace (Isaiah 53:7)
- Nations will recognize the wrongs they did Israel (Isaiah 52:13–53:5)
- The peoples of the world will turn to the Jews for spiritual guidance (ZechariahBook of ZechariahThe Book of Zechariah is the penultimate book of the twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew and Christian Bible, attributed to the prophet Zechariah.-Historical context:...
8:23) - The ruined cities of Israel will be restored (EzekielBook of EzekielThe Book of Ezekiel is the third of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah and preceding the Book of the Twelve....
16:55) - Weapons of war will be destroyedWorld peaceWorld Peace is an ideal of freedom, peace, and happiness among and within all nations and/or people. World peace is an idea of planetary non-violence by which nations willingly cooperate, either voluntarily or by virtue of a system of governance that prevents warfare. The term is sometimes used to...
(Ezekiel 39:9) - The Temple will be rebuiltThe Third TempleThe Third Temple, or Ezekiel's Temple , is a temple architecturally described in the Book of Ezekiel...
(Ezekiel 40) resuming many of the suspended mitzvot - He will then perfect the entire world to serve God together (ZephaniahBook of ZephaniahThe superscription of the Book of Zephaniah attributes its authorship to “Zephaniah son of Cushi son of Gedaliah son of Amariah son of Hezekiah, in the days of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah” . All that is known of Zephaniah comes from the text. The superscription of the book is lengthier than...
3:9) - He will take the barren land and make it abundant and fruitful (Isaiah 51:3, Amos 9:13–15, Ezekiel 36:29–30, Isaiah 11:6–9)
In the Talmud
The Babylonian Talmud, tractate SanhedrinSanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
, contains a long discussion of the events leading to the coming of the Messiah, for example:
Throughout Jewish history Jews have compared these passages (and others) to contemporary events in search of signs of the Messiah's imminent arrival, continuing into present times. For example, many Orthodox Jewish leaders have suggested that the devastation among Jews wrought by the Holocaust may represent a sign of hope for the Messiah's present imminent arrival.
The Talmud tells many stories about the Messiah, some of which represent famous Talmudic rabbis as receiving personal visitations from Elijah the Prophet and the Messiah. For example:
In Rabbinic commentaries
The Medieval rabbinic figure MaimonidesMaimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
(Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon), also known as the Rambam, wrote a commentary to tractate Sanhedrin
Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
stressing a relatively naturalistic interpretation of the Messiah and de-emphasizing miraculous elements. His commentary became widely (although not universally) accepted in the non- or less-mystical branches of Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
:
Advent of the Messianic Era
According to the TalmudTalmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
, the Midrash
Midrash
The Hebrew term Midrash is a homiletic method of biblical exegesis. The term also refers to the whole compilation of homiletic teachings on the Bible....
, and the Kabbalistic work, the Zohar
Zohar
The Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
, the 'deadline' by which the Messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
must appear is 6000 years from creation. A majority of Orthodox and Hasidic Jews believe that the Hebrew calendar dates back to the time of creation; the year 2009-2010 (the Hebrew New Year beings during September or October) of the Gregorian calendar corresponds to the Hebrew year 5770.
There is a kabbalistic tradition that maintains that the 7 days of creation in Genesis 1 correspond to seven millennia of the existence of natural creation. The tradition teaches that the seventh day of the week, Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
or the day of rest, corresponds to the seventh millennium (Hebrew years 6000 - 7000), the age of universal 'rest' - the Messianic Era.
The Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
comments:
- R. Katina said, “Six thousand years the world will exist and one [thousand, the seventh], it shall be desolate (haruv), as it is written, ‘And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day’ (Isa. 2:11)... R. Katina also taught, “Just as the seventh year is the Shmita year, so too does the world have one thousand years out of seven that are fallow (mushmat), as it is written, ‘And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day’ (Isa. 2:11); and further it is written, ‘A psalm and song for the Shabbat day’ (Ps. 92:1) – meaning the day that is altogether Shabbat – and also it is said, ‘For a thousand years in Thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past’ (Ps.90:4) (Sanhedrin 97a).”
The Midrash
Midrash
The Hebrew term Midrash is a homiletic method of biblical exegesis. The term also refers to the whole compilation of homiletic teachings on the Bible....
comments:
"Six eons for going in and coming out, for war and peace. The seventh eon is entirely Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
and rest for life everlasting ".
The Zohar
Zohar
The Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
explains:
- "The redemption of IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
will come about through the mystic force of the letter “Vav” [which has the numerical value of six], namely, in the sixth millennium…. Happy are those who will be left alive at the end of the sixth millennium to enter the ShabbatShabbatShabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
, which is the seventh millennium; for that is a day set apart for the Holy One on which to effect the union of new souls with old souls in the world (Zohar, Vayera 119a)."
Elaborating on this theme are numerous early and late Jewish scholars, including the Ramban
Nahmanides
Nahmanides, also known as Rabbi Moses ben Naḥman Girondi, Bonastruc ça Porta and by his acronym Ramban, , was a leading medieval Jewish scholar, Catalan rabbi, philosopher, physician, kabbalist, and biblical commentator.-Name:"Nahmanides" is a Greek-influenced formation meaning "son of Naḥman"...
, Isaac Abrabanel
Isaac Abrabanel
Isaac ben Judah Abrabanel, , commonly referred to just as Abarbanel, was a Portuguese Jewish statesman, philosopher, Bible commentator, and financier.-Biography:...
, Abraham Ibn Ezra
Abraham ibn Ezra
Rabbi Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra was born at Tudela, Navarre in 1089, and died c. 1167, apparently in Calahorra....
, Rabbeinu Bachya, the Vilna Gaon
Vilna Gaon
Elijah ben Shlomo Zalman Kramer, known as the Vilna Gaon or Elijah of Vilna and simply by his Hebrew acronym Gra or Elijah Ben Solomon, , was a Talmudist, halachist, kabbalist, and the foremost leader of non-hasidic Jewry of the past few centuries...
, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Ramchal, Aryeh Kaplan
Aryeh Kaplan
Aryeh Moshe Eliyahu Kaplan was a noted American Orthodox rabbi and author known for his "intimate knowledge of both physics and kabbalah." He was lauded as an original thinker and prolific writer, from studies of the Torah, Talmud and mysticism to introductory pamphlets on Jewish beliefs and...
, and Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis
Esther Jungreis
Esther Jungreis is the founder of the international Hineni movement in America. A Holocaust survivor, she has made it her life's mission to bring back Jews to Orthodox Judaism.-Biography:...
.
Orthodox Judaism
The belief in a personal messiah of the Davidic lineDavidic line
The Davidic line refers to the tracing of lineage to the King David referred to in the Hebrew Bible, as well as the New Testament...
is a universal tenet of faith among Orthodox Jews and one of Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
' thirteen principles of faith.
Some authorities in Orthodox Judaism believe that this era will lead to supernatural events culminating in a bodily resurrection of the dead. Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
, on the other hand, holds that the events of the messianic era are not specifically connected with the resurrection. (See the Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
article.)
Conservative Judaism
Conservative JudaismConservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
varies in its teachings. While it retains traditional references to a personal redeemer and prayers for the restoration of the Davidic line
Davidic line
The Davidic line refers to the tracing of lineage to the King David referred to in the Hebrew Bible, as well as the New Testament...
in the liturgy, Conservative Jews are more inclined to accept the idea of a messianic era:
Reform Judaism
Reform JudaismReform Judaism
Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...
generally concurs with the more liberal Conservative perspective of a future messianic era rather than a personal messiah. Reflecting its philosophical position, Reform Judaism, unlike Conservative Judaism, has altered the traditional prayers to refer to "Redemption" rather than "a Redeemer" and removed petitions for restoration of the House of David.
Reconstructionist Judaism
Reconstructionist JudaismReconstructionist Judaism
Reconstructionist Judaism is a modern American-based Jewish movement based on the ideas of Mordecai Kaplan . The movement views Judaism as a progressively evolving civilization. It originated as a branch of Conservative Judaism, before it splintered...
rejects the ideas of both a personal messiah and a divinely instituted messianic age. It does teach that human beings can help bring about a better future world. Like Reform Judaism, Reconstructionist Judaism has also altered traditional prayers so that they no longer refer to a personal Messiah.
The Days of the Messiah
According to Jewish tradition, the Messianic Era will be one of global harmony, a future era of universal peacePeace
Peace is a state of harmony characterized by the lack of violent conflict. Commonly understood as the absence of hostility, peace also suggests the existence of healthy or newly healed interpersonal or international relationships, prosperity in matters of social or economic welfare, the...
and brotherhood on earth, and one conducive to the furtherment of the knowledge of the Creator. In this context, the earliest meaning of the word "messianic" is derived from notion of Yemot HaMashiach meaning "The Days of the Messiah", meaning "related to the Jewish Messiah
Jewish Messiah
Messiah, ; mashiah, moshiah, mashiach, or moshiach, is a term used in the Hebrew Bible to describe priests and kings, who were traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil as described in Exodus 30:22-25...
". The Jewish Messiah ushering in an era of universal peace is given expression in two scriptural passages from the Book of Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
:
"The World to Come"
Although Judaism concentrates on the importance of the Earthly world (Olam Ha'zeh — "this world"), all of classical Judaism posits an afterlife. The Hereafter is known as ha-'olam ha-ba (the "world to comeWorld to Come
The World to Come is an eschatological phrase reflecting the belief that the "current world" is flawed or cursed and will be replaced in the future by a better world or a paradise. The concept is similar to the concepts of Heaven and the afterlife, but Heaven is another place generally seen as...
", העולם הבא in Hebrew), and related to concepts of Gan Eden (the Heavenly "Garden of Eden", or Paradise) and Gehinom
Gehenna
Gehenna , Gehinnom and Yiddish Gehinnam, are terms derived from a place outside ancient Jerusalem known in the Hebrew Bible as the Valley of the Son of Hinnom ; one of the two principal valleys surrounding the Old City.In the Hebrew Bible, the site was initially where apostate Israelites and...
. According to religious Judaism, any non-Jew who lives according to the Seven Laws of Noah is regarded as a Righteous Gentile
Ger toshav
Ger toshav , is a term used in Judaism to refer to a gentile who is a "resident alien", that is, one who lives in a Jewish state and has certain protections under Jewish law, and is considered a righteous gentile .-Definition:...
, and is assured of a place in the world to come, the final reward of the righteous.
Hebrew Bible
The phrase ha-'olam ha-ba, (העולם הבא) "The World to Come" does not occur in the Hebrew BibleHebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible is a term used by biblical scholars outside of Judaism to refer to the Tanakh , a canonical collection of Jewish texts, and the common textual antecedent of the several canonical editions of the Christian Old Testament...
.
Late Second Temple Period
In the late Second Temple PeriodSecond Temple period
The Second Temple period , in Jewish history, is the period between 530 BCE and 70 CE, when the Second Temple of Jerusalem existed. It ended with the First Jewish–Roman War and the Temple's destruction....
, beliefs about the ultimate fate of the individual were diverse. Pharisees believed in resurrection
Resurrection
Resurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim...
, while Essenes believed in the immortality of the soul, and Sadducees
Sadducees
The Sadducees were a sect or group of Jews that were active in Ancient Israel during the Second Temple period, starting from the second century BC through the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. The sect was identified by Josephus with the upper social and economic echelon of Judean society...
, apparently, believed in neither. The Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
, Jewish Pseudepigrapha and Jewish magical papyri
Jewish magical papyri
Jewish magical papyri are a subclass of papyri with specific Jewish magical uses, and which shed light on popular belief during the late Second Temple Period and after in Late Antiquity...
reflect this diversity.
Talmudic views
The MishnahMishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
(c. 200) lists belief in the resurrection of the dead
Resurrection of the dead
Resurrection of the Dead is a belief found in a number of eschatologies, most commonly in Christian, Islamic, Jewish and Zoroastrian. In general, the phrase refers to a specific event in the future; multiple prophesies in the histories of these religions assert that the dead will be brought back to...
as one of three essential beliefs necessary for a Jew to participate in it:
The Gemara
Gemara
The Gemara is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah. After the Mishnah was published by Rabbi Judah the Prince The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora or, less commonly, Gemorra; from Aramaic גמרא gamar; literally, "[to] study" or "learning by...
(Berachos 18b) relates several stories of people who visited cemeteries and either overheard conversations among dead people or actually conversed with the dead themselves, and received information that was later verified as factually correct.
The Shem HaGedolim by the Chida, (entry on Rebbe Eliezer bar Nosson), relates and discusses several incidents of dead Sages returning to our world to visit their families and friends.
Medieval rabbinical views
While all classic rabbinic sources discuss the afterlife, the classic Medieval scholarsRishonim
"Rishon" redirects here. For the preon model in particle physics, see Harari Rishon Model. For the Israeli town, see Rishon LeZion.Rishonim were the leading Rabbis and Poskim who lived approximately during the 11th to 15th centuries, in the era before the writing of the Shulkhan Arukh and...
dispute the nature of existence in the "End of Days" after the messianic period. While Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
describes an entirely spiritual existence for souls, which he calls "disembodied intellects," Nahmanides
Nahmanides
Nahmanides, also known as Rabbi Moses ben Naḥman Girondi, Bonastruc ça Porta and by his acronym Ramban, , was a leading medieval Jewish scholar, Catalan rabbi, philosopher, physician, kabbalist, and biblical commentator.-Name:"Nahmanides" is a Greek-influenced formation meaning "son of Naḥman"...
discusses an intensely spiritual existence on Earth, where spirituality and physicality are merged. Both agree that life after death is as Maimonides describes the "End of Days." This existence entails an extremely heightened understanding of and connection to the Divine Presence. This view is shared by all classic rabbinic scholars.
There is much rabbinic material on what happens to the soul of the deceased after death, what it experiences, and where it goes. At various points in the afterlife journey, the soul may encounter: Hibbut ha-kever, the pains of the grave; Dumah, the angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
of silence; Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
as the angel of death; the Kaf ha-Kela, the catapult of the soul; Gehinom (purgatory
Purgatory
Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which, it is believed, the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven...
); and Gan Eden (heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
or paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
). All classic rabbinic scholars agree that these concepts are beyond typical human understanding. Therefore, these ideas are expressed throughout rabbinic literature through many varied parables and analogies.
Gehinom
Gehenna
Gehenna , Gehinnom and Yiddish Gehinnam, are terms derived from a place outside ancient Jerusalem known in the Hebrew Bible as the Valley of the Son of Hinnom ; one of the two principal valleys surrounding the Old City.In the Hebrew Bible, the site was initially where apostate Israelites and...
is fairly well defined in rabbinic literature. It is sometimes translated as "hell", but is much closer to the Catholic view of purgatory than to the Christian view of hell
Hell in Christian beliefs
Christian views on Hell vary, but in general traditionally agree that hell is a place or a state in which the souls of the unsaved suffer the consequences of sin....
, which differs greatly from the classical Jewish view. In Judaism, gehinom — while certainly a terribly unpleasant place or state — is not hell
Hell in Christian beliefs
Christian views on Hell vary, but in general traditionally agree that hell is a place or a state in which the souls of the unsaved suffer the consequences of sin....
. The overwhelming majority of rabbinic thought maintains that souls are not tortured in gehinom forever; the longest that one can be there is said to be eleven months, with extremely rare exception. This is the reason that even when in mourning for near relatives, Jews will not recite mourner's kaddish for longer than an eleven month period. Gehinom is considered a spiritual forge where the soul is purified for its eventual ascent to Gan Eden ("Garden of Eden").
In Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox JudaismOrthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
maintains the tenet of the bodily resurrection of the dead, including traditional references to it in the liturgy. In explaining the Orthodox view of the afterlife, Irving Greenberg
Irving Greenberg
Irving Greenberg, also known as Yitz Greenberg, is a Modern Orthodox rabbi, Jewish-American scholar and author. He is known as a strong supporter of Israel and a promoter of greater understanding between Judaism and Christianity....
, a Modern Orthodox rabbi, discussed both the "world to come" and the belief in punishment and reward in a Moment Magazine "Ask the Rabbis" forum:
Belief in the afterlife - a world to come in which the righteous get their true reward and the wicked get their deserved comeuppance - is a central teaching of traditional Judaism. This belief stems from the conviction that a loving God would not allow injustice to win.
When the facts of life did not fit the Bible's emphasis on reward and punishment in the here and now, this faith in the afterlife was emphasized. In the Middle AgesMiddle AgesThe Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, when Jews suffered so much while enemies ruled the world, the stress on the world to come grew stronger. Some religious teachers taught that this life is "unimportant," and that one should live only to be worthy of eternal bliss. This view spilled over into asceticism and less respect for the body and material activity.
Early modernizers reversed direction. They validated Judaism and dismissed Christianity by insisting that Judaism is interested only in doing good in earthly life. Christianity was criticized as otherworldly, repressive and dreaming only of getting to heaven. It was described as cruel for condemning people to eternal damnation. This modern one-sided emphasis on mortal life robbed Jews of the profound consolation of eternal life and justice for all who suffered unjustly and innocently.
What is needed is the classical Jewish ability to hold both sides of the tension. Such a Judaism would inspire people to find God in the secular, to unite body and soul, to work for tkkun olam (repairing the world) in the here and now. At the same time, it would uphold the reality of the spirit and the immortality of the soul. This faith offers the consolation of a final reunion - with those we have loved and lost with the El Maleh Rachamim, the Infinite God of Compassion.
In Conservative Judaism
Conservative JudaismConservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
has generally retained the tenet of the bodily resurrection of the dead, including traditional references to it in the liturgy. However, many Conservative Jews interpret the tenet metaphorically rather than literally. Conservative Judaism both affirms belief in the world beyond (as referenced in the Amidah
Amidah
The Amidah , also called the Shmoneh Esreh , is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. This prayer, among others, is found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book...
and Maimonides' Thirteen Precepts of Faith) while recognizing that human understanding is limited and we cannot know exactly what the world beyond consists of.
Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism
Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism have altered traditional references to the resurrection of the dead ("who gives life to the dead") to refer to "who gives life to all". Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism affirm belief in the afterlife, though they downplay the theological implications in favor of emphasizing the importance of the "here and now," as opposed to reward and punishment. Rabbi Laura Novak Winer, a member of the Union for Reform JudaismUnion for Reform Judaism
The Union for Reform Judaism , formerly known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations , is an organization which supports Reform Jewish congregations in North America. The current President is Rabbi Eric H...
, explains the Reform attitude towards the afterlife by quoting Abraham Joshua Heschel
Abraham Joshua Heschel
Abraham Joshua Heschel was a Polish-born American rabbi and one of the leading Jewish theologians and Jewish philosophers of the 20th century.-Biography:...
:
True, this world is only a 'vestibule to the world to come,' where we must prepare ourselves before we enter the 'banquet hall.' Yet in the eyes of God, the endeavor and the participation are greater than the achievement and perfection.
The "this world" orientation is not limited to the Reform and Reconstructionist movements. Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, in expounding the Chabad
Chabad
Chabad or Chabad-Lubavitch is a major branch of Hasidic Judaism.Chabad may also refer to:*Chabad-Strashelye, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism*Chabad-Kapust or Kapust, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism...
view of the afterlife, also affirms the necessity of focusing on one's legacy, along with Chabad's traditional belief in bodily resurrection in the Messianic era:
...none would dispute that a man's good acts live on as an eternal legacy after him, which is why Judaism has always emphasized the importance of positive action...just as the Talmud says the patriarch Jacob never died because his children continue the tradition he taught them, the same can be said of Martin Luther King Jr., whose commitment to racial harmony we continue to embrace, or of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, whose pioneering work in returning Jews to their heritage continues to influence every strand of world Jewry.
Reincarnation
The notion of reincarnation, while held as a mystical belief by some, is not an essential tenent of traditional Judaism. It is not mentioned in traditional classical sources such as the TanakhTanakh
The Tanakh is a name used in Judaism for the canon of the Hebrew Bible. The Tanakh is also known as the Masoretic Text or the Miqra. The name is an acronym formed from the initial Hebrew letters of the Masoretic Text's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah , Nevi'im and Ketuvim —hence...
("Hebrew Bible"), the classical rabbinic works (Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
and Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
), or Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
' 13 Principles of Faith. While one might contend the idea of reincarnation is not outlined in the Tanakh, there exist references to resurrection throughout Isaiah. However, books of Kabbalah
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
— Jewish mysticism — teach a belief in gilgul
Gilgul
Gilgul/Gilgul neshamot/Gilgulei Ha Neshamot describes a Kabbalistic concept of reincarnation. In Hebrew, the word gilgul means "cycle" and neshamot is the plural for "souls." Souls are seen to "cycle" through "lives" or "incarnations", being attached to different human bodies over time...
, transmigration of souls, and hence the belief is universal in Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
, which regards the Kabbalah as sacred and authoritative.
Among well known Rabbis who rejected the idea of reincarnation are Saadia Gaon
Saadia Gaon
Saʻadiah ben Yosef Gaon was a prominent rabbi, Jewish philosopher, and exegete of the Geonic period.The first important rabbinic figure to write extensively in Arabic, he is considered the founder of Judeo-Arabic literature...
, David Kimhi
David Kimhi
David Kimhi , also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RaDaK , was a medieval rabbi, biblical commentator, philosopher, and grammarian. Born in Narbonne, Provence, he was the son of Rabbi Joseph Kimhi and the brother of Rabbi Moses Kimhi, both biblical commentators and grammarians...
, Hasdai Crescas
Hasdai Crescas
Hasdai ben Judah Crescas was a Jewish philosopher and a renowned halakhist...
, Yedayah Bedershi (early 14th century), Joseph Albo
Joseph Albo
Joseph Albo was a Jewish philosopher and rabbi who lived in Spain during the fifteenth century, known chiefly as the author of Sefer ha-Ikkarim , the classic work on the fundamentals of Judaism.-Early life:Albo's birthplace is generally assumed to be Monreal, a town in Aragon...
, Abraham ibn Daud
Abraham ibn Daud
Abraham ibn Daud was a Spanish-Jewish astronomer, historian, and philosopher; born at Toledo, Spain about 1110; died, according to common report, a martyr about 1180. He is sometimes known by the abbreviation Rabad I or Ravad I. His mother belonged to a family famed for its learning...
and Leon de Modena. Among the Geonim
Geonim
Geonim were the presidents of the two great Babylonian, Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita, in the Abbasid Caliphate, and were the generally accepted spiritual leaders of the Jewish community world wide in the early medieval era, in contrast to the Resh Galuta who wielded secular authority...
, Hai Gaon
Hai Gaon
Hai ben Sherira , was a medieval Jewish theologian, rabbi and scholar who served as Gaon of the Talmudic academy of Pumbedita during the early 11th century. He was born in 939 and died on March 28, 1038...
argued with Saadia Gaon in favour of gilgulim.
Rabbis who accepted the idea of reincarnation include, from Medieval times: the mystical leaders Nahmanides
Nahmanides
Nahmanides, also known as Rabbi Moses ben Naḥman Girondi, Bonastruc ça Porta and by his acronym Ramban, , was a leading medieval Jewish scholar, Catalan rabbi, philosopher, physician, kabbalist, and biblical commentator.-Name:"Nahmanides" is a Greek-influenced formation meaning "son of Naḥman"...
(the Ramban) and Rabbenu Bahya ben Asher
Bahya ben Asher
Bahye ben Asher ibn Halawa also known as Rabbeinu Behaye was a rabbi and scholar of Judaism. He was a commentator on the Hebrew Bible and is noted for introducing Kabbalah into study of the Torah.He is considered by Jewish scholars to be one of the most distinguished of the Biblical exegetes of...
; from the 16th-century: Levi ibn Habib (the Ralbah), and from the mystical school of Safed Shelomoh Alkabez, Isaac Luria
Isaac Luria
Isaac Luria , also called Yitzhak Ben Shlomo Ashkenazi acronym "The Ari" "Ari-Hakadosh", or "Arizal", meaning "The Lion", was a foremost rabbi and Jewish mystic in the community of Safed in the Galilee region of Ottoman Palestine...
(the Ari) and his exponent Hayyim Vital; and from the 18th-century: the founder of Hasidism Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, later Hasidic Masters, and the Lithuanian Jewish Orthodox leader and Kabbalist the Vilna Gaon
Vilna Gaon
Elijah ben Shlomo Zalman Kramer, known as the Vilna Gaon or Elijah of Vilna and simply by his Hebrew acronym Gra or Elijah Ben Solomon, , was a Talmudist, halachist, kabbalist, and the foremost leader of non-hasidic Jewry of the past few centuries...
.
With the 16th-century rational systemisation of Cordoveran Kabbalah by the Ramak, and the subsequent new paradigm of Lurianic Kabbalah by the Ari, Kabbalah
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
replaced "Hakirah
Jewish philosophy
Jewish philosophy , includes all philosophy carried out by Jews, or, in relation to the religion of Judaism. Jewish philosophy, until modern Enlightenment and Emancipation, was pre-occupied with attempts to reconcile coherent new ideas into the tradition of Rabbinic Judaism; thus organizing...
" (Rationalistic Medieval Jewish Philosophy) as the mainstream traditional Jewish theology, both in scholarly circles and in the popular imagination. Isaac Luria taught new explanations of the process of gilgul, and identification of the reincarnations of historic Jewish figures, which were copiled by Haim Vital in his Shaar HaGilgulim.
In Kabbalistic understanding of gilgul, which differs from many Eastern-religious views, reincarnation is not fatalistic or automatic, nor is it essentially a punishment of sin, or reward of virtue. In Judaism, the Heavenly realms could fulfill Maimonides' Principle of faith
Jewish principles of faith
The concept of an explicit, paramount definition of faith does not exist in Judaism as it does in other monotheistic religions such as Christianity. Although Jews and religious leaders share a core of monotheistic principles, and there are many fundamental principles quoted in the Talmud to define...
in Reward and Punishment. Rather, it is concerned with the process of individual Tikkun
Tikkun olam
Tikkun olam is a Hebrew phrase that means "repairing the world." In Judaism, the concept of tikkun olam originated in the early rabbinic period...
(Rectification) of the soul. In Kabbalistic interpretation, each Jewish soul is reincarnated enough times only in order to fulfil each of the 613 Mitzvot
613 mitzvot
The 613 commandments is a numbering of the statements and principles of law, ethics, and spiritual practice contained in the Torah or Five Books of Moses...
. The souls of the righteous among the Nations may be assisted through gilgulim to fulfil their Seven Laws of Noah. As such gilgul is an expression of Divine compassion, and is seen as a Heavenly agreement with the individual soul to descend again. This stress on physical performance and perfection of each Mitzvah, is tied to the Lurianic doctrine of Cosmic Tikkun of Creation. In these new teachings, a Cosmic catastrophe occurred at the beginning of Creation called the "Shattering of the Vessels" of the Sephirot in the "World of Tohu (Chaos)". The vessels of the Sephirot broke and fell down through the spiritual Worlds until they were embedded in our physical realm as "sparks of holiness" (Nitzutzot). The reason in Lurianic Kabbalah that almost all Mitzvot involve physical action, is that through their performance, they elevate each particular Spark of holiness associated with that commandment. Once all the Sparks are redeemed to their spiritual source, the Messianic Era begins. This metaphysical theology gives cosmic significance to the life of each person, as each individual has particular tasks that only they can fulfil. Therefore, gilgulim assist the individual soul in this cosmic plan. This also explains the Kabbalistic reason why the future eschatological Utopia
Utopia
Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...
will be in this World, as only in the lowest, Physical realm is the purpose of Creation fulfilled.
The idea of gilgul became popular in folk belief, and is found in much Yiddish literature
Yiddish literature
Yiddish literature encompasses all belles lettres written in Yiddish, the language of Ashkenazic Jewry which is related to Middle High German. The history of Yiddish, with its roots in central Europe and locus for centuries in Eastern Europe, is evident in its literature.It is generally described...
among Ashkenazi Jews.