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How Should We Be Waiting for Moshiach?

Our belief in Moshiach and his coming is a fundamental part of Yiddishkeit. Aside
from the fact that it's one of the Rambam's 13 principles of emunah and we daven for it
daily, there are countless commentaries by our Sages all attempting to decipher the
cryptic references to Moshiach's arrival that are scattered throughout the Torah and
the sayings of our nevi'im.
Yet, honestly, how many of us today could say we are actively waiting for Moshiach?
How many of us feel in our hearts that Moshiach and his arrival are really a part of our
daily lives and not just something we are declaring with our lips?
Even when Moshiach is mentioned, he is usually just seen as the final solution to our
daily pains and problems (Oy, Moshiach should come already!). Perhaps this so
because we have heard that in , the Days of Moshiach, there will be only
peace and tranquility, as well as the unified awareness of HaShem- among Jews and
goyim alike.
That said, this article is not about describing who Moshiach is, nor the events leading
up to his arrival. You can find plenty of other sources online and off that discuss these
topics at length. My goal is to explain how we, as Torah observant Jewish women, can
relate to the concept of Moshiach today in a palpable and positive way, and in the
process not only affect how he comes, but when.

What Should We Hope For?

The truth is we shouldn't just be davening for Moshiach to come now or even to come
quickly; we really need to be davening for something else, instead.
Let me explain...
Chazal tell us that Moshiach ben Dovid will only come in a generation that is either
completely meritorious (zakai) or completely unworthy (chayav). There is no in
between:
R. Johanan also said: The son of David will come only in a
generation that is either altogether righteous or altogether without
merit. 'in a generation that is altogether righteous,' as it is
written, Your people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit
the land for ever. 'Or altogether wicked,' as it is written, And he
saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no
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intercessor; and it is [elsewhere] written, For mine own sake, even

for mine own sake, will I do it. [Sanhendrin 98a]
What is the distinction between a completely righteous, meritorious generation versus
one without merit? Rav Dessler explains that a completely unworthy generation is one
in which there is no longer any hope that they will do teshuva on their own. [Strive for
Truth, Vol. p107]. It is a situation where the majority of Yidden are so consumed and
numbed by their taivahs (pride, lust, jealousy, etc) that they are completely shut off to
emes and to the messages that HaShem sends to them to help them return to the right
path- even when those messages come in the form of painful yissurim. They have lost
their desire for spiritual growth and are content to continue pursuing physical
pleasures or to simply go through the motions of their Yiddishkeit.
In such a case, Rav Dessler explains that there is no longer any point in prolonging the
exile. HaShem thus creates a situation that will basically force the Yidden to come back
to Him:
[T]he Holy One, blessed be He, will set up a king over them, whose
decrees shall be as cruel as Haman's, whereby Israel shall engage in
repentance, and He will thus bring them back to the right path.
[Sanhendrin 97b]
There are several consequences of this form of redemption:

We will need to endure the terrifying war of Gog and Magog that may claim
many Jewish lives.

The gemara also states that our merit, or lack thereof, will affect how and when
the era of Moshiach is ushered in:
R. Alexandri said: R. Joshua b. Levi pointed out a contradiction: It is
written, In its time [will Moshiach come], while it is also written, I
[the Lord] will hasten it! If they are worthy, I will hasten it: if not, [he
will come] at the appointed time. R. Alexandri said: R. Joshua
opposed two verses: it is written, And behold, one like the son of man
came with the clouds of heaven, while [elsewhere] it is written, lowly,
and riding upon a donkey! If they are meritorious, [Moshiach will
come] with the clouds of heaven; if not, lowly and riding upon a
donkey. [Sanhendrin 98a]

Plus, Chazal tell us that the ideal teshuva is motivated by a sincere, inner desire
to return to HaShem, not from fear of punishment or the anticipation of a Divine

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reward. (see Sforno on Devarim 30:2) This lower form of teshuva will no doubt
impact the level and quality of the redemption itself as well.
In other words, Moshiach may still come in the appointed time even if we don't merit
it, but not in the most desirable way.
Now there is an obvious question that needs to be addressed: looking around there
seems to be many people who are doing good deeds and following the ways Torah.
There are many who appear to be sincerely striving for spiritual growth, as well. How
is it, therefore, that we could reach such a low state where all of us (each in his or her
own way) will be pulled after sheker and are unreceptive to HaShem's entreaties?
The answer is that the Satan/ Yatzer Hara has a powerful weapon at his disposal that
can make our ability to do teshuva on a national level impossible: it's called despair.
When we forget about HaShem's abundant mercy, and the fact that He is with us in
our difficulty (as along as we let Him in)... when we forget about His boundless love for
us as a nation as well as His love for each and every one of us individually... when we
don't believe that He is really listening to our tefillas and that these same tefillas have
the power to change reality and our mazel... when we lose all hope that we will ever be
able to change... or make a difference... when we doubt our importance... that is when
we will create our own reality so to speak. If we push HaShem away, then He will have
to hide His Face from us. If we continue to assert that all is lost, then indeed it will be.
Now, let's consider the other side.
What does it mean that a generation is altogether worthy? Does HaShem really expect
us to all become great tzaddikim, and if earlier, more spiritually connected generations
couldn't achieve such a lofty status, how then will we ever be able to do it?
Before I answer these questions, we need to first realize one thing: while our
current generation may certainly be the lowest in terms of our awareness
of HaShem, our understanding of His Torah, and the purity of our
thoughts and deeds, yet there has never been a generation higher than
ours.
Today, we have no Bais HaMigdash, no nevi'im, our Rebbes and Rabbonim are not like
those of previous generations. (Who today can be compared to the holy Chofetz Chaim
", Rebbe Aharon of Belze ", or the Baba Sali ? "And, these gedolim lived only two or
three generations ago!) These days there is spiritual malaise and disconnect, there is
confusion even among Torah leadership, and tremendous spiritual and physical
nisyonis like we have never seen before.

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Some of the Sages from the Gemarra were terrified of the End of Days: Let
[Moshiach] come, but let me not see him! [Sanhedrin 98b]. It wasn't the war of Gog
and Megog that scared them; it was the ease at which a person can be pulled away
from HaShem and from His Torah.
Even given all of this, we know that HaShem doesn't send a test to someone who can't
pass it. By virtue of the fact that we find ourselves in this situation, it means that our
generation has the potential spiritual strength to overcome all of the tremendous
nisyonis mentioned above and return to Him.
Think about that for a moment...
For us to do teshuva, for us to come from such a far and low place, and bring HaShem
in, even here, the amount of Cavod Shamayim that would flow into the world would
outshine practically anything that came before it...
Yet, HaShem obviously believes that we can do it. So, the question is why don't we?
According to the Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh ", the nisoyon of the last generation will be
the test of emunah But, emunah is something that happens on a personal level, and
herein lies a very important point.
In his sefer entitled Kadmus, the Chida offers an important insight based on the
brocha in the shemoneh esrei where we daven for the coming of Moshiach:

The offspring of Your servant Dovid may you speedily cause to flourish
and enhance his pride through Your salvation because we hope for Your
salvation all day long...
The Chida asks how does the word because fit in since it implies causation? He
responds that this is exactly what is happening. Davka because we hope for HaShem's
salvation, it brings Moshiach and the Redemption closer. 1
I want to expand on this idea. The most important factor today that will give us
merit and bring Moshiach is that we hope for HaShem's salvation in our
personal lives.
In nusach sefard, there is an added text:

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and we expect/look for salvation

When the majority of us are individually turning to HaShem and not only hoping for
personal yeshuas, but both expecting them and looking out for them every day, when
we are making the effort to acknowledge HaShem's hashgacha in our daily affairs, and
doing our best to come closer to Him as individuals and as a nation... then Moshiach
has the space to come.

Where Do We Begin?
But while our goal may be lofty, our main focus should be on the tiny steps, those little
changes, we can start making today.
The Midrash on Shir HaShirim (5:2) says:

, ! :
,
The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, My sons, open for Me
an opening of teshuva like the eye of a needle, and I will open for
you openings big enough for wagons and carriages to pass
through [or like the gates of the sanctuary]
What this means is that for every bit of effort a person makes in an attempt to come
closer to HaShem, HaShem responds with favor and assistance that is exponentially
greater. As it says in gemara Yoma 39a: The one who sanctifies himself a little,
Heaven helps to sanctify him a lot.
A generation that is completely worthy, does not necessarily mean that all of us will
be perfect tzaddikim. It could just mean that deep within our hearts we sincerely want
to be on the path of emes- even if that desire comes out in the smallest of actions.
Chazal tell us that a person is led on the path he wishes to travel (Bamidbar Rabbah
20:12). So, we can be assured that HaShem will guide us along the way.
But, there is more. According to the Baal Shem Tov "a person is where his thoughts
are, and Chazal tell us if one planned to do a mitzvah and was prevented against his
will, HaShem views this as if he had done the mitzvah anyway.

A good thought is regarded as a [good] deed Rav Assi said:
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Even if a person was contemplating fulfilling a mitzvah

and was unavoidably prevented from performing it,
Scripture credits him as if he fulfilled it.
Kidushin 40a
The point is even if we don't reach our goals, but we sincerely strived for them, then
from HaShem's perspective it's as if we have fulfilled all that we had planned to do.
Whether or not we reach our goals is anyway not up to us, as it says,

You are not required to complete the task.
(Pirkei Avos 2:21)

Changing the Way We Daven for Moshiach

When we say things like We want Moshiach now or may Moshiach come soon, we
can have in mind that the process of our preparation as individuals and as a nation
should start. We should be davening that HaShem help us to prepare the space and the
cailim we need to receive Moshiach properly and to merit his coming in the most
auspicious way.
And this brings me to the role that we as Jewish women have to play in all of this.
The main purpose of Moshiach and the days that surround his coming is to bring the
world to a higher awareness of HaShem. As women, we have the innate ability to help
those around us come closer to HaShem as we ourselves are coming closer and
strengthening our own emunah This process starts, as I mentioned above, with our
personal relationship to HaShem and will naturally flow from there.

A Final Word...
I truly believe that the ones who are in the best position to usher in the redemption are
not those who don't know anything- the Yidden who have never lived a life of Torah
and mitzvot. While kiruv among these Jews is extremely important, the
responsibility for Moshiach's coming is on those of us who do know- the
Torah observant communities.
Whether or not we are deemed a generation that is worthy will not depend on some
unattainable spiritual perfection. Instead, it will be based on our personal willingness
to push ourselves out of our comfort zone and on our sincere desire to break away from
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the sheker in our lives in order to come closer to HaShem. But for this to happen, we
need to have hope and we need to have emunah in HaShem, His yeshua, and our real
potential, both as individuals and as a nation.
May we merit to see Moshiach speedily in our days!
1

I learned about this source from an old Chabad video. You can watch it here.

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