Atchalta De'Geulah
Encyclopedia
Atchalta De'Geulah is a term for a concept
of an idea
, derived from the Gemara
. It refers to the notion of a period of time in which a new stage of revival in the process of the redemption and the coming of the Jewish Messiah. Hence, a pivotal point in time, since it is the initial stage of the salvation
process that constitutes a different period in time, in many senses, and especially different from all previous period of times. It is the core idea of the Religious Zionism
movement (also known as the "settlers
").
and on, one may find many characteristics to the various stages of the redemption. Among the most notable of them are:
, a movement whose belief is that redeeming the Land of Israel
and the establishment of the state of Israel
will bring about the Jewish Messiah, was Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaCohen Kook
("HaRaAYaH"). In numerous references, he called our present times Atchalta De'Geulah. In his epistle from 1918 (תרע"ח; Hebrew calendar
) he writes:
HaRaAYaH's son, Zvi Yehuda Kook
, one of the main spiritual leaders of the Israeli settlement
movement, following R. Judah Loew ben Bezalel
(the "Maharal of Prague
"), in his work "Lenetivot Israel", reinforces his Atchalta De'Geulah argument for having an agricultural prosperity, which he views with favour, as is stated in the Gemara
:
The principal learning textbook of the Religious Zionism movement is the book of R. Menachem Mendel Kasher
, HaTekufah HaGedolah ("The Great Era"), in which he explains the meaning of our times according to the Religious Zionism
view. Some additional textbooks that convey this world view are: R. Yitzhak Dadon book, Atchalta Hee ("Atchalta it is"), and R. Ya'akov Moshe Bergman's book, Can the state of Israel be the Atchalta De'Geulah?"
, in contrast to the Religious Zionism view, opines that the coming of the Jewish Messiah will bring about the redemption of the Land of Israel and its people (whenever this may occur, and in many different aspects). Still, the Haredi Judaism community, either outside of Israel or within the state of Israel (except for Satmar Hasidism), give their consent to the Jewish rule of Israel and its state (in a different annotation), and see the advantages of it. In their view these are two separate issues, the state of Israel and the coming of the Messiah.
They also claim to distinguish between two concepts of ideas:
R. Menachem Mendel Schneerson
("the Lubavitcher Rebbe" of Chabad
), who was a strong supporter of Israel
, opposed the concept of defining the state of Israel as an Atchalta De'Geulah, and claimed that many are killed in Israel due to some who attributed the term Atchalta De'Geulah to the state of Israel, and also, he claimed, it is delaying the "revealed end [times]".
In that conjunction, Prof. Israel Eldad
wrote in an article in one of the major Israeli daily newspapers, Yedioth Ahronoth
, about the Lubavitcher Rebbe's visit in Israel: "When I tried to bring up the conventional formula of the Religious Zionism, that Israel is the Atchalta De'Geulah ... his tone of voice took a sudden turn, he banged on the table with his fist, and retorted: 'Rabbi Kook was wrong ..." . It was a separate issue in his mind.
Concept
The word concept is used in ordinary language as well as in almost all academic disciplines. Particularly in philosophy, psychology and cognitive sciences the term is much used and much discussed. WordNet defines concept: "conception, construct ". However, the meaning of the term concept is much...
of an idea
Idea
In the most narrow sense, an idea is just whatever is before the mind when one thinks. Very often, ideas are construed as representational images; i.e. images of some object. In other contexts, ideas are taken to be concepts, although abstract concepts do not necessarily appear as images...
, derived from 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...
. It refers to the notion of a period of time in which a new stage of revival in the process of the redemption and the coming of the Jewish Messiah. Hence, a pivotal point in time, since it is the initial stage of the salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
process that constitutes a different period in time, in many senses, and especially different from all previous period of times. It is the core idea of the Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
movement (also known as the "settlers
Israeli settlement
An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
").
Origins in the Classical texts
In the Jewish classical texts, from the GemaraGemara
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...
and on, one may find many characteristics to the various stages of the redemption. Among the most notable of them are:
- Difficulties and sufferingSufferingSuffering, or pain in a broad sense, is an individual's basic affective experience of unpleasantness and aversion associated with harm or threat of harm. Suffering may be qualified as physical or mental. It may come in all degrees of intensity, from mild to intolerable. Factors of duration and...
s - as is stated: "Let him [The Messiah] come, but let me not see him" - b. TalmudTalmudThe 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....
, Tractate SanhedrinSanhedrin (Talmud)Sanhedrin is one of ten tractates of Seder Nezikin . It originally formed one tractate with Makkot, which also deals with criminal law...
, 98b - Growth of the PlantPlantPlants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
s in the Land of IsraelLand 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...
- In the Gemara it is stated: "There is no more revealed end than this" - b. TalmudTalmudThe 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....
, Tractate SanhedrinSanhedrin (Talmud)Sanhedrin is one of ten tractates of Seder Nezikin . It originally formed one tractate with Makkot, which also deals with criminal law...
, 98a - Jewish reign in the Land of IsraelLand 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...
- As the words of the AmoraAmoraAmoraim , were renowned Jewish scholars who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral law, from about 200 to 500 CE in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. Their legal discussions and debates were eventually codified in the Gemara...
Samuel utters: "There is no difference between this world and the days of the Messiah except [that in the latter there will be no] bondage of foreign powers" - b. TalmudTalmudThe 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....
, Tractate BerakothBerakhot (Talmud)Berachot is the first tractate of Seder Zeraim, a collection of the Mishnah that primarily deals with laws relating to plants and farming...
, 34b; words that later were ruled to be an HalakhaHalakhaHalakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
ic law by MaimonidesMaimonidesMoses 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...
in his work Mishneh TorahMishneh TorahThe Mishneh Torah subtitled Sefer Yad ha-Hazaka is a code of Jewish religious law authored by Maimonides , one of history's foremost rabbis... - Wars that the People of Israel participate in - "In the sixth year will be thunderings, in the seventh wars, at the end of the seventh the son of David will come? War is also the Atchalta De'Geulah " - b. TalmudTalmudThe 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....
, Tractate MegillahMegillah (Talmud)Megillah is the tenth Tractate of Mishnah in the Order Moed. It and its Gemara deal with the laws of Purim and offers exegetical understandings to the Book of Esther. It also includes laws concerning the public reading of the Torah and other communal synagogue practices...
, 17b
Religious Zionism attitude
One of the fathers of the Religious Zionist MovementReligious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
, a movement whose belief is that redeeming the Land of Israel
Land of Israel
The 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...
and the establishment of the state of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
will bring about the Jewish Messiah, was Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaCohen Kook
Abraham Isaac Kook
Abraham Isaac Kook was the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of the British Mandate for Palestine, the founder of the Religious Zionist Yeshiva Merkaz HaRav, Jewish thinker, Halachist, Kabbalist and a renowned Torah scholar...
("HaRaAYaH"). In numerous references, he called our present times Atchalta De'Geulah. In his epistle from 1918 (תרע"ח; Hebrew calendar
Hebrew calendar
The Hebrew calendar , or Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today predominantly for Jewish religious observances. It determines the dates for Jewish holidays and the appropriate public reading of Torah portions, yahrzeits , and daily Psalm reading, among many ceremonial uses...
) he writes:
HaRaAYaH's son, Zvi Yehuda Kook
Zvi Yehuda Kook
Zvi Yehuda Kook was a rabbi, leader of Religious Zionism and Rosh Yeshiva of the Mercaz HaRav yeshiva...
, one of the main spiritual leaders of the Israeli settlement
Israeli settlement
An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
movement, following R. Judah Loew ben Bezalel
Judah Loew ben Bezalel
Judah Loew ben Bezalel, alt. Loewe, Löwe, or Levai, widely known to scholars of Judaism as the Maharal of Prague, or simply The MaHaRaL, the Hebrew acronym of "Moreinu ha-Rav Loew," was an important Talmudic scholar, Jewish mystic, and philosopher who served as a leading rabbi in the city of...
(the "Maharal of Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
"), in his work "Lenetivot Israel", reinforces his Atchalta De'Geulah argument for having an agricultural prosperity, which he views with favour, as is stated in 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...
:
The principal learning textbook of the Religious Zionism movement is the book of R. Menachem Mendel Kasher
Menachem Mendel Kasher
Menachem Mendel Kasher was a Polish-born Israeli rabbi and prolific author who authored an encyclopedic work on the Torah entitled Torah Sheleimah.-Early life:...
, HaTekufah HaGedolah ("The Great Era"), in which he explains the meaning of our times according to the Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
view. Some additional textbooks that convey this world view are: R. Yitzhak Dadon book, Atchalta Hee ("Atchalta it is"), and R. Ya'akov Moshe Bergman's book, Can the state of Israel be the Atchalta De'Geulah?"
Haredi Judaism attitude
The Haredi JudaismHaredi Judaism
Haredi or Charedi/Chareidi Judaism is the most conservative form of Orthodox Judaism, often referred to as ultra-Orthodox. A follower of Haredi Judaism is called a Haredi ....
, in contrast to the Religious Zionism view, opines that the coming of the Jewish Messiah will bring about the redemption of the Land of Israel and its people (whenever this may occur, and in many different aspects). Still, the Haredi Judaism community, either outside of Israel or within the state of Israel (except for Satmar Hasidism), give their consent to the Jewish rule of Israel and its state (in a different annotation), and see the advantages of it. In their view these are two separate issues, the state of Israel and the coming of the Messiah.
They also claim to distinguish between two concepts of ideas:
- Atchalta De'Geulah - the beginning of the redemption [Process]
- Ikveta De'Meshicha - the footsteps (or delay) of The Messiah (i.e.: a period of time of crisis and sufferings leading up to the coming of the Jewish Messiah)
R. Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Menachem Mendel Schneerson
Menachem Mendel Schneerson , known as the Lubavitcher Rebbe or just the Rebbe among his followers, was a prominent Hasidic rabbi who was the seventh and last Rebbe of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. He was fifth in a direct paternal line to the third Chabad-Lubavitch Rebbe, Menachem Mendel...
("the Lubavitcher Rebbe" of 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...
), who was a strong supporter of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, opposed the concept of defining the state of Israel as an Atchalta De'Geulah, and claimed that many are killed in Israel due to some who attributed the term Atchalta De'Geulah to the state of Israel, and also, he claimed, it is delaying the "revealed end [times]".
In that conjunction, Prof. Israel Eldad
Israel Eldad
Israel Eldad , was a noted Israeli independence fighter and Revisionist Zionist philosopher...
wrote in an article in one of the major Israeli daily newspapers, Yedioth Ahronoth
Yedioth Ahronoth
Yedioth Ahronoth is a daily newspaper published in Tel Aviv, Israel. Since the 1970s, it has been the most widely circulated paper in Israel. In a TGI survey comparing the last half of 2009 with the same period in 2008, Yedioth Ahronoth retained the title of most widely read newspaper in Israel...
, about the Lubavitcher Rebbe's visit in Israel: "When I tried to bring up the conventional formula of the Religious Zionism, that Israel is the Atchalta De'Geulah ... his tone of voice took a sudden turn, he banged on the table with his fist, and retorted: 'Rabbi Kook was wrong ..." . It was a separate issue in his mind.
See also
- Religious ZionismReligious ZionismReligious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
- Streams of ZionismStreams of ZionismThe Zionist Movement was produced by various philosophers representing different approaches concerning the objective and path that Zionism should follow. The principal common goal was the aspiration to establish an independent state for the Jewish people. However, the method of action needed was...
- Gathering of IsraelGathering of IsraelThe Gathering of Israel is the promise given by Moses, in the Hebrew Bible, to the People of Israel before his death, prior to their entrance to Eretz Israel...
- Bnei AkivaBnei AkivaBnei Akiva is the largest religious Zionist youth movement in the world, with over 125,000 members in 37 countries. It was established in Mandate Palestine in 1929.-History:...
- Totah veAvodah
- Torato OmanutoTorato OmanutoTorato Omanuto is a term describing one who's Torah study is his main occupation...
- Reishit Tzmihat Geulateinu
- Abraham Isaac HaCohen KookAbraham Isaac KookAbraham Isaac Kook was the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of the British Mandate for Palestine, the founder of the Religious Zionist Yeshiva Merkaz HaRav, Jewish thinker, Halachist, Kabbalist and a renowned Torah scholar...
- Zvi Yehuda HaCohen KookZvi Yehuda KookZvi Yehuda Kook was a rabbi, leader of Religious Zionism and Rosh Yeshiva of the Mercaz HaRav yeshiva...
- Haredi JudaismHaredi JudaismHaredi or Charedi/Chareidi Judaism is the most conservative form of Orthodox Judaism, often referred to as ultra-Orthodox. A follower of Haredi Judaism is called a Haredi ....
- HardalHardalChardal ; Hebrew: חרד"ל, acronym for חרדי לאומי, Charedi Le-umi, lit. "Nationalist Charedi", Plural: Chardalim refers to the Ultra-Orthodox Jews who support the ideology of Religious Zionism...
- Israeli settlementIsraeli settlementAn Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
s - Religion in IsraelReligion in IsraelReligion in Israel is a central feature of the country and plays a major role in shaping Israeli culture and lifestyle, and religion has played a central role in Israel's history. Israel is also the only country in the world where a majority of citizens are Jewish...