?You are a prince of G-d in our midst.?
The day that Abraham died all the prominent members of the nations of the world stood in a line and said, ?Woe to the world that has lost its leader! Woe to the ship that has lost its captain.? (Bava Batra 91a)
Abraham was the spiritual leader of the world. He revealed and taught that the world has a single Ruler, and that the world runs only in accordance with the benevolent will of the Creator of the Universe.
At the same time, Abraham was a political leader. He taught that a man must follow in G-d?s path and do charity and justice, as it says, ?I have given him special attention so that he will command his children and his household after him, and they will keep G-d?s way, doing charity and justice.? (Genesis 18:19) From this standpoint, Abraham was like a ship?s captain, whose task it is to bring the ship to safe harbor.
The title he earned through the sons of Heth was that of ?prince of G-d in our midst.? (Genesis 23:6) That is, he was a prince - a political leader - but at the same time he clung to G-d - making him a spiritual leader. By the same token, Moses earned the title ?man of G-d,? (Deuteronomy 33:1) in that he constantly clung to G-d.
Today, the Jewish People in the State of Israel need a ruler like Abraham, a spiritual leader who is also a political leader. On the one hand, he must be a man of great faith, a man of moral stature who clings to G-d?s ways and does charity and justice. At the same time, he must be a political ruler who can lead the country to peace and security, bringing them to safe harbor despite the storms and tribulations along the way.
Rambam, in setting out to describe the Messiah, indeed describes him as both a spiritual and a political leader:
?If a king arises from the house of David, who studies the Torah and performs mitzvot in accordance with both the Oral and the Written Torah like his ancestor David, and he compels all of Israel to follow the Torah and to become strong in observance, and he fights G-d?s battles, then he will be presumed to be the Messiah.? (Hilchot Melachim 11:4)
Our sages said, ?Our ancestors? deeds presage our own.? Already at the start of our nation?s path, Abraham signified what the future leader of the Jewish People would have to be: a ?prince of G-d.? Only such a leader would be able, with G-d?s help, to lead the Jewish People to complete redemption, and by such means, to bring light and goodness to all mankind.
As Rambam said in his Thirteen Principles of Faith: ?I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah. And even if he tarries, I daily wait for his coming.?
The day that Abraham died all the prominent members of the nations of the world stood in a line and said, ?Woe to the world that has lost its leader! Woe to the ship that has lost its captain.? (Bava Batra 91a)
Abraham was the spiritual leader of the world. He revealed and taught that the world has a single Ruler, and that the world runs only in accordance with the benevolent will of the Creator of the Universe.
At the same time, Abraham was a political leader. He taught that a man must follow in G-d?s path and do charity and justice, as it says, ?I have given him special attention so that he will command his children and his household after him, and they will keep G-d?s way, doing charity and justice.? (Genesis 18:19) From this standpoint, Abraham was like a ship?s captain, whose task it is to bring the ship to safe harbor.
The title he earned through the sons of Heth was that of ?prince of G-d in our midst.? (Genesis 23:6) That is, he was a prince - a political leader - but at the same time he clung to G-d - making him a spiritual leader. By the same token, Moses earned the title ?man of G-d,? (Deuteronomy 33:1) in that he constantly clung to G-d.
Today, the Jewish People in the State of Israel need a ruler like Abraham, a spiritual leader who is also a political leader. On the one hand, he must be a man of great faith, a man of moral stature who clings to G-d?s ways and does charity and justice. At the same time, he must be a political ruler who can lead the country to peace and security, bringing them to safe harbor despite the storms and tribulations along the way.
Rambam, in setting out to describe the Messiah, indeed describes him as both a spiritual and a political leader:
?If a king arises from the house of David, who studies the Torah and performs mitzvot in accordance with both the Oral and the Written Torah like his ancestor David, and he compels all of Israel to follow the Torah and to become strong in observance, and he fights G-d?s battles, then he will be presumed to be the Messiah.? (Hilchot Melachim 11:4)
Our sages said, ?Our ancestors? deeds presage our own.? Already at the start of our nation?s path, Abraham signified what the future leader of the Jewish People would have to be: a ?prince of G-d.? Only such a leader would be able, with G-d?s help, to lead the Jewish People to complete redemption, and by such means, to bring light and goodness to all mankind.
As Rambam said in his Thirteen Principles of Faith: ?I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah. And even if he tarries, I daily wait for his coming.?