Wandering Jew: What is the halacha?

[SerbianPatriot89]

I was always interested in Jewish halachic law.Do you know what the Talmud and the Verbal Torah says about the phenomenon of the International Jew and the nomad Jew who is insisting on living anywhere but Israel?

[muman613]

I was always interested in Jewish halachic law.Do you know what the Talmud and the Verbal Torah says about the phenomenon of the International Jew and the nomad Jew who is insisting on living anywhere but Israel?

There is not anything like that... Basically we have two states, Galut/Exile and Geula/Redemption...

When Moshiach comes all Jews will be gathered into Israel... Until such time Jews can live in exile.

[muman613]

http://www.chabad.org/library/moshiach/article_cdo/aid/1157488/jewish/The-Basics.htm

What is galut?

Galut means exile. Nearly 2,000 years ago the Jewish nation was driven out of its homeland and sent off into a tear-soaked galut that lasts to this very day. We wait and yearn for the day when our galut and suffering come to an end, when we will be returned to the Holy Land, with the coming of our redeemer, the Moshiach.

Why are we in galut?

Galut is often described as a punishment for our own failings. But this is only part of the story. At the "Covenant Between the Parts" between G‑d and Abraham, at which it was first established that there was going to be a Jewish people, G‑d informed Abraham that his descendents will be strangers in a land that is not theirs. The galut of the Jewish people was ordained before there was a Jewish people.

Similarly, it is a common conception that the Messianic Era is primarily intended as an opportunity for G‑d to reward His people for the millennia of galut when they loyally struggled and toiled in His service. While this is certainly one of the reasons for the Redemption, it is not its ultimate objective.

The second verse of Genesis tells us that "the earth was astonishingly empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the spirit of G‑d was hovering over the face of the water." On this the Midrash comments, "'The spirit of G‑d'—this is the spirit of Moshiach." In other words, G‑d created light and dark—both physical light and dark as well as their metaphoric counterparts: Redemption and galut. And even before that time, He envisioned a time when the light will banish the dark. He envisioned the spirit of Moshiach.
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This is the underlying reason why over the course of the centuries our nation has been scattered to the four corners of the earth. The "sparks" of holiness embedded in creation were dispersed throughout the globe, necessitating a Jew to make a blessing over a cup of water in Shanghai, to put up a mezuzah in Uzbekistan, and use waters in Johannesburg as a mikvah. Today, with the globalization of the markets, this is even simpler: we can sit in the United States and light menorahs that are "Made in China"...

This is what the Redemption is all about—not some radical change in creation, but the uncovering of nature's truest self, accomplished though our sojourn in galut.

As of now, the effect we have on the objects that we elevate is concealed. When the Moshiach comes, our eyes will be opened and we will see the fruit of our millennia-long labor.

This is why, interestingly, the Hebrew word for Redemption, geulah, is constituted of the very same letters as the word for exile, golah, with only the added letter of aleph transforming the word from "exile" to "redemption." The aleph, which has a numerical value of one, represents the One Creator, whom we insert – reveal – in every component of creation, thus consequentially bringing the object to a state of redemption. With the cumulative revelation of the alephs within every component of creation, we bring the world as a whole to a redemptive state. A world wherein G‑d is revealed.

Here we see what Rambam says about the Messianic age:

http://www.sichosinenglish.org/books/highlights-of-moshiach/08.htm

In the Rambam's Code we find a clear ruling pertaining to the order of events through Moshiach:[42]

"He will rebuild the Beis Hamikdash in its place and then will gather the ingathering of exiles."

It is known that the Rambam shows significance and meaning even in the order of his rulings, as is also seen in the beginning of this Chapter:[43]

"The King Moshiach will arise and will fully restore the Kingdom of David to its original esteemed sovereignty; then he will rebuild the Beis Hamikdash and will gather the remnants of Jews in exile."

No posek (Codifier) disagrees with this order and ruling. And the Halachic principle is[44] that wherever the Commentaries on Rambam do not disagree with him, it is proof that they agree with his ruling. In our case, this refers to the renowned Codifiers - Raavad, Kesef Mishneh, Radvaz, etc. (who show no disagreement with this ruling re: the order of Moshiach's activities).

Practical, legal rulings are found and authenticated only in the works of Poskim, and not in Midrashic or Talmudic sources. And Rambam is the classical authoritative Codifier, especially in the area of Moshiach.

As such, Moshiach will usher in the final end of exile and then will come the beginning of redemption, followed by the true and complete redemption. After this, Moshiach will bring the ingathering of the exiles to our homeland, Israel.

[muman613]

http://www.arachimusa.org/Index.asp?ArticleID=149&CategoryID=64&Page=2

THE WANDERING JEW

Q. Why are we called "Wandering Jews"?
        

A. The Jewish people became wanderers who went into exile after the destruction of the Holy Temples.  For seventy years, after the first Temple was destroyed in 586 B.C.E., the main center of Jewish population was in Babylonia.  With the destruction of the Second Temple, about 70 C.E., we again went into exile, this time for nearly two thousand years.  Over one half of the Jewish nation still lives in the Diaspora to this day.

The Bible clearly warns us that we will be expelled from our land as a consequence of failing to obey G-d's commandments.  Even the land itself suffered as a result of our misdeeds.  The Holy Land was bountiful and its inhabitants flourished while the Jews lived there.  With the exile, the Land of Israel became a desolate wasteland.

All this was predicted in advance:

And I will bring the land into desolation; and your enemies that dwell therein shall be astonished at it. And you, will I scatter among the nations, and I will draw out the sword after you; and your land shall be a desolation, and your cities shall be a waste.    (Leviticus 26:32-33)                                        

This prophecy was fulfilled in its entirety.  Israel was densely populated in ancient times, and was famous for its fertility, so much so, that it was termed "a land flowing with milk and honey."  Even so, after the Second Temple was destroyed, the country was unexpectedly transformed into a desolate wilderness.  In this, the Land of Israel stands unique.  No other location on the face of the globe has such a history of rich fertility in ancient times, followed by barren desolation.

True, there were other nations ravaged by war, but no other country changed so drastically.  This fact was known to all the gentile neighbors of Israel, so much so, that they expressed their wonder:

Even all the nations shall say "Wherefore has the L-rd done thus unto this land? What is the heat of this great anger?"  (Deuteronomy 29:23)

 

The contrast was so striking that even the gentiles recognized the Hand of G-d, as the prophet states:

Then shall they know that I am the L-rd, when I have made the land most desolate, because of all their abominations which they have committed.   (Ezekiel 33:29)

It was obvious to one and all that the tragic transformation had been brought about by divine intervention.  There was no explanation in the realm of nature that could account for the striking changes in the country.

The gentiles asked: Where will the Jews go, now that their land is destroyed?  Will they establish themselves as a nation in some other part of the globe?  Will they be swallowed up by another nation?

The Torah answered their question, even before they asked it:

"And G-d will scatter you among all the nations, from one end of the earth to the other."   (Deuteronomy 28:30)

Even though they were destined to wander from one country to the other, the Jews would never become completely assimilated into their host nation.  In the Book of Esther, we find Haman's description of the nation that refused to blend in with all the others:

And Haman said unto King Ahasverus: 'There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of thy kingdom; and their laws are diverse from those of every people; neither keep they the king's laws; therefore it does not profit the king to tolerate them.  (Esther 3:8)

 

Other nations have been uprooted and displaced, but they then settled permanently in a new location. In contrast, the Jew has been tossed from one spot on the globe to another, over a period of nearly two thousand years.  History has no parallel to the repeated upheavals and migrations which have been the lot of the Jewish People.  This fate is the direct result of G-d's plan to rectify their shortcomings by letting them experience a period of exile.

The image of the itinerant Jew, constantly roaming to escape the wrath of the gentiles and their merciless schemes to deprive him of his hard earned property, if not his life, became firmly engrained in the mind of the gentile.

The desolation of the former Jewish homeland was also noted by the gentiles.  It appeared that just as the nomadic Jew longed for his homeland, so, too, did the devastated mountains and valleys mourn for the sons and daughters who had been banished into exile.

Over the generations, the Jewish people continued to dream of the day when they would again tread the soil of their beloved Holy Land, and its rich, precious soil would again yield its fruits to its returning sons.

This process of return and the restoration of the land to its former level of fertility and productiveness, testifies to G-d's supervision of the life of the Jewish people, as a loving father who watches continually over his beloved children.

[muman613]

By the way, Jews never refer to the term 'Wandering Jew'... It was a derogatory title given to us by the Catholic church...


http://www.oztorah.com/2010/07/wandering-jew-ask-the-rabbi/

Q. What is the origin of the name, “Wandering Jew”?

A. There is a plant which bears the name Wandering Jew because it is has a tendency to spread. The name was probably given without conscious antisemitic malice. There is also a bird called Wandering Jew, and even a card game and a game of dice. However, in Christian legend there is certainly a mythical figure called the Wandering Jew who embodies anti-Jewish animus. The underlying notion is that the Jews are destined to wander and be reviled because they rejected Jesus.

The story takes many forms and its origin is likely to have had little if any specific connection with Jews. Not until the 13th century did it become a clearly antisemitic legend, often linked with the tradition that an officer of the high priesthood struck Jesus on the way to the cross and Jesus condemned him to suffer punishment until the so-called second coming (“You will go on forever until I return” is what Jesus is said to have told him). The Wandering Jew is said to be called Ahasuerus, the same name as the Persian king in the story of Mordechai and Esther. The Wandering Jew legend says that the Ahasuerus who struck Jesus was a Jerusalem shoemaker.

Centuries of anti-Jewish prejudice inexorably conditioned Christian communities to see the Jew as a pathetic sinner doomed by his rejection of Jesus. The Wandering Jew was given different names in different versions of the story and became the central character in a sheaf of poems, novels and artistic and musical works, though the tragedy of the Holocaust has largely discredited the notion. However, some fundamentalist Christian circles who hang on to the story find it hard to come to terms with the vitality, dignity and creativity of the Jewish people and the vibrancy of the State of Israel.


http://www.yeshiva.org.il/midrash/shiur.asp?id=10970

The same is true regarding more modern religions, as well. Before the founding of the State of Israel, Christians often "proved" their religion based upon the doctrine of the "wandering Jew", never to return to the Holy Land, as punishment, in their opinion, for our rejection of their god/messiah. Islam, as well, likes to see their successful military campaigns as proof that "god is Muslim". Contrarily, the formidable and independent State of Israel and Israeli army's trouncing our Islamic enemies, serve as theologically problematic, to say the least, for our "monotheistic competitors".

In a similar vein, the g'mara explains the reason we don't say hallel on Purim. 61 Despite the fact that Megilat Esther concludes with the Jews enjoying even superior status in Persia, 62 nevertheless, as long as we are under foreign rule, and "we are servants of Achashverosh", we are unable praise Hashem as if we are "servants of Hashem" (the opening phrase of hallel). Only one who has no other master, no division of loyalty between his nation and his G-d (note the case of Jonathan Pollard), can serve Hashem wholeheartedly. "Whoever lives in Eretz Yisrael is as if he has a G-d, and whoever lives in chutz laAretz, is as if he has no G-d, as it is written '…to give you the Land of Israel, to be your G-d". 63

[muman613]

One more point...

There is debate whether we should wait for Moshiach to arrive before we make Aliyah {move to Israel} or whether we should make the move and trust that Moshiach will arrive soon, so that we may already be in Eretz Yisroel before Moshiach comes.

Of course there are many opinions of the sages... This involves the prophecy to rebuild the Holy Temple...

[muman613]

One more post from me then I will resume my work...

Last Shabbat we read Parasha Kedoshim from the Torah... This parasha contains many mitzvot, and this article brings some of the issues which we are discussing in this thread...



http://modzitz.org/torah/kedoshim.htm

Holiness - Only in the Holy Land

based on a ma'amar in Imrei Shaul, Parshas Kedoshim

"Hashem spoke to Moshe saying, "Speak to the entire congregation of Israel and say to them, 'You shall be holy, for I, Hashem your G-d, am Holy.'" [Vayikra, 19:1-2]

Rashi points out that this portion was said "b'hakhel" [in an assembly], for a major body of the Torah was dependent on it. The holy sefarim ask, wasn't the rest of the Torah also told to all of the Jews? Rashi then brings the Midrash which says, "You shall be holy" - perhaps like Me [Hashem]? The verse continues, "for I, Hashem your G-d, am Holy" - My Holiness is above yours. This amazes Reb Shaul - how could one imagine Himself to be like Hashem in the realm of Holiness? Doesn't the verse say, "To whom will you liken Me, that I should be his equal, says the Holy One" [Yeshayahu, 40:25].

Another Midrash ties our verse to the verse [Tehillim, 20:3], "May He send you help from the holy [place], and support you from Zion." What does this have to do with, "You shall be holy"? Finally, the Zohar relates that when the Chevraya [Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his disciples] came to this parsha, they rejoiced. What was it in our parsha that caused them to rejoice?

In his answer, Reb Shaul begins by telling us that the main source of sanctification for the Jew is in the Holy Land, when the Jewish people are dwelling there. Indeed, the Mishna [Keilim, 1:6-9] relates that there are ten levels of holiness in the Land of Israel - "the Land of Israel is holy, and Yerushalayim is holier than it, etc." Similarly, the verse says, "The remnant in Zion, and those left in Yerushalayim, shall be called holy" [Yeshayahu, 4:3].

Now we can explain the first Midrash. "You shall be holy" - perhaps like Me [Hashem]? This means, one might think that just like Hashem's Holiness is everywhere, "Holy, holy, holy...the entire world is filled with His Glory" [ Yeshayahu, 6:3] - so it is with the Jewish People, they can achieve holiness anywhere, even in the Diaspora. Therefore the verse continues, "for I, Hashem your G-d, am Holy" - My Holiness is above yours. This means, only in the place where there is the Mikdash, where my Kedusha [holiness] Above is directly over your kedusha below; only there can your kedusha be complete. This is indicated by Rashi on the verse [Shemos, 23:20], "I will...bring you to the place I have prepared," wherein he comments, "The Mikdash Above is directly opposite the one below."

Now the second Midrash is understood as well. "You shall be holy" - "May He send you help from the holy [place], and support you from Zion." From the holy deeds of your hands, which can only be achieved in Zion [Israel], from there you will become holy.

The Holy Chevraya rejoiced when they arrived at this parsha, because the Torah says, "Kedoshim tihiyu" - you shall be holy, forever. They understood that the ultimate kedusha could only be achieved in the Holy Land, when Hashem will return His exiled People. They therefore rejoiced and were filled with hope in the ultimate Redemption of our people.

Finally, this portion was said "b'hakhel", that is, when all the exiles are ingathered, then the sanctity of each individual will be complete. For our Sages teach us that Kedoshim, to be holy, means to be separate and distant from all forms of lust and sin. This can only be fully accomplished when we are separated from the rest of the nations - for it is their influence which ruin us, as our Sages say [Brachos, 17a], it is the "leaven in the dough, and the subjugation to the nations" which causes the Jew to sin. Therefore, the shelaimus - completion, perfection - described in this parsha, can only be "b'hakhel" - by the ingathering of the entire Jewish People from the four corners of the earth to our Holy Land.

[muman613]

This may also be very interesting concerning this topic:


http://roshhashanah.torah.org/learning/perceptions/5766/toldos.html

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Thus, it is no coincidence that Jews view making aliyah as a sacrifice. That is why it is called Eretz YISROEL (the Land of Yisroel), and why the Malbim interprets Yirimyahu's words in the following manner:

For thus said Hashem: Sing, O Ya'akov, with gladness, exult on the peaks of the nations; announce, laud [G-d], and say, "O Hashem, save Your people, the remnant of Yisroel!" Behold, I will bring them from the land of the North and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, the pregnant and birthing together; a great congregation will return here. With weeping they will come and through supplications I will bring them; I will guide them on streams of water, on a direct path in which they will not stumble; for I have been a father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn. (Yirmiyahu 31:6-8)

At the end of their exile, the oppression will be removed from them, and they will be joyous because they will be on the peak of the nations. The gentiles will give them honor and they will be their heads, instead of being disgraced and lowered amongst them as they were at first. Ya'akov will be the masses of the people, and the lesser amongst them; Yisroel are the great ones. The joyousness from being at the peak of the nations will be Ya'akov's only, and not Yisroel's, because they will want to return His Presence to Tzion. However, at that time they will "announce" and publicly proclaim, and "praise" Hashem when they say, "O Hashem, save Your [righteous] people, the remnant of Yisroel," because they will want the true salvation of the ingathering of the exiles and return to Tzion. Then it will be like that, that Hashem will return them: Behold, I will bring them . . . (Malbim, q.v. v'Tzahalu B'Rosh HaGoyim)

Thus, the Malbim sees a division that will occur in the Jewish people at the end of days, one which will not occur along traditional lines. There will be two camps amongst the Jews, one called Ya'akov and one called Yisroel, and the difference between the two will be based upon the desire, or lack thereof to reject acceptance amongst the gentiles as sufficient redemption.

Apparently it is the Ya'akov side of the Jewish people (the masses) who will be joyous about staying in the Diaspora, enjoying acceptance amongst the gentiles and even positions of leadership. On the other hand, this will not be satisfactory for the Yisroel camp of the Jewish people, and they will publicly long for the ideal form of redemption, for return to Eretz Yisroel and to Tzion - true Tzion. It will be a great Kiddush Hashem, and apparently, trigger the final stage of the Final Redemption, and may it happen speedily in our time.

[SerbianPatriot89]

Thank you Muman,that information was really insightfull and educational.