COVER STORY
IS THE PROMISED
MESSIAH ALREADY HERE ?
An artist ’ s depiction of the mysterious light that appeared above the Dome of the Rock on 28th January , 2011 . It is believed to signify the Messiah ’ s blessings on Jerusalem .
ACCORDING TO THE JEWISH FAITH , the Messiah ( Mashiach ) shall come in the end times and fulfil God ’ s promise to the Jews . He will give them the Promised Land and he will grant them the spiritual benevolence they had been awaiting since the era of Abraham . [ ISAIAH 11:11-12 ] The coming of the Messiah is more important than any other figure in Judaism . In fact , devout Jews recite the Amidah prayer three times a day in which one of their requests is for God to hasten the advent of the Messiah .
The concept of the Messiah differs among various schools of thought , which means that people ’ s ability to recognise the true Messiah is severely hindered by sectarian bias . Like all other celestial religions , Judaism has been made subject to adulteration over time .
Some people believe that the Messiah will be a warlord who will battle for the restoration of Israel and exaltation of the Jewish people , while others say the Messiah will be a messenger of peace who shall cater to people of all nations and cultures . [ ISAIAH 52:7 ] The fact that numerous false Messiahs were successful in deceiving masses over the years suggests that people sorely lacked the criteria required to recognise the true Messiah . Had they been in possession of the divinely endorsed concept of the Messiah , they never would have fallen prey to deception .
The true Messiah shall be recognised by his divine power and abilities . If a personality is accomplishing the tasks only the Messiah has been assigned to do , then we are obliged to accept him as the Messiah .
MESSIAH HERALD / ISSUE 01 / FEB 2017 3