Sages in Context

In these posts regarding Talmudic discussions of messianic proportions, I wanted to provide an impression, a taste for this type of literature, and a taste of how it deals with messianism.

The Talmudic literature is interesting and enigmatic in and of itself. That is, historically you can’t be sure what is original or not, or just oral traditions that are more like evolving folklore.

Not a Creed

As a reader it seems to me what I am reading is on the one hand less historical but on the other hand very important and intentional use of folklore to deliver interpretations and ideas.

So as a reader or an interpreter, the outcome of the texts for the readers is to walk away with an impact on their ideas or ideas of messianism. And what is that outcome on the mind?

The messianic ideas and texts are dynamic, not always consistent, and lofty. One shouldn’t deal too much with messianism, one shouldn’t calculate or be too sure of this or that expectation and particular interpretation. 

I cannot ignore the thought that this presentation is the absolute opposite of early medieval Christian creeds. All of Christianity is arguably messianic, literally.

Christianity versus Judaism as a comparison is often helpful to understand Judaism and to understand Christianity. 

The Talmudic presentation of messianism is the opposite of the classic old Christian creeds, from a literary perspective as well as the nature of the content and the outcome, the effect…

A creed is short, very particular, strict dogmatic doctrine, meant to exclude those who won't declare allegiance. The Talmud content is the opposite - long, evasive, multiple interpretations, not dogmatic, not exclusive nor demanding adherence. 

Developmental Role

If we could reflect somehow on what is happening here historically within Judaism per the development of messianism and messianic ideas...

We are reminded of the biblical roots, the Davidic iconic memory and persona, the apocalyptic ideas of the 2nd Temple era, and then the outbreak of Christian messianism, first in the early Jewish form and then as an opposite and opposing religion to the evolving Rabbinical Judaism. 

In early rabbinic literature there is not ample, quite scarce actually, engagement with messianism, but it is there, minimalistically, subtly. Only centuries later, after Jesus, after Bar Kochva… only then Judaism in the Talmud, engages “publicly”, textually with messianism.

I consider this “developmental”. It is a major influential stage in the history of messianic ideas and texts. The biblical sources have the roots of the ideas, and then in the 2nd Temple literature we have an accumulation of these ideas and texts which break out in the acute prototypical messianic Jesus movement and texts of early Christianity. 

And then the Rabbinic literature, eventually, engages and essentially tells us that for Judaism messianism is inherent but there are a variety of views and interpretations, sometimes inconclusively.

There is not ample direct engagement with messianism in Judaism proper until the Talmud. What comes next?

What to expect: I consider the stages just mentioned as a sequence. The roots, the prototype, the institutional engagement…

There is a later sequence, which is also a sandwich, with roots, an acute outbreak, and then a synthesis of sorts: the mystical Kabbalah sources, the acute messianic Sabbateanism outbreak, and then the Hasidic spiritual movement.

But before we jump into that grand sequence, next we will review a few intermediate items. I consider them intermediate because they are in between, or parallel to, the earlier and later messianic developmental sequences, or they don’t quite fit into them, or they are big and important and famous, but not quite developmental. Still worth mentioning!