Ask the Rabbi: Jews and Jesus
Written by Movement for Reform Judaism Monday, 21 June 2010
Rabbi Dr. Jonathan Romain of Maidenhead Synagogue addresses your questions. This week's question: "Please don’t get mad – why is it that Jews do not believe that Jesus was the Messiah? I don’t think I have ever heard the reason – I just know that we don’t."Your query reflects that fact that in the past there was a reluctance amongst Jews to even mention the word Jesus. This was based on the previous animosity felt towards the Church, owing to centuries of persecution that Jews have endured at its hands. It also mirrors fears about Christian attempts to convert Jews which are still on-going today amongst some groups, and so many rabbis felt it best to steer clear of the subject altogether, lest talking about it created some interest.
The reason we do not accept Jesus is very simple. He claimed to be the Messiah, and a Jewish understanding of the Messiah is that of a person who ushers in an era of peace and harmony. Clearly that has not happened, and so Jesus did not fulfil the job specification. The same test applies to the many others who have declared themselves to be the Messiah. It is important to note that, contrary to the impression that some have, there is nothing wrong with claiming to be the Messiah – it is not a sin – but if you do not bring about universal peace, then you cannot claim the title. In fact, many rabbis prefer to talk not so much about the Messiah but the Messianic Age, which emphasises that what is crucial is not the person but the era that the person helps create. For its part, Christians claim that Jesus brought spiritual peace and will return one day ( “the Second Coming”) to bring physical peace – but for Jews there is no avoiding the fact that the world is not at peace and so no Messiah has come yet. We also have a strong notion that in the meantime we should try to create as much peace as possible in our own family or community and thereby hasten the time of the messianic age.
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