The morning call., 1894-02-03
MESSIANIC HOPE.
DR.. VoOrsanger Lectures
on the Subject.
The Hebrew Race Does Not Look
Forward TO Restoration to
National Supremacy.

Rabbi Jacob VOoTsanger lectured before
the Congregation Emanuel last evening
on "The Messiah" What the term has
meant, what il now means and what it
should mean were the three phases of the
subject covered.
Like many words in the language, like
many sym bOls in religion, like many cere-
monies in organizations of different Sorts"
he said. ''the term has it's real significance
hidden in the confusion of history. The
Christian fixes upon the idea of an incar-
mated deity as its Interpretation; and i'm
agines that the Jew differs from him only
in the belief that the incarnation is yet to
come to redeem and Tehabilitate the He
brew race In its pristine power. The
Jew. on the other hand, has no fixed con-
ceptioD. He does not beIeve--or does
he?-Lhat from the various countries the
Hebrew now inhablts, where his home
and property and affections and patriotism
lie, the race will some day be gathered
all in one and carried back to rule
and reign from Palestine. This would
tear from the ngiish-speaking Jew his
native tongue and give him Hebrew in It's
stead; would rob the American jew of the
grand inspiration of The stars and stripes for
the sake OF pitching his tent IN the barren
wilderness OF Judea; would take the French
jew from the republic which he has shed so
much biood TO gain and SET him under the
tyranny of a despotic oriental cline; would
undo and, as IL were, contradict all the labors
and accomplishments of the race for twenty
centuries.
for such al end. What then does the Mes
Siah' mean?
"There are TWO independent doctrines respect
ing il. OF course it means primarily 'the
anointed one and applied originally 10 the
priests OF Israel whO on being inducted into
office, were anolnted with OIL Every priest
of Israel therefore, was the or a Messiah.
he lnFrg 40 1p hnd R1 I'm ina Tif f1a
because each was aDointed ,aS Samuel by the
command of the Lord had anO!nted Saul and
David
Thus the Messiah was either spiritual or pOliti-
ca without discrimination. That was al the
time of the AsmODeanS, who were both priests
and rulers. But before that something hap
pened which gave rise TO the idea of the per-
petuation OF the royal dynasty. IL was The
captivity OF Israel. In the years of distress,
under NebuchadDeZZar, when the people were
without king or chief or leaders of any sort.
The prophets dreams recurred TO the happy
days OF David's reign. and projected their re-
turn as the end OF all hope and aspiration.
scion OF the stock of David should be raised up
out of the ruin of the nation, redeem the Jews
and become the anointed of God, the great
Messiah. Zerubbabel, who carried the tribes
of Israel out of captivity, was hailed as that
Messiah. Cyrus he Great, who liberated the
Jews, likewise was hailed as ''the anointed."
Then Ia lhe time of Judas Maccab8us
arose the scsm which again divided the
meaning of the word, and threw il into The con-
fusion in which II is held Today. The Macca-
beans were not sciOns OF the stock of David;
they owned their power by force of arms, and
the dissenting parties, particularly the priest
hooo, opposed their participation IN any OF the
rites or apuellatIOns associated with religious
functions, though they were of Aarons stock.
An absolute separation of spiritual and politt-
cal affairs commended for. so came TO exist
IN the community Two ideals for the future res
toratlon OF Jewish supremacy; one involved
the TehabllIment with divine functions of the
political dynasty; The other merely the symboI-
Zation in the priesthood OF the spiritual IDEAL
"The Essences OF the time of Jesus were
representatives OF the first of these two faiths
and as they were the earliest converts to ths
doctrines of Christianity IL Is probably due TO
their influence that the personality of Jesus is
associated with the dynasty of David. The last
mention of the stock OF David IN the Old Tes-
lament Is Zerubbabel who preceded Judas
Maccab8us.
"The Jews who did not take up with the
doctrines of Jesus carried away with them
from the second destruction of Jerusalem into
the various nations they migrated to the ideals
of their home life-these TWO divergent ideals
of the kingly aud the spiritual Messiah. In
their terrible struggles with hostile and oppres-
sIve nations. through all the years when they
were the Outcast among men, slaves and miser-
able OF miserable humanity, they still held TO
the persistent hope of the better time 10 come,
of the renewal of Gods favor. of the restora-
tiOD OF the nation 10 unity and power aud
happiness. That hope was the idealiZed Mes
siab, the anOinted one to come.
"Some might hope for the actual political
ascendency again, some only for the spiritual,
Inc internal reconstruction; but, be that as IL
may, the Messiah of the Jew, the real Messiah
OF history, was only and nothing more or less
than the Jews ideal OF the future.
10 The American Jew that ideal has been
realized. He no longer is an outcast, discred-
tied, dlsgraced being. BE is a member OF
social community which In Itself is 'anoinIed
OF the Lord The redemption OF the Jew has
come IN almost all quarters OF the globe save
alone In Russia, where the day of liberation Is
not lar away. DE has no ideal more to picture
than the realization of all the possibilities OF
the great and free nations in which he lives
The only Messiah for which he can pray is the
relel OF tne poor and the suffering; the bring
Scss IT,"
The speaker closed with an eloquent perora-
fion, an appeal TO his race 10 wish for nothing
higher than TO living useful, vital part of the
great federation OF humanity.