Adapted from
Likkutei Sichos, Vol. VII, p. 100ff;
Vol. XXII, p. 77ff; Parshas Tazria, 5751;
Sefer HaSichos 5751, p. 491ff
Consummate Perfection and Superficial Flaws
Our Sages ask:1 “What is Mashiach’s name?” and reply “The leper of the House of Rebbi.”2 This is very difficult to understand. Mashiach will initiate the Redemption, and is associated with the pinnacle of life and vitality. How can his name be linked with leprosy (tzaraas), which is identified with death3 and exile?4
This difficulty can be resolved based on the statements of Likkutei Torah, which explain that a person affected by tzaraas will be:
A man of great stature, of consummate perfection….5 Although such a person’s conduct is desirable, and he has corrected everything,… it is still possible that on the flesh of his skin there will be lower levels on which evil has not been refined. This will result in physical signs on his flesh, in a way which transcends the natural order….6
Since the filth on the periphery of his garments has not been refined, therefore [blemishes] appear on his skin…. Moreover, these blemishes reflect very high levels, as indicated by the fact that they are not considered impure until they have been designated as such by a priest.
The passage implies that there are sublime spiritual influences which, because of the lack of appropriate vessels (as evidenced by the “filth on the periphery”), can produce negative effects. For when powerful energy is released without being harnessed, it can cause injury. This is the reason for the tzaraas with which Mashiach is afflicted.
Mashiach’s Burden
The Jewish people as a whole are compared to a human body. This applies within every generation, and also to the entire nation throughout history.7 All Jews those of the past, present, and future are part of a single organic whole.
Since good is eternal, while evil is only temporary,8 our people’s spiritual level has been constantly advancing. A vast reservoir of good has been filling up over the centuries. The Jewish people as they exist in ikvesa diMeshicha, the age when Mashiach’s approaching footsteps can be heard, have attained the level of perfection mentioned in Likkutei Torah.
Nevertheless, there are still blotches of evil “on the periphery,” for the world is still scarred by injustice and strife. And thus the light of redemption cannot yet become manifest; this is reflected in the leprous blemishes which are visited on Mashiach himself. For as the prophet states:9 “He has borne our sicknesses and endured our pain… with blemishes, smitten of G‑d, and afflicted.” Mashiach endures suffering, not for his own sake, but for the Jewish people as a whole.
Positive Import
There is still a difficulty. Although the above passage explains why Mashiach must endure suffering, it does not show why that suffering is identified with Mashiach. Mashiach’s name who he is should be positive.
This difficulty can also be resolved on the basis of the passage from Likkutei Torah cited previously. For that passage explains that leprous blemishes reflect “very high levels,” their source being transcendent spiritual light10 that are associated with Mashiach. Nevertheless, for this light to be expressed in a positive manner, suitable vessels are required.
Mashiach’s suffering will bring about a final refinement in the world at large, making it a fit vessel for the revelation of its transcendent potential. Since this revelation lies at the heart of the Era of the Redemption, the catalyst necessary to bring it about is therefore associated with Mashiach’s name.
The Name of the Torah Reading
The above concepts also clarify a difficulty with regard to the name of our Torah reading, Parshas Metzora. Metzora means “leper.” One might think that the name of a reading in the holy Torah would be associated with a word of more positive import. This question is reinforced by the fact that in the works of the early Rabbinic sages, Rav Saadia Gaon,11 Rashi,12 and the Rambam,13 a different name was employed for this reading. All of these authorities refer to the reading by the name Zos Tihiyeh (“This shall be”). It is only in the later generations that the name Metzora became prevalent.
The explanation is that in these later generations, cracks have appeared in the wall of exile, and through them the light of Mashiach shines. In the light of Mashiach, Metzora is not a negative factor but, as explained above, an expression of transcendent G‑dliness.
Through the Medium of Study
The Torah reading begins with a description of the purification process to be undergone by a person afflicted with tzaraas, saying “These are the laws of the metzora.” By focusing on Toras hametzora (the laws of the metzora), not taharas hametzora, “the purification of the metzora,” an allusion is made to a fundamental concept.
Torah study develops human vessels that allow light all light, even the most sublime to be accepted by and internalized in our world. Through Torah study, the transcendent influence of tzaraas can be channeled into a positive force.
Similarly, with regard to Mashiach: studying the teachings about Mashiach precipitate his revelation, drawing his influence into our world.
With New Life
Often, Parshas Metzora is read in connection with Parshas Tazria, which is associated with the sowing of seeds and the conception of life.14 This implies that the seeds of our Divine service will not wait endlessly in the dark ground of exile, but that Metzora, the Redemption, will blossom immediately after the last seeds have been sown.
Conversely, the fusion of the two readings implies that Metzora, the Redemption, has already been conceived; we are only waiting for the birth. For the suffering which Mashiach endures is the final step before his revelation. May it take place in the immediate future.
Mashiach Have you ever heard of the term "identified patient", which is used in family therapy? The term describes the person in a dysfunctional family through whom problems and conflicts on a psychological level surface.
Just to be sure, I'm not saying in any way that the Jewish people are a dysfunctional family or mentally disordered or anything to that effect. The thing is, that the idea that "Mashiach endures suffering, not for his own sake, but for the Jewish people as a whole" reminds me of the idea of the identified patient. Maybe one task of Mashiach is to be like an antenna which receives all sorts of negative signals and to transform these negative signals into something very positive and thereby being a role model.
Since many articles on Chabad.org deal with parenting and the Wikipedia article on "dysfunctional family" lists 'unhealthy parenting signs' and 'dysfunctional parenting styles', I want to commend these lists. It's good to know what's right and what's wrong.
Peace
"“When will Mashiach come?” He said to him, “Go and ask him yourself.” “Where is he sitting?” “At the entrance to Rome.” “And by which sign shall I know him?” “He is sitting among the poor sick ones. All of them untie and retie [their bandages] all at once, while he unties and reties one at a time, saying, ‘In case I am needed [to appear], I must not be delayed [by having to retie all my bandages].’”
So he went to him and said to him, “Peace be upon you, my teacher.” [Mashiach] answered, “Peace be upon you, son of Levi.” He asked him, “When will you come, master?” He answered, “Today.”
When he returned to Eliyahu, he [R. Yehoshua ben Levi] said to him, “He lied to me, for he said that he would come today [but he did not].” He answered, “Today – if you will hear His voice” (Tehillim95:7)
"The aim of the true healer is not so much to remove the pain of life as to interpret it. The evidence in the healer of woundedness or pain and of the transcendence or constructive endurance ...."