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According to one medieval folktale, two men arrived in a Yemenite town and told the inhabitants that the Messiah was arriving that night and would transport them all to Israel. The people were instructed to remain on their roofs the entire night, but Moshiach did not come.
Great apprehension surrounds the subject of Moshiach. This apprehension is fed partly by the memory of the sad consequences of Messianic misadventures of the past, such as the unfortunate history of pseudo-Messiahs and unrealized predictions that left a trail of painful disillusion and dismay.
According to one medieval folktale, two men arrived in a Yemenite town and told the inhabitants that the Messiah was arriving that night and would transport them all to Israel. The people were instructed to remain on their roofs the entire night, but Moshiach did not come. In the morning, when they went down from the roofs, the strangers were gone -- as well as the townspeople's possessions.
How will we recognize the true Moshiach when he finally arrives? How will we know that this not just another false Moshiach?!
In the laws of Kings and Wars, Maimonides lists the minimum accomplishments that one must exhibit before being accepted as the Moshiach.
"If a king shall arise from the house of David who delves deeply in the study of the Torah and observes its mitzvot like David, his ancestor; if he, by his personal excellence within the realm of Torah, will compel all of Israel to walk in the way in the way of the Torah, and reinforce the breaches in its observance among the entire Jewish people; and if he will fight the wars of G-d, thus removing all obstacles to Torah observance in the world a large, we may, with assurance, consider him the Messiah."
If he succeeds in the above ... builds the Beit Hamikdosh (Holy Temple in Jerusalem) on its site, and gathers in the dispersed remnant of Israel, he is definitely the Messiah. At this stage, when it becomes possible to observe the Torah and its mitzvot in their totality, the era of the Messiah will have actually begun." [Laws of Kings and Wars 11:4]
The above-mentioned scenario only holds true if G-d send Moshiach regardless of the Jewish Nation's disobedient behavior -- and the sole reason he redeems us is because he must keep his word.
But if we deserve Moshiach because of our achievements, Moshiach will be accompanied by supernatural events (Sanhedrin 98a) that will leave no doubt that he's the real thing.
A priest once asked a Rabbi: What will you do if your Moshiach comes and I don't accept him? The Chassid replied softly: If you won't believe in him, neither will I...
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