On Rebirth: Israel and the Messiah

Israeli Independence Day came and went reminding me of something very profound that the Teacher told us, although the others and I didn't realize it at the time.

In the daily page of the Talmud, a great deal of time is spent discussing the Cohen (Priest) and defilement from touching a corpse. On one Independence Day the Teacher spoke about this and said:

"The Talmud teaches us that there are three stages of defilement after the body dies. When the body dies the spirit flies free and returns to the Everlasting. But the body goes through three distinct stages of decomposition, each one being less defiling than the last. The first is the flesh. When the flesh passes away, the ligaments remain. When the ligaments pass, only the bones are left."

The Teacher stopped talking for a while and seemed lost in thought, and then he continued, "Consider for a moment the words of the Prophet." And he read to us from Ezekiel 37:1-14:

"The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. 3 He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?"

I said, "O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.

"Then he said to me, 'Prophesy to these bones and say to them, Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! 5 This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.' "

"So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them."

The Teacher paused a moment and then explained, "Know that this is the rebirth of our people and our nation…first the bones were brought together, and then the tendons, and finally the flesh…but we have no breath in us. We are at the stage of the ultimate defilement…dead flesh with no spirit. Do not be amazed at the flaws and faults of our leadership…the defilement is total, from the head of state, down to the lowliest…because they have no breath of life in them. But this was necessary for the next stage." He took up the book and continued reading:

" Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.' " So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.

"Then he said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.' Therefore prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.' "

He smiled and said, "This is the meaning of the age of the Messiah, a time when we will receive the breath of life from the Everlasting, and through this become the fulfillment of the promise of the First Man. The next step in human development which will spread to all the peoples of the world, and then all will expand together with the Universe.