Sometimes Mashiach Is Not the Solution

“Rebbi?” The voice on the other end of the line was a former talmid, now teaching in a girls’ school. “Basically, the girls want to know if they should get their tambourines ready to celebrate and welcome Mashiach.”

I received this call in the weeks between Purim and Pesach. A number of other calls soon followed, all asking some variation of the same question: “What’s the point of doing anything (or davening for anything) other than awaiting Mashiach?”

At first, these calls imparted a positive feeling — “Mi k’amcha Yisrael.” However, I gradually began to feel deeply troubled by the emerging realization that we have never properly taught our children about Mashiach.

I would like to voice two concerns, and then try to describe what should be at the heart of our awaiting Mashiach.