Each day we pray, “Redeem us speedily for the sake of Your Name.” (Shemonah Esrai) Every day we await the time when “every man will sit under his vine and beneath his fig tree and no one will make him afraid.” (Micah 4:4)

The Jewish people prays, waits and hopes for the Messiah to come and redeem the world from fear and pain, from hunger and sickness, and the devastating conflicts between the wealthy and the poor. The long and difficult exile filled with pain and suffering will come to an end.

A young man was studying the end of the Book of Daniel tried to unravel the mysterious verses predicting the “end of days.” He came to the holy rabbi of the village with the age old question, “When is the Messiah going to come? Will it be soon?”

The holy rabbi sat in deep thought for some time. He was keenly aware that many of his colleagues were very critical of predicting a date, mentioning that the Talmud pronounces a curse on those who attempt to compute the day of the redemption.

The closed his eyes and seemed to drift between thoughts, took a deep breath and began:

  “A merchant set out on a long journey with his young son to a market in the big city. In those days, the trip by horse and buggy took many days, and after a few hours, the child would ask, “Papa, how far is it to the big city?” The father looked at his son who quickly understood that his father was displeased with the question. His father changed the subject and they talked and learned together. The young boy soon understood he was not to ask about how long the trip was taking.”

“After several days travel the boy heard his father ask the driver, “Do we still have much to go until we get to the big city?” Puzzled, he then asked why he had been reprimanded when he had presented the same question.”

“The father responded, “Earlier in the trip, when  I  knew we were still very far from our destination, I did not wish to tell you how distant we were, because I knew you would become impatient and cause me problems. Now that I sense we are approaching the area, I feel free to ask just how close we are.’ ”

The holy rabbi took a deep breath and continued, “The Talmud was written two-thousand years ago, and the sages knew we were destined for a long stay in exile. Now that we are obviously so close to the redemption, however, it is permissible and even natural to ask, ‘How far is it to the big city? ‘ “

 

May all your tales end with Shalom (peace)

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Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation. (Joel 1:3) Please share this story with others

 

The Story Tour Blog has grown to over 250 short stories about faith. Many visitors to the Story Tour Blog have requested that the stories be gathered together into a book. 72 of these special tales are now available in the new book

Story Tour: The Journey Begins

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