By Ariel Ben Avraham “And in the end of days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above [all] the hills; and peoples shall flow onto it.” (Micah 4:1)
We must understand and assimilate Jewish prophecy as a two-fold matter of fact that works inwardly and outwardly, individually and collectively. There is a place in the world and a place in consciousness that converge and become one. This place is mount Zion, the Temple of Jerusalem located in the land of Israel. It is the focal and anchoring point where we become aware of God’s Presence in us individually and collectively as Israel in this world.
This preamble is the introduction to understand the Messianic consciousness according to Judaism. Thus we realize that the most important of all mountains and hills is our connection with the Creator of all. In this awareness all levels of consciousness are gathered together and flow united onto His Presence.
“And many nations shall go and say: ‘Come you all, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us His ways, and we will walk in His paths’; for out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” (4:2)
We tap into the Messianic consciousness when our discernment, thoughts, ideas, beliefs, habits, customs, attachments, feelings, emotions, passions and instincts all gather together naturally in an unforced process toward the individual and collective unity necessary to embrace our Creator in the place He established for us. Once every level, aspect and dimension of consciousness are harmonized under the guidance and direction of Love’s ways and attributes, we continue our Redemption process through the knowledge of God’s ways and attributes. The convergence point of this encounter is Zion as the highest awareness of God’s Presence in our life, from where His knowledge unfolds, and from Jerusalem where His guidance is revealed.
“And He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide concerning mighty nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” (4:3)
In this convergence point we embrace God’s Presence, and His Love transforms the negative qualities of all levels, aspects and dimensions of consciousness into positive, uplifting, constructive and enhancing qualities. What we used to inflict against ourselves and others is turned into ways and means to elevate consciousness through the knowledge of God. In His knowledge there is no violence or wars, conflicts, disputes, contention, argument or controversy. Love, as the material manifestation of God’s Love, will rule all aspects of our lives through God’s ways and attributes.
“And he shall stand, and shall feed his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the Name of the Lord his God; and they shall abide, for then shall he be great unto the ends of the Earth.” (5:3)
The Messianic consciousness unfolds through the person assigned by God to be the reference for us to follow the redeeming paths established by Him. God’s Love is our strength, and His Name and Majesty are manifest in our knowledge of Him. The Jewish Messiah reveals God’s Redemption for every single trait of our consciousness. This encompasses all aspects of life, which is also the earth in which we dwell in the material world.
“And it shall come to pass in that day, says the Lord, that I will cut off your horses out of your midst, and will destroy your chariots. And I will cut off the cities of your land, and will throw down all your strongholds. And I will cut off all witchcraft out of your hand; and you shall have no more soothsayers. And I will cut off your graven images and your pillars out of your midst; and you shall no more worship the work of your hands.” (5:9-12)
God’s redeeming Love will be revealed as we transform the negative trends of consciousness through the goodness of Love’s ways and attributes. God is the One who directs this process. He will remove ego’s materialistic fantasies and illusions that pull us as chariots with the strength of horses. He will remove negative attachments and habits as cities and strongholds entrenched in our consciousness. He will remove false beliefs and conceptions that enslave us into greed, lust, envy, avarice, indolence, indifference, and negligence. These are false ideas which make us believe we can control and manipulate others at their expense. These also are the idols in which we become and make others turn to. The idols made out of our own actions, the work of our hands. God’s redeeming Love will remove them all from our consciousness as soon as we allow Love to guide and direct all facets of life.
“Who is a God like unto You, that pardons the iniquity, and passes by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retains not His anger for ever, because He delights in loving kindness. He will again have compassion upon us, He will subdue our iniquities. And You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. You will show faithfulness to Jacob, compassion to Abraham, as You has sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.” (7:18-20)
Only the greatest Love of all, God’s Love, transforms the wickedness we have created in our lives. Let’s be aware that we have been the creators of the evils we suffer in the world. There is hunger because we allow hunger. There is violence because we incite violence. There is hatred because we instigate hatred. There is wickedness because we foster wickedness. In this predicament, only as we engender Love and live by its ways, means and attributes, we will usher the Messianic consciousness individually and collectively. We will be redeemed from all our iniquities and negativity as we begin to live in Love’s ways as our Essence and true identity. Love as the material manifestation of God’s Love.
Ariel Ben Avraham’s book on the Hebrew epistemology of God’s Love, and Love as the primordial human likeness with the Creator. The Jewish conception of God’s Love according to the Hebrew Scriptures and Jewish theology. How we relate to God’s Love. From the book: “Let’s be aware that we are emanated from God’ Love. Whatever we are and have come from Him and it is His, including the Love that we are and give. Love is our Essence and identity.”
- Ariel Ben Avraham
- Haifa, Southern Galilee, Israel
- Ariel Ben Avraham (f. Zapata) was born in Cartagena, Colombia in 1958. After studying Cultural Anthropology in Bogotá moved to Chicago in 1984 where he worked as a television writer, reporter and producer for 18 years. In the 1990’s he produced video documentaries related to art, music, history and culture such as “Latin American Trails: Guatemala” distributed by Facets.org. Most of his life he studied ancient spiritual traditions and mysticism of major religions, understanding the mystic experience as the individual means to connect with Divinity. Since 2004 he studies and writes about Jewish mysticism and spirituality mainly derived from the Chassidic tradition, and the practical philosophy of the teachings of Jewish mystic Sages. The book “God as Love” is the compilation of his last years studying and learning Jewish mysticism, and the messages of the book are part of the content, exercises and processes of a series of seminars, lectures and retreats that he facilitates in Israel.
