Hi Chris,
The Jewish perspective on the “End of Days,” which is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible in Numbers and elsewhere, is connected to the advent of the Messiah, who ushers in a period of world peace (the Messianic Age) which includes the rebuilding of the Temple, the gathering of the exiled Jewish people, and the realization by all the world of the presence of G-d. This can happen at any time; however, it is thought to be preceded by a period of extreme physical, economic, social, and spiritual turmoil in the world, as mentioned in Deuteronomy. Further, it is said in the Talmud that the Messiah will come no later than the year 6,000 based on the Jewish calendar (currently the year is 5771), although he may arrive sooner, and no one knows exactly when. The reason for the year 6,000 corresponds to the six days of Creation and G-d’s resting on the seventh day. Thus the coming of the Messiah is believed to correspond to the advent of the Sabbath, a period of rest and both internal and external peace.
Interesting. The gathering of the exiled Jewish people may have already occured in the advent of the modern nation of Israel, though its role in the christian view of salvation history and whether the modern Israel is really the same Israel in the OT and the fulfillment of Biblical prophecies can be debated, at least among christians. Some christians, even some Catholics, also desire the rebuilding of the Temple, even though Jesus prophecied that would never happen. And I’ve heard of some Jewish groups actually preparing for its eventual rebuilding.
We would say that while there will certainly be an end to humanity, this planet, this solar system and so on, there is no end to what we are. We always were and always will be. Form is transient and constantly changing. Even such things as big bangs, singularities and the like (which have been in our scriptures thousands of years before science came upon them), these too are just part of an ongoing cyclical process that never started and never ends. The end of one thing is the start of another, and they are not really one thing ending and another starting. It is all the same thing changing form and expression. In all of creation there is only One, and the One is the Alpha and the Omega - a singularity with endless permutations. There is no this thing or that. They are all aspects of the One. When a person sees the One, this person loves God and his neighbor as he loves himself. Such a person sees God distinctly and directly, and recognizing Him in what He sees, understands that in all creation there is only He. That is what we would say. We do not expect an end time.
I love this! Hinduism is so rich, profound, and appealing to the intellect. Remind me, though, Sufjon: you still view G-d as a separate entity from His creation? Everything emanates from the One, however, in eternity. And, if I recall correctly, it’s not just a cyclical, repetitive experience for each of us, but one accompanied by growth and understanding.
Hi Meltzerboy: You always ask very deep questions that are hard to answer is less space than a book
. It depends on what angle you look at it from, and of course I am only stating what we believe. On one level, God can be seen as pure consciousness, but that consciousness expresses itself in form. Consciousness can exist without form, but form cannot exist without consciousness. Form is an epiphenomenon of consciousness. The experience we normally equate with consciousness is really only the nervous system experiencing itself. Our belief is that this experience that we call consciousness on a day to day level is really only sentience, and that is an epiphenomenon of form (in this case, the greater nervous system). Consciousness is much deeper, and independent of it. That said, since all form is caused by consciousness and because there is only one real consciousness that is shared and transpersonal, all things are in fact one, expressed as many. What thing or form in the universe is something unto itself without being a component of something larger, whether it be a particle, a cell, an organ and so on, and what larger thing is something unto itself without being made up of all the smaller things. Indeed, it is all one huge organism or mesh. In the world of form, where does one thing end and another begin, and what thing exists without the other?Hi shadowlily: Thanks for sharing. I believe the same thing. It’s scientifically accurate, and agrees well with my faith tradition.