Some Chabad chassidim teach that the Lubavitcher Rebbe is the Messiah.
But the claim does not begin with a slogan. It begins with Torah sources that explain:
The leader of the generation will be the Messiah, and he can be revealed at any moment when enough ‘return to relationship with The Creator’ happens.
So once Lubavitch chassidim accepted the Rebbe as the leader of the generation, some drew the next conclusion:
The Rebbe is Mashiach.
But this also has to be said:
Rambam teaches we cannot be 100 percent certain a leader is Mashiach until he builds the Third Temple. So this should be discussed with humility. Others avoid teaching that publicly, because the Rebbe opposed campaigns that create division or hateful anger.
But both begin with the same belief:
The Rebbe is the leader of the generation. The Rebbe did say during his last physical years:
“The principal avodah (work) today is kabbalas pnei Mashiach.” That literally means to receive or greet Mashiach.
Some interpret that as a directive to keep publicly repeating:
“The Nasi, the leader, is Mashiach.”
Many teach it only means:
To integrate Mashiach into who we are. To live with redemption in our thoughts, emotions, choices, and responsibilities.
I think it means Chabad Lubavitch should develop clearer education around what it means that there is a leader of the generation. And why Lubavitch chassidim believe the Rebbe is that leader today.
His teachings and directives guide this generation through his shluchim. Not his physical presence.
If someone disagrees, they are welcome to name who they believe accepted the responsibility of guiding the generation.
Who is guiding more Jewish people toward Torah, commandments, helping the poor in Israel, and a deeper relationship with The Creator than the Rebbe’s teachings and directives through his shluchim?
Because the question cannot only be:
“Do you accept this claim?”
The question also has to be:
“If not, who do you believe is guiding the generation?”
When the Rebbe once heard complaints about his shluchim, he responded with the idea:
“I am not the Maharal of Prague. I cannot create people. I work with people.”
That matters. A leader of the generation does not guide angels. He guides real people. People with limits. Personalities. Struggles. Mistakes. And potential.
And leadership means:
Caring about every individual. Revealing deeper ideas in Torah so people can understand that The Creator is good. And creating campaigns that get people excited about commandments.
Chabad Chassidus has been explaining the deepest ideas for more than 200 years.
How to understand the soul.
The world of souls.
The purpose of creation.
The goodness of The Creator.
And how a person can actually live with awe, trust, joy, and responsibility. The Rebbe expanded that mission in our generation. His teachings fill more than 70,000 published pages. And his shluchim continue bringing those teachings into real life all over the world.
These campaigns help lift people out of spiritual disconnection.
In Egypt, the Jewish people reached the 49th level of impurity. If they had reached the 50th, redemption would have required Mashiach. A leader of the generation helps people rise before disconnection becomes final.
From disconnection to holiness.
From confusion to direction.
From distance to relationship.
So for Lubavitch chassidim, this is not mainly about making slogans. It is about leadership.
Who is caring for the generation, teaching the generation, and raising the generation toward Torah, mitzvos, and relationship before The Creator?
That is why some teach openly that the Rebbe is Mashiach.
And that is why others avoid making it a public campaign.
But both begin with the same belief:
The Rebbe is the leader of the generation.
If his way of explaining The Creator’s goodness was strong enough to help people who lived through the Holocaust, then those ideas did not become irrelevant for later generations that went through lesser trauma.
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