Ask the Rabbi

קטגוריה משנית
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Question
I’ve learned that Moshiach will be descended from King David and will himself be King. Is there a certain way people are supposed to address him? How is one to act if they are around him? If he has children, would then his son be in line to be the next King? Will he only speak to people in Hebrew? (I ask this as a person new to the seven laws of Noach, having finally come to the truth of HaShem and getting away from xtianity of which I’d been brainwashed to my entire nearly 25 yrs of life.)
Answer
The laws and details of mashiach and in general, the kings of Israel, are summarized best by Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Kings and their Wars. Although there are many details there, not everything is written expressly. He must be addressed respectfully as is accepted in each generation, and as is the custom in the Jewish world (for example, in yeshivas today), he would clearly be spoken to in the third person (“What does the King feel about…?”, and not “What do you feel about…?). In addition, one must stand when the King enters a room, and he cannot even voluntarily forego this, or other honors. One of his sons would be first “in line” to be king, unless he isn’t suitable. His regular language would obviously be Hebrew, for that is a mitzvah for all Jews to speak (see: http://www.tora.co.il/shiurim/shvat/Hebrew.doc), how much more so, as king, he would want to speak the official national language. On the other hand, as an educated international and universal figure, it would seem logical that he would know other languages as well, as do the members of the Sanhedrin (Jewish-Law Supreme Court). It should be pointed out, that the Mashiach will not be a dictator or monarch in the regular sense of the term “king”, for he must answer to the Nasi and the Sanhedrin, as well as to the prophets, in the Jewish form of “checks and balances”. With Blessings for a Good Year! Rabbi Ari Shvat
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