perform a positive commandment or by violating a negative commandment2, he must repent3. He is also commanded to repent through making a verbal confession before God, as it is written, "If a man or woman sins against his fellow man ... he must confess the sin be has committed." (Deuteronomy 5:6,7). This verse refers to a verbal4 confession, which is a positive commandment.
authorities have ruled that nothing has changed and that these boroughs remain public domains.
The founding of the Jewish nation was the second stage in the plan to help elevate mankind spiritually in order that they may merit the World to Come. This period met with much more success than the earlier period. Although the majority of the Jews have assimilated over the last two thousand five hundred years, nevertheless, Jews remain prominent in the world, and have done much to influence many nations to abandon idol worship and feticide. Torah studies have increased significantly throughout the Jewish communities, and we are now prepared to enter the third period, known as the Messianic period.
The Messianic period has received much attention by the prophets, and its concept has caused cultural upheavals either by personalities claiming to be Messiah, or by their followers who declared their leader to be the Messiah. These movements have not brought peace to the world. The prophets did not prophesy about the Messianic period to tell us something new. Their primary purpose was to give the Jews the hope of salvation that they would need during their long and bitter exile.
The term Messiah means anointed, or the anointed one. Why do we refer to Messiah as the anointed one when every king must be anointed? The answer is, that it is to emphasize his anointing as different from the anointing of other kings. His anointing is an appointment to rule as king by God and not by man. Man has no say in the matter and no possibility of disobedience. God will give him angels to help police the world. The purpose of his rule is to institute the kingdom of God our Creator, which means to see that mankind follows the laws of God. These laws are, for the non-Jewish population, the seven moral ethical rules of mankind with their auxiliary rules, and for the Jews, the Biblical and Rabbinical laws of the halacha.
During the Messianic period, man will undergo purification of the body and soul and bring him closer to God in order to merit the World to Come.
Unintentional sins are punishable because if he had been more careful, he would not have sinned.
2. God our Creator did not entrust the power to forgive sin to any creation. He alone fully understands the hearts and minds of his creation therefore, He alone judges them.
The Talmud Yerushalmi tractate Makos, relates an incident in Jewish history when the prophets asked wisdom (wisdom of the Torah), what is the punishment for one who sinned? Torah wisdom answered, "Evil will pursue him." They asked the angels the same question, and they answered, "a sinner should die." Then they asked their Creator this question, and the reply they received was, "a sinner should repent." This reply is a contradiction to the other opinions since certain types of sin are not punished if one repents; and most sins were forgiven without punishment with the Azazel goat ceremony on Yom Kippur, when we had the Holy Temple. Neither the Torah wisdom nor the angels can accept repentance therefore they could only answer the question by what is within their ability and understanding.
3. Regret what he did with a commitment never to do it again.
4. There is one Biblical commandment to repent for any and all sins, even if the sin is a violation of Rabbinical law and not Biblical law, since Biblically we are also required to follow Rabbinical decrees and laws.
To perform a mitzvah one need do an action. Verbal confession is considered an action providing that in his mind he regrets the sin and resolves never to repeat it again. If one repents many sins, for each sin, there is the same commandment to repent. Therefore, he performed the mitzvah of penitence many times.
How does a mute repent when he cannot repent verbally? He may write his confession, and this would also be considered an