Messiah
Uncertainty and Freewill
This Teaching is primarily from the writings of the great early 18th Century kabbalist - the Ramchal - Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto. First there are a few short passages from Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) that introduce the topic of freewill. The paragraphs in italilcs are mine:
A Cure for Messianic Madness
As we ease into the 21st Century, many people are worried about Messianic Madness. There are plenty of nuts out there, convinced of the immanent arrival of a Messiah who will swoop out of the sky on a white donkey and miraculously save us and transform the world into Paradise. And there are plenty of fundamentalist religious fanatics preparing for the terror and mayhem predicted by various apocalyptic prophecies and end-of-days beliefs.