“Mashiach is coming soon, do you have real estate in Israel? If not, don’t miss this opportunity!” (emphasis mine) As much as I want to forget about this real estate ad I came across recently, I cannot. I am certain you have surmised that this is not due to imminent purchasing plans of mine. My concern is using the Messianic Age as a marketing tactic to lure customers and facilitate real estate commissions being procured. Sure, we may be dan lechaf zechut and say that perhaps this agency waives their commission fee for all purchases done in preparation for Mashiach. Assume that I grant this assumption.
The marketing of the Messiah is still a tactic I believe to be questionable, to say the least.
Imagine, if you will, a frum Orthodox couple who are saving up to make aliyah one day, but do not currently have the means. Suppose that moving now would put them and their family at risk of poverty—that the mortgage would simply be too much. Suppose even that it was manageable, but the financial shift was too much for them and caused them to ultimately live meager lives in Israel. And then suppose that Mashiach has not arrived their entire lives. How unfortunate this would be. This simple slogan, just enough perhaps to sway the fervently messianic among us, would have been the reason for a life lived with radically more hardship than necessary. This could be the difference that makes a good education and proper healthcare a reality. These would have been far more attainable had this family waited to accumulate a more solid financial footing before moving to Eretz Yisrael.
I am aware that some of us may claim that “there is no time to waste; we must make the move now.” If you find this a concern of yours, ask yourself: Do our prophets not say that God will gather all the dispersed of Israel in the end of days? This clearly implies people will still be outside of Israel when the Messianic age is here. If this were not enough, ask yourself: Do we truly believe that people would be devoid of a place in the Messianic world because of an inability to afford to move?
People live complex lives—using the Messiah as a ploy to get people to move and raise business is not appropriate. We should not reduce our business efforts to marketing schemes. The marketing world has done wonders at capitalizing on our sense of meaning and desire to give us a false sense of accomplishment and necessity. As Jews, it would be wise to steer clear of this tactic. Let us not resort to the Messiah to increase profits.
