A special custom instituted by the Baal Shem Tov was to eat three meals on the last holiday of Pesach. The third meal, which was held towards evening, was called the 'Messiah Meal.' The Baal Shem Tov explained that "on this day the revelation of the Messiah's illumination shines.".
Seven generations later, the fifth Rebbe of Chabad Hasidism, Rabbi Shalom-Dover of Lubavitch, added another detail: he prescribed drinking four cups at this meal, as is customary at the Seder.
Spiritual preparation
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These customs reflect a great process that has been taking place in the world since the days of the Baal Shem Tov. The books of Hasidism explain that the revelation of the system of Hasidism is a preparation for the days of the Messiah. The Hasidic Rebbes used to say that the Baal Shem Tov is "the shining of the light of the Messiah.".
The letter written by the Baal Shem Tov is well-known, in which he tells of an 'ascent of soul' that he had, during which he reached the temple of the Messiah. The Baal Shem Tov asked the Messiah: "When will I bring forth bitter fruit?" (=When will bitter fruit come?), and the Messiah answered: "When your springs are filled with water." Hence, the spreading of the springs of Hasidism is a preparation for the coming of the Messiah.
The emergence of Hasidism is therefore a kind of spiritual preparation for redemption. The preoccupation with the inner workings of the Torah is a preparation for the teachings of the Messiah. The enthusiasm and joy in serving God are also related to the nature of the service of God that will take place in the days of the Messiah. Perhaps the devotion to the righteous is also a kind of preparation for the devotion and self-denial that we all feel toward the King Messiah, who will also be a combination of a spiritual personality, a king, and a leader.
The custom of the "Messiah Supper" is also linked to this concept. The idea behind the meal is to receive the enlightenment of the Messiah not only through the spiritual tools of understanding and emotion, but in the form of a meal, which a person eats and feels the taste of, and then it is digested within him and becomes a part of him.
''Messiah's Supper' is the answer to one of our greatest difficulties – it is difficult for us to embrace a world of concepts of redemption. We must therefore begin to think in terms of a reformed world, a world where the truth is revealed, a world where future prophecies are about to come true – here in Israel.
Prepare and unite
This is the deep meaning behind the Baal Shem Tov's regulation regarding eating the 'Messiah's Supper.' As we sit at this meal, at a time when the light of the Messiah shines, we are empowered to think about the coming of the Messiah not in abstract terms alone, but in a tangible and realistic way.
This feast is a preparation for the revelation of the Messiah, who will not remain merely spiritual. The Messiah will come as a tangible reality, which we can see with our eyes and touch with our hands. A tangible reality, like a feast that we eat, like wine that we drink.
This is also the reason for the custom of drinking the four cups. One of the reasons for the four cups of Passover is that they correspond to "four cups of calamity that God, the Blessed One, will pour out upon the nations of the world, and in return, He will pour out upon Israel four cups of comfort" (as the Sages say). Therefore, as we approach these days, we drink four more cups at the end of Passover, in order to evoke the revelation of the four cups of the days of the Messiah.
Now is the time to unite in brotherly love for redemption. May this year we eat the Supper of Messiah with our Messiah.
