The False Messiah Who Betrayed Judaism
Shabbetai Tzvi, an Ottoman Jewish mystic and rabbi from Smyrna, proclaimed himself the long-anticipated Jewish Messiah on Sivan 17 in 1648.
He amassed followers across the Ottoman Empire, claiming Ashkenazi descent and establishing the Sabbatean movement. Born in Smyrna on Tisha B'Av in 1626, he met excommunication by Smyrna and Jerusalem's rabbis. Shabbetai relocated to Cairo, then Jerusalem, in 1663, garnering more adherents.
To validate his Mashiach status, he dared to utter the Tetragrammaton, a forbidden act in Judaism reserved for the High Priest on Yom Kippur in the Jerusalem Temple. Sabbatai professed the ability to fly but withheld the spectacle from his followers, deeming them 'unworthy.' Describing visions of God, he captivated audiences with his melodious voice, interpreting psalms and Spanish songs mystically. He prayed, wept at graves, and shared treats with children, yet transgressed Jewish Law by slaughtering and consuming a paschal lamb with its fat, reciting a controversial benediction. His marriage to Sarah, a former harlot, stirred further controversy.
In 1665, his confidant Nathan Benjamin Levi prophesied a bloodless global conquest heralding the Messianic Age under Shabbetai's reign, a notion embraced by many European Jews given their dire circumstances.
However, incarcerated in Constantinople, Shabsai Zevi was presented with a harrowing choice: trial by arrows, impalement, or conversion to Islam. On September 16, 1666, Shabsai Zevi stood before the sultan and embraced Islam by donning a Turkish turban, securing his conversion. In a gesture of approval, the sultan granted Sabbatai the title (Mahmed) Effendi and appointed him as his doorkeeper with a handsome salary. Shortly after, in a letter to the Smyrna community, he declared, "God has made me an Ishmaelite; He commanded, and it was done. The ninth day of my regeneration."
Sabbatai's conversion left his followers shattered, subjecting them to ridicule from Muslims and Christians alike. Despite his apostasy, some supporters insisted that his conversion was part of the messianic plan.