Secondo David Skolni, studioso di Cabala, Lionel Messi è il messaggero di Dio (e, di conseguenza, è molto probabile che l'Argentina vinca i Mondiali). Skolni lo scrive sul quotidiano israeliano "Jerusalem Post", e la teoria poggia su diversi fattori:
1) According to Kabbala, our Hebrew date of birth impacts significantly on our lives and our destiny. Messi was born at 8:20 p.m. on June 24, 1987, which means that his Hebrew date of birth is Sivan 28, 5747. The number 28, kaf-het, spells the Hebrew word koah, power, which anybody who has watched Messi will have witnessed in his play.
2) Ma Messi e l'Argentina avranno la forza di raggiungere la finale, prevista per domenica 11 luglio? The week leading up to the final culminates on Shabbat, July 10, when the Jewish people read a double portion from the Torah, Matot-Massei. The name Massei – journeys – bears a striking resemblance to the name Messi, and includes each of the three Hebrew letters (mem, samech and yud) which make up Messi’s name. Massei also includes a fourth letter, ayin – Hebrew for eye – which would suggest we look more carefully at this letter and what it implies. In kabbalistic terms, the letter ayin refers to the eye of God, which manifests itself in the world as divine providence and harmony in all the workings of nature. Divine providence is the idea, held by Judaism, Christianity and Islam alike, that nothing happens by chance, but rather, by the hand of God. Continuing this theme, combining the names Massei and Matot certainly provides a fitting reading in the buildup to the World Cup final – the culmination of the “journeys” of many “tribes” to their final destination.
3) Posto che arriveranno in finale, gli argentini alzeranno la coppa? Diego Maradona, the Argentina coach and arguably the best footballer of all time, named Messi as his successor by giving him the national team’s coveted No. 10 jersey when he took over the team in 2007. Maradona scored many memorable goals in his career, including two that stand out, against England, in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. (Maradona’s Argentina had visited Israel and prayed at the Western Wall ahead of that tournament, which it won, and did so again ahead of the 1990 tournament, in which it was beaten in the finals.) The second of the two 1986 goals saw Maradona run from inside his own half and slalom his way through a series of tackles before beating the England goalkeeper. Earlier in the game, he had scored the notorious “hand of God” goal – seemingly with his head, but in fact with a thrust of his hand. Messi’s achievements, remarkably, include two goals almost identical to that pair, scored in the 2006-2007 season. If we look closely at Messi’s name spelt in Hebrew, it can also be read as an abbreviated form of mispar yud – number 10. Yud is the 10th letter of the Hebrew alphabet and has the numerical value of 10 both in gematria (kabbalistic numerology) and in everyday life. Tenth grade, for example, in Hebrew, is Kita Yud. The letter yud in Kabbala refers to yad, meaning “hand” or “to thrust.”
4) Il 10, stampato sulla maglia di Maradona prima e di Messi poi, è un segno della divina provvidenza? In Judaism, the number 10 is primarily associated with the Ten Commandments given by God at Mount Sinai. The Torah actually states: “The tenth shall be holy for us.” The yud, being the smallest of the 22 letters, represents “the little that holds much.” Given the small physical size of Maradona and Messi, and their enormous football ability, the association with the yud is appropriate, indeed.
5) Insomma, Messi è il Messia? No, è il messaggero: Lionel Messi, the little lion with the big roar, wearing the number 10 on his back, is not Messi the Messiah, an idea many people have played with, but rather, Messi the messenger, a man with a message from God.
