from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MessiahThis is where my view of Messiah came from. There are many other ways to look at what it means, but what worries me is the way this idea of a crusade like war to stop terrorizm/Muslim at all costs even if it bankrupts our country or causes another world war. See bold text below.
View in Judaism
Main article: Jewish Messiah
In The Tanakh
The concept of the messiah is neither common nor unified in the Tanakh. The term is used in the Hebrew Bible to describe Israelite priests, prophets, and kings who were anointed with oil in consecration to their respective offices. For example, Cyrus the Great, the king of Persia, is referred to as "God's anointed" (Messiah) in the Bible.
The Tanakh contains a number (the number is debated) of prophecies concerning a future descendant of King David who will be anointed as the Jewish people's new leader (moshiach).
Christians believe that Daniel was a prophet and gave an indication of when the Messiah, the prince “mashiyach nagiyd,” would come.(Daniel 9:25-26) Daniel's prophecies refer to him as a descendant of King David who will rebuild the nation of Israel, destroy the wicked, and ultimately judge the whole world. Jews hold that the mashiach nagid mentioned in Daniel was Cyrus, king of Persia.
This subject is covered in more detail in the article on Jewish eschatology.
The Hebrew word for messiah translates to "anointed". <3> Thus, to reformed Jews there have been many messiahs — all the anointed kings and priests including David, Solomon and Aaron. When speaking of the Messiah of the future, modern Jews speak of two potential messiahs. Moshiach ben Yossef (Messiah son of Joseph) and Moshiach ben David (Messiah son of David)<4> The Hebrew ben can mean either son or descendant. In this sense it can also mean "in the manner of," i.e., there will be a "suffering servant" messiah in the manner of Joseph son of Israel/Jacob and a different messiah in the manner of King David.
A common modern rabbinic interpretation is that there is a potential messiah in every generation. The Talmud which often uses stories to make a moral point (aggadah) tells the tale of a highly respected rabbi who found the Messiah at the gates of Rome and asked him "When will you finally come?" He was quite surprised when he was told, "Today." Overjoyed and full of anticipation, the man waited all day. The next day he returned, disappointed and puzzled, and asked, "You said messiah would come 'today' but he didn't come! What happened?" The Messiah replied, "Scripture says, 'Today, if you will but hearken to His voice.' " (Psalm 95:7)
Orthodox Judaism believes in a unique future physical messiah who will usher in the messianic age of war before peace to the world.
Reform Judaism and Conservative Judaism teach both the belief in a messiah or messiahs, or that there will be a time of peace, etc., but that it will be the result of tikkun olam ("repair of the world") through human efforts toward social justice, not the actions of one man.
"Choice is the underlying reason the Reform Movement gave up the need for and belief in a single messiah who would one day bring judgment, and perhaps salvation, to the world. The fact that God imbues us with free choice mitigates the need for a messianic figure."<5> 
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