Welcome to Beit Emunah’s Purim celebration:

"If you fail to speak up now, relief and deliverance will come to the Jews from a different direction; but you and your father's family will perish. Who knows whether you didn't come into your royal position precisely for such a time as this" -- Esther 4:14

Purim is the celebration of the Triumph of Good over Evil, of Israel's assured survival against all the odds! More, it is a challenge to each of us Jews today:

Will we stand with Israel and our people TODAY or will we stand with the Haman's of the world?
We each must decide.
You must decide.

Purim, "the Festival of Lots" is observed each year on Adar 14 and 15 on the Hebrew caladar. It was instituted at Esther 9:20, 21.

"Mordecai the Jew" is said to have recorded the events found in the Megillah of Esther according to Jewish tradition. The story goes that he sent dispatches to all the Jews throughout the provinces of King Ahasuerus, near and far, charging them to observe the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar, every year in memory of the Persian Jews enjoying relief from their foes, and the same month which had been transformed for them from one of grief and mourning to one of festive joy. Jews observe the day as a time of feasting and merrymaking, and as an occasion for sending gifts to one another and giving presents to the poor.

Purim remembers the defeat of a plot to exterminate the Jews of Persia (modern Iran). In a greater sense however it reminds us of the innumerable attempts to destroy our people throughout our generations. It also reminds us of HaShem's constant protection and the importance of our looking to Him alone. Purim is a day of great joy and hence has been called the Jewish Halloween due to the costumes, public celebrations, and considerable alcohol consumption. As we recite each year in the Pesach (Passover) Haggadah, "In each and every generation the Gentiles rise up against us to destroy us. But the Holy One, blessed be He, always rescues us from their hands." On Purim we celebrate His continuing protection of one Jewish community as demonstrative of them all.

Purim is a required observance and festival of joy for all Jews. It is HaShem’s Will that we all be joyful in both good times and bad. On this day, all Jews are instructed to eat, drink and be merry! So for those here at our home, feel free to move about, nosh and enjoy some of Shlomo’s Magic Mead or the other drinks. On Purim we celebrate not only the saving of the Jews of the kingdom of Ahasurus, who reigned from India to Ethiopia, but ALL of the innumerable interventions of HaShem on our behalf. We gather together with joy and gratitude to HaShem for the myriad ways He has saved and spared our ancestors from death, and for the many ways He continues doing so for us today. Purim is about us as much as it about them.

The centerpiece of Purim is the reading of the Magila of Esther.

As is Tradition, we first recite Shoshanat Ya’akov, The Rose of Jacob:

The rose of Ya'akov thrilled with joy and exulted when they beheld Mordecai garbed in royal tekhelet (blue).
You, Adonai, have always been their salvation, their hope in every generation, to make known that all who place hope in You shall not be put to shame, nor shall all those who trust in You be disgraced forever.
Cursed be Haman who sought to destroy me!
Blessed be Mordecai the Jew!
Cursed be Zeresh, the wife of Haman who terrified me.
Blessed be Hadassah (Esther) who interceded on my behalf.
Cursed be all the wicked! Blessed be all the righteous! And may Harbonah also be remembered favorably.

It is believed by many that this piyut or litergical poem was written by the Anshei Knesses Hagedolah, the Men of the Great Assembly, while others attribute it to Rabbi Asher Halevi of Worms, in the late 11th to early 12th century. It is uncertain but the poem has become a central Purim text.

If one reads the text of the Megillah without considering the talmudic materials associated with it, or the history surrounding it, King Achashverosh may seem like a pretty neutral and irrelavant figure of history. However, he was an avid enemy of our people was personally responsible for the halting of the building of the Beit HaMikdash! What we find in the text of the Megillah is a glimpse into his weak personality, and that of many of the historic, present, and future enemies of the Jews. He was a very impulsive man lacking in self comntrol. He lashed out instantly on a whim and once the moment was gone, it was gone. Consider: his anger with Vashti spelled her disgrace and demise almost instantaneously. He didn't hesitate to grant Haman's request on the spot: "Kill the Jews? Sure, why not?" When Mordecai saved his life, he was apparently grateful, but nothing was ever done to show any gratitude; he forgot about it completely until he was reminded during a night of insomnea. Even with Haman's decree, he seems to have totally forgotten about it later on! Evil people are often like this! They do their works with zeal, but how often do they apologize once their evils are exposed? Almost never, they just move on to their next harmful scheme. Sound familiar?

Although King Achashverosh was not from Amalek’s line directly, this trait is very much present within the theme of Achashverosh's actions. Rashi notes on Devarim 25:18 that Amalek "happened" upon the Israelites as they came out of Egypt and just attacked our rear guard on a whim. The spur-of-the-moment mentality of Amalek is diametrically opposed to that of the Jews, who understand that HaShem controls all and that nothing happens without His Purpose. We know that He will hold us accountable for our wrongs and avenge us on our enemies, Genesis 12:3 assures of this. But those like Amalek lack the intelligence and morality to fear HaShem or to hold Him in awe. There are many Amalek’s in every generation. We have all met them. Not only was Achashverosh’s Amalek-like nature a physical threat to Israel, his twisted mentality and spiritually was and is always the opposite of HaShem focused perspectives. What such people deem to be positive is really negative, and the positives of emunah and bitachon (motivating faith and trust in HaShem alone), they condemn as negatives. This is the eternal struggle between the Children of Light and the Children of Darkness. It is always with us.

But consider: Harbonah, the man who made the gallows for Mordecai’s execution, but which was later used for Haman's. He understood this about Achashverosh’s nature. He knew Haman was evil, but he also understood that for Achashverosh to adequately punish Haman, he needed to choose the right timing. Achashverosh was already quite agitated and might not have appreciated Harbonah's intervention without the proper timing, so he waited. Then Harbonah, with perfect timing, gave Achashverosh a great idea that was just too ironic to pass up! Harbonah was responsible for making sure Haman met his just deserts, thereby saving the innocent Jews. If not for Harbonah, things might have worked out very differently! Likewise, we must exercise patience and wait on God's timing, and our own inward wisdom. People who act too quickly, often based on false or incomplete information, usually fail in the short term, and always do so in the end. Although Mordecai, Hadassah, Haman and Achashverosh are the main actors in the Purim story, without Harbonah's timing it could have all been for nothing. To paraphrase Mordecai, God’s Will is going to be done in the end, the Ameleks of the world are going to lose, but who knows? You may be in your present situation for such a time as this. Stand tall, stand firm.

We turn now to the Megilla of Esther. We'll be reading from the JPS 1985 version at Sefaria.com. Read the Megilla.

After the reading:

The rose of Ya'akov thrilled with joy and exulted when they beheld Mordecai garbed in royal tekhelet (blue).
You, Adonai, have always been their salvation, their hope in every generation, to make known that all who place hope in You shall not be put to shame, nor shall all those who trust in You be disgraced forever.
Cursed be Haman who sought to destroy me!
Blessed be Mordecai the Jew!
Cursed be Zeresh, the wife of Haman who terrified me.
Blessed be Hadassah (Esther) who interceded on my behalf.
Cursed be all the wicked! Blessed be all the righteous! And may Harbonah also be remembered favorably.

"They Tried To Kill Us. They Failed. Let's Eat!"

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