Why Purim is an Underrated Holiday
and What You Can Do About It
What's Purim, you ask? Good question, one that's to be expected,
since this Jewish holiday is one of the least observed biblical
celebrations.
Passover is a holy day with which we're all familiar. Rosh
Hashanah and Yom Kippur—the High Holy Days—get a lot
of our attention. And Chanukah, with its gift-giving and
candle-lighting, is a day (actually eight days) we enjoy and observe.
But Purim doesn't demand a lot of our interest. Why?
To begin with, the events leading to Purim, the celebration
of a defensive military victory, took place in Persia, not Israel.
The Jews were in the galut (the diaspora), having been brought
there after the fall of Jerusalem and destruction of the Temple
in 586 BCE. They were attacked by the prime minister of
Persia—Haman—because Esther's cousin, Mordecai, would
not bow down to this pagan leader. That was the last straw for
self-aggrandizing Haman, who had wanted to get rid of the Jews,
anyway. He saw them as a threat to his upward mobility and power.
Since the whole story took place outside of Israel, it never
became a major holy day, especially in the western world.
Second, there is no reference to God in the entire Scroll of
Esther. This was so surprising to the rabbis who canonized the
Scripture (chose which books were to be called Scripture), that
there was conflict as to whether or not to include Esther in the
Bible at all. How could a document that doesn't mention God be
placed in his Holy Book?
Furthermore, the hero of the story is a woman, something some
of the less "liberated" rabbis had a hard time with.
Esther was the star and strength of the Purim story.
A third reason that Purim is not a well-known Jewish celebration
is that it is not crowned with a biblical Sabbath. Unlike the
holy days summarized in Leviticus 23, on which a Sabbath was
commanded, Purim is not given the same holyness. Although people
rested on the days after Purim, this rest was not a commandment
of God. That's why I call it a holiday, not a holy day.
But Purim is an important celebration that needs more
recognition. It teaches that even though Jews may be out of
the Land, God, in a behind-the-scenes kind of way, is present
and does protect his people. The many "coincidences" described
in the book encourage us in that even though we may not see God
face-to-face, we can count on his presence—anywhere and
any time.
Another reason to celebrate Purim is the fact that it teaches
what happens to anti-Semites, Jew-haters. They always lose! Even
Adolf Eichmann, one of the most wicked Nazis, discovered this
truth. After he was caught, convicted, and condemned to die, he
likened his life to the story of Purim, where the wicked Haman,
after trying to destroy the Jewish people, like Eichmann, was
hanged. People need to know that God protects his people, whether
Jews or "grafted-in" Gentiles (a.k.a. Christians).
A third reason that we at Emmanuel put so much effort into
celebrating Purim is a verse found at the end of the Scroll of
Esther. It reads, "the Jews resolved and took upon themselves,
their descendants and all who might join them that without fail
they would observe... at the appointed time, every year"
(Esther 9:27). Since we have many non-Jews who have joined
themselves to Israel through the "grafting-in" that
comes through Yeshua, the Messiah, this celebration befits our
congregation's concept of how Jew and Gentile have become one
in the Messiah.
As has become our tradition, we will be having a Purim shpiel,
a Purim musical, on two nights: Saturday, February 27th and Sunday,
February 28th. It's called Megillah on the Roof. It was written
by my wife, Yaffa (Steffi), who has written many songs, dramatic
sketches, and Purim plays. In the starring role is my daughter
Shira (Esther is her middle name), who not only sings beautifully,
but acts terrifically, too.
I urge you to come to the play. To get the most out of it
(and understand all the jokes), you should read the Megillah
(Scroll) of Esther before coming. Then Purim will be a more
meaningful experience to you.
Chag Sameach
(Happy Holiday),
Rabbi Baruch (Barry) Rubin
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