#purim 5781

[benevolentbirdgal]

Purim: a Jewish holiday and wild ride from start to finish

So let me tell you about the absolute soap opera that is the Jewish holiday of Purim. The scene is set in ancient (appx. 4th century B.C.E.) Persia during the first Jewish Diaspora, in the city of Shushan (typically identified in secular sources as Susa, a now-abandoned ancient city in what is now Iran). I’m telling you, as a work of literature (even beyond theological implications for Jewish people), this book has everything: love, drama, royalty, intrigue, ego, plots, irony, mystery, and a strong female lead. 

[some non-slur swearing below]

Ahasuerus, party-loving king of Persia executed or exiled (translations argue) his wife Vashti, and had to find a new queen. Why did he do this, you ask? Well, it really starts with an 180-day party across his kingdom for all his subjects to celebrate the third year of his reign. After that absolute rager, party-bro KA has another one immediately after for a week, this time just for the capital city of Shushan. Vashti was having a woman’s party in her quarters, presumably living her best life, when party-bro sends his top seven yes-men to deliver a message to Vashti. This sleaze-ball wants her to appear at his party in front of everyone, wearing her crown, with the clear implication being only her crown. Vashti more or less tells him to pound sand (I mean, not the literal translation, but that’s the sentiment). 

KA’s advisors convince him that this is not only an offense against the king but also against all the men in the country (ah, the joys of ancient patriarchy and toxic af masculinity). KA writes a degree that women must respect their husbands so he has an official reason to get rid of Vashti. Vashti is soon thereafter out of the picture and the king is short a queen. Whether she was a Wise Lady With A Point Who Got Screwed Over or a Vicious Jew-Hating Adulteress Who Had It Coming has been a matter of furious debate for over two millennia (the Babylonian Talmud and the Jerusalem Talmud vociferously disagree on her). In any case, KA regrets it pretty quick and wants a new queen. 

At the behest of his advisors (you know, since their last advice worked out soooooo well), KA had a big contest/forcible gathering of young women from around his kingdom and a Jewish woman, Hadassah, was the winner.  Hadassah was an orphan raised by her cousin Mordechai in the city of Shushan. Hadassah is more commonly known as Esther, because she changed her name to hide her identity as a Jew (at the behest of Mordechai). In any case, KA decided he liked Esther best and she became queen (it’s specifically mentioned both that he loved her most and that the palace staff liked her because she was nice to them-it’s unclear how much of an influence the latter was). 

Concurrently, a wicked man named Haman was the top advisor to the king and the king would basically rubber-stamp whatever Haman wanted. Haman was a raging Jew-hater-this will be relevant later. 

Some time into Esther’s reign as queen, Mordechai, who has taken to hanging around the gates of the palace to keep in touch with Esther, overhears a plot by two guards, Bigthan and Teresh, to kill the king. Mordechai alerts his cousin, and she tells the king. It’s recorded in the book of deeds and life keeps moving. 

Some time later, Haman decides (after a promotion to head lackey) that he wants all to bow to him as he passes. Mordechai refused to bow to Haman every single day (citing that as a Jew he bowed to no man), and that did not sit well with Haman. So despite being prime minister and presumably having more important things to do, “genocide the Jews” made it to the top of to-do list. He didn’t like them before, and Mordechai refusing to treat him like a special snowflake was something he took really, really personally (totally can’t think of any modern politicians like that, nope). He told KA, who frankly doesn’t seem to ask enough questions, that there was a people disrespecting the king and his laws throughout the land, and could he pretty-please exterminate them. As a bonus, Haman would “donate” 10,000 silver kikar to the royal treasury (modern conversion vary, but all agree this an absurd amount on money). 

KA handed him the royal seal to do so. Haman was feeling lucky I guess so he decided the best course of action was to draw lots to pick the day for the massacre. [Purim is lots in Hebrew, so that’s where the name of the holiday came from]. The message went out to all the provinces that on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, that they citizens and leaders should murder all of the Jews, young and old, man, woman, and child, rich and poor and take their possessions as spoils. 

As this wasn’t exactly a state secret, the Jews knew and were quite distressed. The planned slaughter was like a year out, but what the actual fuck were they supposed to do? If you lived in Persia at that point that, the empire was functionally your entire world, unless you were fabulously/ridiculously wealthy and well-connected. Having several months notice the other locals and your rules were going to slaughter you and take your stuff isn’t particularly useful when there’s really nowhere to go. 

In Shushan, Mordechai (who, although not explicitly in text, is in oral/Talmudic tradition a leader of the Jewish community) goes into mourning. He dresses in sackcloth and ashes, he weeps, and he fasts at the gates of the palace, as Jews throughout shushan and the kingdom are doing. Esther hears of her cousin’s mourning behavior and tries to send along nice clothes through a messenger, which he refuses. It is then that she learns of the decree. Mordechai (through the messenger) implores her to go ask the king if the Jews not getting murdered could be a thing. Esther explains that she could be killed for approaching the king unsummoned. Mordechai stresses the severity of the situation. Esther agrees to ask the king and tells Mordechai to have the Shushan Jewish community fast day and night (as opposed to just day as prior) for three days, and she and her handmaidens will fast too (no word on what the handmaidens thought of this).

On the third day, Esther bravely approached the king, asked him if she could request something. He said anything, up to half his kingdom (which implies to me that homedude, for all his flaws, was actually into her). Esther invited him to a party, where he and Haman would be the only guests. At the party she asks if she can another request. KA is open to it and she invites him to another party the next night. Party-bro king is obviously down and Haman is tickled to death at this second invitation. 

He goes home to brag to his wife, Zeresh, about the invite and also to bitch about how angsty he is Mordechai is still alive (this angst reignited by passing him on the way home). Zeresh suggests he have fifty-foot gallows built to make Mordechai an example on, with the king’s permission, ASAP. Haman orders the building of the gallows, feeling secure in the knowledge that his bestie the king will execute Mordechai on them. 

Back at the castle KA can’t sleep. He demands a bedtime story from the his records, because those will presumably put him to sleep. The story that gets read, ~coincidentally~, is of Mordechai saving KA’s life. Haman had sidled on up to the castle to speak to the king about killing Mordechai, and the king called him in. KA asks Haman, if he were to honor someone, what should he do? Haman is thinking “this is obvi about me” and tells the king that the honoree should be donned in royal clothing, and ride through the streets on a fancy horse with people someone shouting how great he is. KA is like great, love it, perf, go do that for Mordechai. Haman is not a happy camper but does the thing. After that, he goes home and tells Zeresh about it, who warns him that this is a very bad sign. 

Finally, that night is the night of Esther’s second soiree. Haman and KA attend. The latter offers to Esther anything she wants, up to half of his kingdom. Esther asks that her life, and the life of her people be spared. KA is like “whomst” and Esther revealed it was Haman. At this point Ahasuerus.exe stops working and he takes a walk to the gardens. He comes back to see Haman begging Esther for his life, and KA thinks Haman is assaulting her. Haman was seized by nearby guards.

One of the chamberlains is then like, hey, KA, coincidentally there’s these super high gallows Haman just had built. Why not take care of the problem that way? (The fact that the random nearby chamberlain was like yup, that dude, hang ‘em in the morning, probably says a lot about how Haman treated most people around him, even more than forcing all to bow to him). KA orders it be done. 

Not that Haman was around to be sad about it, but what happened next would have massively pissed him off, as his old job then went to Mordechai. Esther then implored of the king that the degree to allow the massacre of the Jews be reversed. The king couldn’t Cntrl+Z the order to murder-all-the-Jews, but he could issue an order that they could fight back. The proclamation was sent throughout the land, and the Jews were able to prepare. Since the royal decree had been amended, the governments (princes, governors, satraps) largely reformulated their plans accordingly, but plenty of Jew-haters still wanted to use the opportunity. The ability to self-defend meant that the communities weren’t massacred. In most of the kingdom, the Jews were now safe. Outside of Shushan, the fourteenth of Adar became a feast day. 

Shushan was still not safe though. Antisemites were still out and mad (and apparently had not learned from the previous day), so Esther asked the Jews of Shushan to be allowed to defend themselves once more. Her wish was granted, and the Shushan Jews were able to defend themselves once more (so Purim is celebrated a day later in walled cities). 

The story ends with the decision to write it down, and although there some debate on authorship, it is traditionally attributed to Esther herself cowriting with Mordechai. 

Nowhere in the book is God mentioned. Nowhere is there divine intervention (at least not explicitly). Just Jews sticking up for themselves, being brave in the face of mortal peril, and a metric fucktown of chutzpah. 

[beatle-capaldi]

purim sameach!!!!!! here’s me as robert smith

i tried to capture the whimsy he exudes, hence the fairy lights and earrings

[princeofwittenberg]

Anyway these were my Purim looks! The 1920s was for Friday when I threw an entire COVID-safe carnival with my rebbetzin and over 80 people came to do all four Purim mitzvot!!!! It was so fulfilling seeing all those happy faces. And then the blue dress was my costume for our Purim spiel in which I played Esther.

[paulinedorchester]

Like Hanukkah, Purim has a somber side frequently ends up being soft-pedalled. Hanukkah celebrates, among other things, a military victory; the Book of Esther, the basis for Purim, ends up as a story about community self-defense. In researching these posts over the past few years, I've often been surprised by the extent to which the U.K.'s Jewish community wasn't willing to draw analogies between these holidays (not to mention Passover) and current events. Once the United States entered the war, the American Jewish press had few such inhibitions. This editorial (leader) from The Sentinel, a Chicago paper, was only the beginning.

On February 27th, The B'nai Brith Messenger (Los Angeles) had this to say:

The Jewish Transcript (Seattle) added:

And The Southern Israelite (Augusta, Georgia) had this to say:

The Jewish Independent (Cleveland, Ohio) didn't editorialize, but did carry this announcement of an event clearly organized by people with topicality on their minds:

Two weeks later, preparations for Passover were in full swing, but Rabbi G. George Fox, a Sentinel columnist, was still thinking about Purim's modern implications:

[jewish-burrito]

My Costume Ideas for Next Purim

t-shirt that says This is my Purim costume

lobster

T-Rex

bee

butterfly

[bootsselbst]

In the true spirit of whatever fucking year this is, I will be celebrating Purim in Animal Crossing

[lioryaakov]

If I was more on top of it I’d buy my Purim costume right after Halloween when all the costumes are on sale but I’m a poor grad student who is planning on closet cosplaying from my actual wardrobe and who knows if I’ll be able to celebrate early.

But for those of y’all more organized than me who do purchase your costumes, now would be a great time to do it!

[eretzyisrael]

Shabbat Zachor 2021 / שַׁבָּת זָכוֹר 5781

Shabbat Zachor (Shabbat before Purim) for Hebrew Year 5781 begins at sundown on Friday, 19 February 2021 and ends at nightfall on Saturday, 20 February 2021.

Shabbat Zachor ("Sabbath [of] remembrance שבת זכור) is the Shabbat immediately preceding Purim. Deuteronomy 25:17-19, describing the attack by Amalek, is recounted. There is a tradition from the Talmud that Haman, the antagonist of the Purim story, was descended from Amalek. The portion that is read includes a commandment to remember the attack by Amalek, and therefore at this public reading both men and women make a special effort to hear the reading.

Source:

ou.org

[purimgifts]

Purimgifts Kickoff 2021: 5781 Calling

Ready to fire 2020? @purimgifts has got your back!

@purimgifts is an annual all-fandoms-welcome exchange for fanfic and/or podfic (either or both, participant’s choice!) with a side-helping of art, focusing on characters who’re at least one of: women, Jewish or persecuted by evil viziers.

This choice of focus is because @purimgifts celebrates the Jewish Holiday of Purim, which commemorates one smart orphan-girl saving her people from genocide (plotted by the king’s vizier) and becoming a queen while she’s at it. You totes don’t have to be Jewish to participate, in case that wasn’t obvious.

ALL fandoms eligible! We won’t reject a fandom unless it’s, like, a romance between a Nazi officer and a Jewish inmate, or something else of that sort and scale. (We can’t promise a match on Very Rare fandoms.) Actually, want us to advertise to your fandom? Tell us now! Either reblog this post, or send us an ask by clicking here.

Fanfic/Podfic/either - you choose! @purimgifts allows for requesting or offering podfic, fanfic or either. Your request and your offer don’t have to match!

2021 schedule:

SIGNUPS Sat-Tue 2-5 January DEADLINE Tue 23 February REVEALS Fri-Sun 26-28 February

Got more questions? Our askbox is open! Click here to send us an ask.

[graceintorah]

What the Darkness Reveals

What the Darkness Reveals

Dear readers, this is a written form of my Purim message from this morning’s conference 5781 (2021).  Isaiah 45:3, 6-7 (TLV) I will give you treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, so you may know that I am Adonai, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name… 6 so they may know, from the rising to the setting of the sun, that there is no one besides Me. I am Adonai—there is no…

[modernrabbistephen]

Happy Purim 5781 Ma'ariv and Magulla Reading https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1111048382670629&id=729696503881650 (at Modern Rabbi Stephen Epstein) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLxEdjWFLnC/?igshid=c300c2i2ag8i

[gatewaysorg]

Harry’s Video Blog – Thinking About You – Purim 5781 from Gateways Organization on Vimeo.

When writing Megillas Esther, what lesson were Mordechai and Esther trying to teach us when they borrowed an obscure phrase from the Torah?

[paulthepoke]

Purim 5781/2021: Who Is Mordecai?

Purim 5781/2021: Who Is Mordecai?

Esther 9:20-22 Then Mordecai recorded these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, obliging them to celebrate the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day of the same month, annually, because on those days the Jews rid themselves of their enemies, and it was a month which was turned for them from sorrow into…

[paulinedorchester]

These are graggers, noisemakers used on Purim to drown out the sound of Haman's name during the reading of the Book of Esther. When I was a child the only ones available were made of tin and plastic, but traditionally they were made of wood and it's now possible to find wooden ones again.

And this is a gas rattle, which British air raid wardens would have used during World War II to warn people in the event of a gas attack, which mercifully never happened. (Image © IWM EPH 9543.)

Isn't that interesting? 😀

[the-story-of-ori]

Adar 3 5781

Today I had a meeting with other conversion candidates with my Rabbi. We talked about our stories and the roadmap for candidates. She mentioned how setting a goal of really paying attention and being present in the jewish calendar for a full year is sorta on her checklist for before the beit din and suggested Purim to Purim and I realized that I’ve being doing that with her specific community, paying attention being present that is, since just after last purim!

Obv there’s stuff i still need to talk about with her and more i want to learn, always more to learn, but I’m super excited to think that after what . . . 5 years of having the intention to study hard and to finally become jewish I might be getting close!

I’ve set in my calendar a week to go to a Kab Shab in English that’s local to me (I live in a majority non-english speaking country and I am not yet fluent in the local dominant language). I’m excited to finally check out that community cause they sound cool and somewhat similar to my US one and it’d be nice to have an IRL place with IRL jews to do IRL judaism with instead of just people i’ve only seen the upper half of through a computer screen.

Today’s a good day 

[dfroza]

Today’s email message from The Temple Institute in Jerusalem

that takes a look of the significance of the clothing of the High Priest and of Purim:

"Draw near to you your brother!"

(Exodus 28:1)

Adar 14, 5781/February 26, 2021

"Draw near to you your brother Aharon, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel to serve Me: Aharon, Nadav, and Avihu, Eleazar, and Itamar, Aharon's sons. You shall make holy garments for your brother Aharon, for honor and glory." (Exodus 28:1-2) Words more beautiful than these do not appear in Torah. G-d has expressed His desire to dwell among His children, and now He is teaching us how we are to appear before Him. We draw our brothers near, in love and in unity. We dress our brother in honor and glory every time we gaze upon him and see within him the image of G-d in which he was created.

And this is how G-d sees us - at our finest! Dressed in honor and glory! But couldn't the Kohen Gadol (High Priest), our brother who stands before G-d and represents us, be clad in more modest clothes? Is it really necessary for the Kohen Gadol to be cloaked in royal techelet blue and argaman purple, crimson and gold, with a gem-studded breatplate and a golden crown? Not only do these beautiful garments reflect how we appear in G-d's eye, they also convey a tremendous responsibility for the Kohen Gadol. Each detail of the High Priest's garments embodies both a potential sin on man's part and the ability to overcome and repent and stand before G-d in peace:

The High Priest's tunic atones for killing; his pants atone for sexual transgressions; his turban, worn on the head, atones for haughtiness; his belt, wound about the body and worn over the heart, atones for "sins of the heart" - improper thoughts; his breastplate atones for errors in judgment; the ephod atones for idolatry; his robe atones for evil speech, and the High Priest's crown, which rests on his forehead, atones for arrogance. This is the true meaning of the honor and glory that G-d sees in man: man's ultimate ability to live up to the potential of being a living being formed of the dust of the earth into which G-d "breathed into his nostrils the soul of life." (Genesis 2:7)

The garments of the Kohen Gadol were extremely heavy, no doubt reminding him every moment and with every movement that he bears a tremendous responsibility: standing before G-d in his brothers' behalf. The High Priest is one of us: he is called the High Priest because he is the head priest, but neither his title nor his raiments grant him an exalted status above his brothers. We are equals, and because we are equals the Kohen Gadol can truly represent all of us before G-d, with all his heart. Humility is the true crowning glory of the Kohen Gadol.

In the book of Esther, which we read, today being Purim, teaches us that despite outward appearances, there are no coincidences in life. Behind every apparent happenstance is the hidden hand of G-d. Likewise, it is no coincidence that this year we are reading parashat Tetzaveh, which describes the garments of the Kohen Gadol, on the same Shabbat on which Shushan Purim falls. Midrash tells us that subtext of the Purim story is the struggle to rebuild the second Holy Temple, despite all the political intrigue and machinations of those who opposed the building of the Holy Temple, such as Haman and King Achashverosh, the chief villains of the Purim story. The book of Esther opens with a massive feast sponsored and hosted by Achashverosh, celebrating what he believes is the the end of the Jewish dream of rebuilding the Holy Temple, whose construction he, himself, halted by royal decree. Not only does Achashverosh, in unbridled hubris feed all his guests with food and drink served in the sacred vessels pilfered from the first Holy Temple, but he has the egotistical gall to greet his guests while wearing the sacred garments of the High Priest.

This begs the question: do the clothes make the man, as the old saw goes? The answer seems to be a profound no! Whereas the beautifully spun garments of the High Priest serve the highest purpose in life, reflecting man at his very best, standing at attention before G-d in the Holy Temple, when these same garments are worn by an egotistical tyrant, who sees no authority other than his own, and no law to abide other than his own decrees, they become a sad reflection of man at his lowest, an ungrateful and empty vessel. Using this empty vessel of a man for the ultimate good, as we see unfold in the book of Esther, was G-d's doing, and not born of any self reflection or atonement on Achashverosh's part. Midrash teaches us that Achashverosh's child born to Esther would become the future King Darius, who signed the royal decree permitting the restarting of the rebuilding of the Holy Temple.

G-d may sometimes seem hidden to us, but as G-d's instructions to bring near our brothers and dress them in honor and glory make clear, G-d will always see us at our finest, when we see in one another a hidden spark of G-d. It just may be that man is G-d's favorite hiding place. Purim sameach - have a happy Purim!