Purim honors Jewish survival
Mar. 12—It all began at a Persian feast.
The King Ahasuerus (or Xeres I in Greek) was holding one of his popular banquets, providing all the food — and especially all the drinks — that the men of his kingdom could imbibe. Likewise, his queen, Queen Vashti, was entertaining the ladies of the land in a separate part of the palace.
But after seven days of festivities, Ahasuerus "merry with wine" as the text notes, called for Vashti to come parade herself before the men wearing her crown (often taken to mean wearing only her crown).
Either way, she refused. The king, none too pleased with her objection, decided to banish Vashti and search his kingdom for a newer, more obedient model of wife.
Thus begins the Book of Esther.
Of course, the story could also be called the Book of Hadassah. Hadassah was a beautiful Jewish woman living in Persia with her foster father/uncle, Mordecai. When King Ahasuerus sent his minions to find new "applicants" (willing or not) to become queen, Hadassah was taken.
Before she was whisked away, Mordecai advised her to hide her name, her relations and certainly hide the fact that she was Jewish. She adopted the Persian moniker, Esther, which means "star" instead, then off she went. And shine she did.
Upon meeting her, King Ahasuerus falls in love with Esther — not realizing that she is in fact a Jew. The two are married and she becomes the queen of Persia. But as Queen Esther settled into her fancy new digs at the palace, she was moving quite close to some very real danger.
The king's conniving counselor, Haman, was a raging anti-Semite. And he was spinning a plot to commit genocide against the Persian Jews. He had a particular disdain for Esther's uncle Mordecai because he had refused to bow in deference to him. The king, however, was fond of Mordecai, as he had previously warned him of an assassination plan.
But being the evil genius that he was, Haman convinced Ahasuerus that the kingdom's Jews didn't respect his laws and should be annihilated. Ahasuerus agreed to let Haman "handle" the situation.
Haman (literally) rolls dice to determine when this massacre will occur, setting the blood bath for the 13th day of the twelfth month, known as Adar. All of the Jews were to be killed and their possessions confiscated on that day.
Of course, the king was unaware that his beloved wife Esther was in fact a Jew. After she and Mordecai discover Haman's plot, they decided to expose him for the villain he was. They asked their fellow Jews to fast and pray, then Esther asks for the king to meet her — a bold move which could be punishable by death.
Luckily for Esther, the king is happy to see her and she is able to reveal her true story and identity.
Ahasuerus quickly recalls his decree to kill the Jews, and instead sentences Haman to death. In a grisly turn, Haman is hanged on the same gallows he intended for Mordecai. After Haman's death, the Jews square off against all of his followers on the 13th day of Adar, the day set for the genocide, and they emerge victorious. The following day — the 14th day of Adar — became a time of feasting and celebration. This is now known as Purim.
The Book of Esther and the story of Purim is unique for a number of reasons. First and foremost, God isn't mentioned in the whole of the text. Instead, the characters seem to ride the waves of fortune alone, entirely subject to chance. But though God isn't mentioned, there is an undercurrent of divine support that sweeps through the narrative, though like Esther's true identity, it remains hidden.
It's a tale of survival with Esther elevated to one of the Bible's best-loved heroines.
Many of the story's elements — hidden identities, as well as celebration with food and drink — make up a major part of Purim traditions today. This year, the holiday begins at sundown on Wednesday and will continue through sundown Thursday.
For Carla Bluhm, a member of Temple Beth Tefilloh in Brunswick, Purim has always been a fun, upbeat occasion.
"A lot of the other holidays are serious, but Purim is a lot of fun. We go to the synagogue and the rabbi reads the Book of Esther. It's an occasion where you get to see your rabbi having fun and being really joyous. And the whole congregation will have noisemakers and when Haman's name is mentioned we boo and make a lot of noise. It's very different than other services," she said with a laugh.
"Purim always feels like this healthy pushback and one that we're not given the opportunity to do often. In many situations in history, Jews have had to hide their identities or be silent. For Purim, we get to be loud and fierce, like Esther."
Bright colors and costumes are also common. Drinking wine is another tradition often linked to the holiday. According to a statement in the Talmud attributed to a rabbi named Rava, "One should drink on Purim until he can no longer distinguish between 'arur Haman' ('cursed is Haman') and 'baruch Mordechai' ('blessed is Mordecai')."
While Bluhm says most people don't take things that far, there is a carnival-like atmosphere to Purim.
"Well, I don't know about the drinking ... but there are definitely a lot of treats," Bluhm said with a giggle.
"We make hamantaschen, the triangle cookies, which are said to be shaped like Haman's hat. You often give little bags of treats to friends and family. During the pandemic, the synagogue has delivered little bags with cookies, masks and noisemakers."
But even with the treats and costumes, Bluhm feels like the greatest takeaway from Purim is pride in one's identity.
"There's definitely this flip flop that we see in the story of Esther. She goes from having no power to having al lot of power ... over time, her Judaism makes her powerful. So I think in a lot of ways, it's about how revealing your true self carries a lot of power," she said.
"It encourages the Jewish people to be true to who we are, because that is our strength and being an authentic Jewish person reveals that. And it's so exciting that it's a woman who gets to do it and who has that power. Esther saves the day."
