Aside from the commemoration of the Holocaust and the celebration of Israel’s independence that were instituted in recent times, Purim, the Feast of Lots, which will occur this year on Thursday evening, March 13 and Friday, March 14, is one of two holidays on the Jewish calendar that are not mentioned in the Torah (the Five Books of Moses), the most ancient and authoritative source of Jewish law and practice. Chanukah, the winter holiday commemorating the Maccabean revolt and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple in 164 BCE, derives from the Books of Maccabees, which are part of the Apocrypha, a collection of books that were not included in the Jewish biblical canon. The Book of Esther, the source for the Purim holiday, is part of the Hebrew Bible, but is to be found not in the Torah but in the Writings, the third section of the Scriptures.
Interestingly, the two holidays complement each other. The Chanukah holiday celebrates the resistance of Jews to the decrees of the Seleucid king Antiochus IV, who sought to impose on the Jews conformity to and absorption into the Greek culture and religious practice that were dominant at the time in the eastern Mediterranean world. Purim tells of the threatened extermination of the Jews throughout the provinces of the Persian empire plotted by an evil vizier with the collusion of a detached, self-indulgent and mercurial king. The plot was exposed and danger averted through the timely intervention of Esther, the king’s Jewish queen, the villain was executed, and an annual celebration proclaimed to commemorate the Jews’ deliverance. The events of Chanukah enabled the Jews to survive spiritually and preserve their faith traditions. In the case of Purim, the threat was physical, and the very lives of the Jews were at stake.
Purim is celebrated by reading the Book of Esther in the synagogue from a hand-written parchment scroll known as the Megillah. When the name of the villain, Haman, is read, those in attendance either boo or twirl noisemakers to symbolically blot out the name of the wicked. People dress in costume as Esther, Haman, Mordecai (Esther’s cousin and foster parent), or King Ahasuerus, or as more contemporary figures from the worlds of politics and entertainment. A triangular pastry filled with prunes or poppy seeds is traditionally eaten and is said to represent either Haman’s hat or his ears. It is also customary to exchange gifts of food with friends and neighbors and to give charity to the needy. Sunday schools often hold Purim-themed carnivals for their students, and Purim humor offers a once-a-year opportunity to satirize venerated texts, traditions and figures of authority and to “let off steam.” Although the connection is not certain, there is a parallel to Mardi Gras, celebrated at this time of year, and an overlap with features of Nowruz, the Persian New Year, which occurs at the time of the spring equinox.
There is a dissonance between the laughter, fun and joy associated with Purim and the seriousness of the theme – the libel against and planned murder of an entire people. Part of the secret of Jewish survival has been our ability to laugh at ourselves and to maintain a sense of humor under discouraging and perilous conditions. A scholarly rabbi many years ago characterized Purim as “making laughter from inadequate material.” Haman has been seen by Jews as an archetype for the antisemites throughout history who slandered Jews and initiated violence and persecution against them, whether their hostility was based on religious intolerance, ethnic animosity or pseudoscientific beliefs about racial inferiority. Sadly, antisemitism persists in our time, emanating from all points along the political spectrum. Antisemitic incidents have proliferated in recent years. There have been numerous attacks on Jewish religious institutions and community centers, vandalism of buildings and desecration of cemeteries, as well as actual incidents of physical violence. I remember returning from a convention in Israel six years ago and, when our plan landed at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, learning of the massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, in which 11 Jews were murdered. Purim is the occasion for boisterous fun but also a reminder of the need to remain vigilant and to condemn and fight against antisemitism along with all forms of bigotry and hate.
This article appears in Opioid overdoses increase.
