The Spiritual Message of Purim

by Rabbi Benjamin H. Englander

Some scholars doubt the historical accuracy of the Purim story as related in the Book of Esther. They classify the book as fiction, and its contents as mere figments of the imagination. In the light of Jewish experience through the ages, however, we do not require much imagination to realize that it could have happened in ancient Persia and we appreciate the artistic literary quality of the book of Esther, in which a historical tale is poetically and simply unfolded to us.

The Scroll of Esther in the Bible tells us that the King of Persia had elevated a man by the name of Haman to rule over the royal's 127 provinces. Haman's pride was hurt by the nonconformity of Mordecai and he determined to avenge himself upon the People of Mordecai. The fourteenth day of Adar was chosen by chance drawing of lots as the date for the extermination of the Jews of Persia. Esther (Mordecai's niece, who had been chosen queen to succeed Vashti) interceded with the king. Haman was thwarted in his plans and met the fate he had prepared for Mordecai. Mordecai was elevated to the high position of Minister in the court of King Ahasuerus, the post formerly held by Haman.

Our sages, in analyzing the story, recognize the Divine intervention that saved the Jews from extermination and seek to find the cause that brought them to the brink of disaster. They tell us that this threat to their very existence came upon the Jewish people because they participated in a celebration the king had arranged and did not refrain from eating of his food, which as Jews, was prohibited to them. At the feast, they saw the sacred vessels of the Temple, which were in the possession of the king, being desecrated and they were not disturbed. In modern terms, the Rabbis point out, it was the assimilation of the Jew and his secularization that brought the wrath of the Almighty upon them through Haman.

Though the anti-Semitism plot is easily discerned in the Purim story, the lesson for our day is the teachings of our sages. It is only as we weaken our own internal stronghold that the external threat becomes a serious one. When we celebrate Purim with all its festivity, we should remain cognizant of its deep religious significance and its message for the revival of the Jewish religious spirit. The great tragedy of our day is that, although we experienced the Holocaust of Nazi extermination, there has not been a spiritual reawakening of our people. The actual sacrifice of the six million in our day was not recorded in a sacred monumental work as was the mere threat of annihilation in the Book of Esther. Neither is there acknowledgment of the Divine in the preservation of the surviving remnants. More than the danger of physical exterminations, we must guard against spiritual bankruptcy. We may have succeeded to salvage our body, only to lose our soul. Saving Jews is no longer the crying need it was a few years ago. Saving Judaism now emerges as the pressing problem if we are to continue to survive.

On all levels and in all areas, Judaism is being attacked. We find a process of secularization of Jewish life going on, and non-religious groups have assumed leadership, ignoring completely the representatives of religion. Jewish living is being de-Judaized, and the Jew is being divested of his distinctiveness and individuality. The dietary laws are publicly flaunted, the Sabbath is violated, the synagogue, except during the High Holy Days, remains empty. This, then, is our problem today, and many of us have dedicated ourselves to the purpose of reawakening the Jewish spirit. If we are to preserve our Jewish heritage against the danger of liquidation, there must be an intensification of Jewish living and a revitalization of Jewish spiritual values. If we are to survive, we must recognize that we are primarily a religious fellowship.