The Purim Story

The Purim Story
A simple summary of the Purim story!
A Jewish man by the name of Mordechai had a younger relative (it is unclear whether she
was his daughter, niece, cousin, etc.) who he took care of. They both lived in Persia. The
ruler of Persia at the time, Achashverosh, was known to throw wild parties that could last for
months. At one such party, he told his wife, Vashti, to come down to the party naked, to
entertain the guests. She refused, and in his drunken stupor he executed her. He later
realized that he now needed a wife, and held a beauty pageant to choose his new bride.
Mordechai urged Ester to join the beauty pageant; she did, and she won. She now lives
with Achashverosh instead of Mordechai, so Mordechai waits outside the castle where Ester
lives to see her.
Meanwhile, Achashverosh’s advisor, Haman, leaves the palace flaunting his wealth and
making people bow to him. Mordechai refuses to bow because Haman wears a symbol of a
false God and he will not perform idol worship. He will only bow and pray to Hashem.
Haman is furious with this, and hates all Jews because of Mordechai’s refusal. He storms off
to plot against the Jews.
Mordechai hears two castle guards talking about a plot to assassinate Achashverosh.
Mordechai tells Ester, who tells Achashverosh. Achashverosh executes the two guards, and
decides to reward Mordechai. He calls in Haman to advise him on how he should reward
Mordechai. This makes Haman angry at Mordechai and the Jews, because he had wanted
to be rewarded instead of Mordechai.
Haman decided, through a lottery or raffle of sorts (meaning that he chose randomly) that
he is going to kill all the Jews in Persia on the 14th of Adar. Mordechai discovers his plan
and tells Esther. She announces this during a dinner party that Haman and Achashverosh
are attending. Additionally, she tells them that she is Jewish. Achashverosh orders the
execution of Haman and all of his children for his cruel plan. He then appointed Mordechai
as his royal advisor, and the Jews survive.
The courage of Esther and Mordechai to stand up for the Jewish nation made all the
difference.
Traditions
The Four “Ms” and More! Megillah, Mishteh, Mishloach Manot, Matanot Levyonim
In modern times, we celebrate the success of Esther and Mordechai. We read the entire
Megillat Esther, and each time that Haman is mentioned, we try to drown out his name with
as much noise as possible. Traditionally, noise-makers called greggers are used, but any
form of noise is acceptable. When hearing the megillah, you are supposed to hear each and
every single word (except for Haman, of course).
Jews are encouraged to participate in a Mishteh (party) to celebrate Purim and that the
Jewish nation is alive and strong! We are supposed to immerse ourselves in the happiness
of the holiday.
The Megillah (The Book of Esther) prescribes, "the sending of portions one man to another,
and gifts to the poor".
Mishloach Manot are small presents of packaged food that you give to family and friends
during the holiday. It is meant to ensure that everyone has enough food for the Purim feast.
Over the age of Bar Mitzvah, one is supposed to give two different types of food to at least
one recipient.
Matanot Levyonim is a way to give back to our community. For Purim, one is supposed to
give two charitable donations to two poor people.
It is customary to dress up in costumes when going to hear the megillah, or throwing a
costume party around the time of Purim.
There are also some dietary customs surrounding Purim. Most Jews, particularly Ashkenazic
Jews (Jews of European descent), make triangular pastries called Hamantaschen (pockets of
Haman) or Oznei Haman (ears of Haman).
Program
A program about Vashti, Esther, Mordechai and the Jewish people who displayed
strength, dignity and bravery and stood up against intolerance and what they
disagreed during the Purim story. It is about empowering ourselves and having
confidence, despite having certain judgments or stereotypes linked to us. This is a
prime example of the story of a Jewish hero and how remaining passionate is
crucial. The actions of many heroes and prominent Jewish change agents will be
emphasized through this story, from Purim to modern day.
Tell the Purim Story.
• Focus on Esther and Vashti’s defiance of unfair treatment.
• Use quotes from the megillah.
• Add in a twist to “modernize” the story and make it exciting.
Create Discussion Throughout the Story
• Would you stand up to someone of authority?
• Have you ever stood up to someone you are afraid of?
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•
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Would you risk your life to stand up for something you believe in? What do you
stand for?
Do you think Esther was wrong in wanting to hide the fact that she was a Jew? Have
you ever wanted to hide something from other people?
Have you ever felt inferior to someone?
Discuss Major Jewish Change Agents
• Include Female Heroes - Just like Esther spoke up and defied her pre-imposed
gender role to save the day, there are many other strong women who have made a
difference for the Jewish nation.
• Include Male Heroes - Mordechai stood up for what he believed him. Without the
courage of Mordechai and Esther, the fate of the whole Purim plot would be
different.
• Hand out papers and have groups describe the characters:
o Gertrude Stein, Golda Meir, Betty Friedan, Anna Freud, and Anne Frank
o Rabbi Shimon Bar Kochba, Yonatan Netanyahu, Natan Sharansky, and Rabbi
Hillel
Highlight Powerful Modern Jews
• Ilana Shoshan, Barbara Striesand, Tzipi Livni, Daphna Ziman, Natalie Portman, Dana
Walden, Joan Rivers, Bar Refaeli, Debbie Wasserman Schultz
• Andy Samberg, Rahm Emanuel, Ben Bernake, Shai Agassi, Alan Dershowitz, Bibi
Netanyahu, Sheldon Adelson, Elie Weisel, Mark Zuckerberg
Relate The Heroes of the Past and Present
• How they show leadership, energy, and innovation in what they do.
• The key aspect that they are all passionate about what they do.
• What interesting relationships can you see?
Discussion
• How have we grown through BBYO?
• What passions have we each develpoed?
• What extent would you stand behind what you believe in?
• How do we recognize our strengths and fuse our passion, culture, and identity into
making positive change.
D’var Torah
An in-depth look at the Purim story: Does everything happen for a reason?
If we study the characters of Mordechai and Esther it is interesting to see the profound
influence one’s middot (virtues or norms) have over one’s actions and personality. We
see how a refined character and healthy self-esteem can build and give meaning to life
while the converse is also true, that a flawed character, someone who refuses to work on
his faulty middot will ultimately self-destruct. Purim is a time to not only recognize the
presence we have around people in relation to our characteristics, but the presence of
God in our lives. Moreover, as God's name does not appear in the Megillah, we can infer
that Purim is intended to indicate the theme of hidden meanings. Similarly to Passover,
the holiday of Purim is another reminder that despite the fact that in every generation,
someone arises to try and destroy. As we know, Haman was that 'someone' in this case.
So how was it so? How did the Jews living under Achashverosh undergo Haman and his
radical ways? While there are specific details to the plot and intricacies that explain what
cause the survival of the Jews, there was hidden intervention in the survival of this story.
Hashem played a vital role in annihilating Haman. And this brings us to another major
theme in the story of Purim; the idea of chance or coincidence versus divine inevitability.
To bring this concept into our lives, as Jews we must recognize that God has much more
of a role in what plays out in our lives than one might think he does--that there is a
semblance of divine intervention and presence in all aspects of our lives. After all, what
Purim can teach us is that everything happens for a reason.
World Celebration
How Purim is celebrated across the globe - today and throughout history!
Throughout various Jewish communities in the world, Purim is celebrated in many different
ways.
In France, for example, it is traditional for children to write Haman’s name on stones and
strike them repeatedly whenever his name was mentioned in the megillah reading.
In 18th century Germany, Jews would make wax figures of Haman and his wife, Zeresh, and
they would burn them as the stories of their demise were told.
Teens in Italy would divide into two camps and throw nuts at each other. The adults rode
through the streets of the town on horseback with cypress branches in their hands and with
the sound of trumpets would surround a dummy Haman.
A common practice amongst many modern Jewish communities is to have a Purim shpiel, or
a type of comedic performance in the spirit of Purim. Today, many synagogues take these
Purim Shpiels very seriously, and put a lot of work into their productions. These Purim
Shpiels are funny plays that teach about the Purim story. Additionally, many communities
hold carnivals and feasts to mark Purim on our calendars.
Two key elements of Purim are to remember and retell the story along with being happy.
This mitzvah, to be happy, has inspired many jubilant celebrations all around the globe.