Purim and Anti-Semitism (March 2017)
On Sunday we celebrated the holiday of Purim, which commemorates the victory of the Jewish community of Shushan over Haman and his plot to destroy them, as told in the biblical Book of Esther. It is, in short, a story of how a community overcame the threat of extreme anti-Semitism. The holiday is a raucous celebration based on the success of the Shushan Jews.
Jeff Jacoby of the Boston Globe offered some worthwhile insights in his Purim column on Sunday. [“Purim column:” my words, not his] He describes how the comfort that we as American Jews have felt has been threatened by the recent spate of anti-Semitic incidents that have occurred with great frequency in the past several months. It is food for thought and timely in light of the theme of the Purim holiday.
Rabbi Mike
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