Purim Celebrations: The Jewish Holy Day

Introduction The Jewish culture considers its holy day’s as very scared days. The Jewish people are a people of celebration. The entire year long there are many holy days that the Jewish people love to celebrate. Seven of the major Jewish holy days are Shabbat, Purim, Passover, Yom Kippur, Hanukkah, Rosh Hashanah, and Shavuot. Each holiday has its own customs, presentations, and services that make it different from the other Jewish holidays. Out of these days, Purim is the greatest day of the year. It is not only a day of happiness and merriment, but it also has within it a tremendous opportunity to come close to Hashem. In celebrating Purim it is in the twelfth month, Adar, at sundown on the thirteenth day (Sasson, 2005). It is a fun holiday, full of parties, drinking, and other celebratory observances. People give baskets of food to friends and the needy persons, and drink wine with the loved ones.

Discussion Purim is the holiday that the Jewish nation was saved from Haman's evil decree of annihilation. This is a Rabbinical holiday as it took place thousands of years after the giving of the Torah. What is not exactly known is the strong connection between this glorious holiday and the Torah. The Jews say they have arranged a mass massacre of the Persians in these spring days, Jews celebrate an important Jewish holiday, Purim. It is celebrated for two days: 14th and 15th of the month of Adar on the Jewish calendar, the Gregorian calendar, and a holiday does not have a fixed date. Purim, the Jews claimed as "the most cheerful holiday" and is accompanied by masquerades, plays, and abundant offerings. The history of this celebration is rooted in the 5th century BC. It is dedicated reflected in the Old Testament and the events connected with the deliverance of the Jewish community from the destruction of the Persian Empire, when the king's minister Haman planned to destroy the Jewish people. The Jewish Encyclopedia emphasizes that the event is not affiliated with any church, nor with any religious event. It ended the Babylonian captivity of the Jews (Johnston, 2004). Thousands of Jewish families did not wish to return home while continuing to live in the cities of the Persian Empire, and in a position in which they were not slaves. This situation eventually began to threaten the national interests in Persia. Purim begins with the end of the post holiday prepend Esther. The main part of the celebration is a public reading of the book of Esther. Decoration of Liturgical scrolls are often performed. When the reader pronounces the name of Haman, raising the noise present, the children twist the ratchet and the like, thus expressing hatred and contempt for the villain. Purim is a happy holiday, in which to drink wine, in the words of the Babylonian religious teacher Rav, “you need to drink as long as man does not cease to distinguish whether he pronounces a curse Haman or blessing Mordecai” (although some of the scribes objected to the actual interpretation of this requirement). On Purim, taken to bring each other convolution with sweets and sweet pastries and give money to the needy (Esf. 9:22). On the feast of baked special triangular pies with sweet filling, called the ears of Haman, or purses Aman. On hearing this, Mordechai asked Esther to, so that she stood up before the king for his people. Contrary to the strict court etiquette, the breach of which she was threatened loss of his position and life itself, Esther appeared before Ahasuerus uninvited and persuaded him to visit the meal she had prepared a feast, during which time, and approached him with a request to protect the Jews. Learning motivated intrigues of Haman, Ahasuerus ordered Haman hanged on the same gallows that Haman had prepared for Mordecai, and the abolition of the decree of the extermination of the Jews was sent to a new decree: the right to oppose the execution of the first. By this decree the Jews by force of arms rose to defend their lives and destroyed many of the Persians, including the 10 sons of Haman. In commemoration of the Jews was established festival of Purim. In Iran, in Hamadan (the ancient capital of Susa), still contains the tombs of Esther and Mordechai. Already in the XIII century Jewish travelers have described this tomb. Purim teaches also that Jews are part of a conflict and is not where Elohim uses ordinary people as an essential element of victory (Smith, 1999). Jews identify with Queen Esther and her cousin Mordecai, who living in the Galut (Diaspora) and concealed their Jewish identity to protect and prosper in Nazarene. Purim is the only festival where they are not to laugh at and ridicule enemies. Various types of entertaining performances, in which children dressed as characters from the time of the events of Esther, and discuss saving the Jewish people. Events from the book of Esther, a kind of a funny show "malice of fate," the wicked suffer, like the proverbial statement that "whoever Holes himself into his own." When the Persian King Achaszwerosz wants to reward one of his servants and asks for advice from nobleman Haman, the judge, that this is the servant himself, advised the king to a prize of that servant, arrayed in royal robes, seated on the royal horse, to order the best ride in the king's servant him all over town, and everyone should bow down to him. It appears, however; that this deserved a Jew, Mordechai, who many years ago discovered a conspiracy against the king, which was recorded in the royal chronicles. And since then it is not rewarded Mordecai, the king decided to make it now. Haman hated the Jews, Mordechai had to ride on the royal horse. It can be said, "Everything you want for yourself Haman, Mordecai has obtained." Finally, a Haman was hanged on the gallows, which he had prepared for Mordechai (Smith, 1999).

Conclusion On Purim, the Jews reached the level of repentance through love. When a person truly loves another, he governs his actions based on a desire to, please his beloved. When the Jews of Shushan saw the whole string of events that led to their salvation, they were overcome with such a strong love for Hashem that they willingly repented from all their sins and accepted upon themselves to uphold the Torah in its entirety (Eliade, 1994). Just as Hashem made the day of Yom Kippur a day of atonement and forgiving for the generations, similarly He made Purim a day that one can come close to Him through love.
References

Eliade, M. (1994). Man and the Sacred: A Thematic Source Book of the History of Religions. From Primitives to Zen. Part 2. New York: Harper and Row Publishers.
Johnston, S. (2004). Religions of the Ancient World: A Guide. Harvard University Press.
Molloy, M. (2010). Experiencing the World’s Religion. Tradition, Challenge, and Change Fifth Edition, Https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/content/eBookLibrary2/content/eReader.aspx
Sasson, H. (2005). A History of the Jewish People, The Association of American Publishers.
Smith, H. (1999). The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions", New York: HarperOne.