Page Six
THE JEWISH NEWS
Friday, March 19, 1943
The Inner Meaning of Purim
T
Marginal Notes for Critics
by Abraham Burstein
HE STORY of Purim has been the source
has some value. "Esther serves a useful purpose
of rejoicing among the Jews. It always has
at least in setting this contrast between un-
served as symbol of the Jew-baiter—the , worthy elements in Judaism and the Christian
villain whose plottings react to his own de-
spirit of love to all, even to one's enemies."
struction. Hence the high doings in the - syna-
The truth is that Bible, Talmud and Mid-
gogue, the racket that greets the reading of
rash forbid rejoicing, over the downfall of
Haman's name.
Israel's enemies. That attitude has been ex-
But the same story has provided another type
pressed in many forms, notably in the often
of joy to the prejudiced non-Jew. For the gen-
quoted excerpt from the Talmud Megillah:
tile scholar of another day, seeking further
"The ministering angels wanted to sing a hymn
proof of the inferiority of the Old Testament,
at the destruction of the Egyptians, but God
has employed the Story of Esther to demon-
said, "My children lie drowned in the sea, and
strate the faults he ascribes to all Jewish teach-
you would sing?"
ing and history.
This passage has had great influence in modi-
Choosing only such elements of the two
fying the Jewish prayers. The psalms of praise,
Testaments as will suit their purpose, these men
the Hallel, are for this very reason abbreviated
have in the past proclaimed the Old Testa-.
on the last six days of Passover. Rarely is an
ment an imperfect, unfulfilled foil to the New.
angry psalm included in the liturgy. When the
The Jews taught hard justice, their successors
Book of Esther is read in the synagogue, the
love and mercy. The spirit of revenge is super-
recital of the execution of Haman's 10 sons
seded by the spirit of forgiveness, provincial-
must be read through in a single breath.
ism by universal charity, a fierce God by one of
Usual Condemnation
loving, kindness.
Not alone, therefore, do prejudiced students
Most Popular Jewish Festival
judge Judaism on the basis of self-chosen ex-
We need not, of course, quote the maledic-
cerpts from the sacred writings, but as usual
tions in the New Testament, the Crusades, the
they neglect the great body of Jewish tradition
Inquisition, and some thousands of religious
of which these excerpts and the Bible itself
pogroms and inter-Christian squabbles, in con-
are only a part. All this is in keeping with the
travention of this glib assumption of perfec-
usual condemnation of the tooth-for-a-tooth
tion on the part of Judaism's daughter religion.
idea, which never was meant to be taken
Enlightened Christians today are not so prone
baldly, but all through Jewish history was
to paint two pictures so unrelievedly black and
definitely interpreted as meaning money pay-
white. Yet modern scholars of the stature of
ment of damages. -
Bossuet and Oesterley still point out that Purim
The lightsome character of Purim observance
remains one of the most popular Jewish festi-
gives the lie to those who see in the Scroll of
vals. Its story is called the Megillah, as though
Esther an indication of the ingrained depravity
this were the outstanding scroll in biblical lore.
or inferiority. of the Jewish faith and writings.
Hence to them this observance stands as proof
If Jews were in truth fundamentally vindictive,
of the inadequacy of the Jewish religion. '\
they would organize pogroms against the de-
Purpose For Contrast
scendants of those who injured them in past
A Dr. Northridge, who published an introduc-
millennia.
tion to the Old Testament some years ago, al-
We need not take the strictures of the higher
most froths at the mouth in describing the "in-
anti-Semetic biblical criticism too seriously. He
tensity of hatred" found in the Book of Esther.
who so wishes it, can find every human virtue
That the Gospels have. even more incendiary
in the "inferior" and "preparatory" pages of
passages he in no wise tries to ascertain. But
the Jewish Bible.
he feels that inclusion of the book in the canon
(Copyright, 1943, Independent Jewish Press Service)
4
Purim today is a solemn
festival. It didn't used to be.
Editorials are written to show
the parallel between the fate
that overcame Haman and that
which must befall all anti-
Semites. But in the olden days
Jews used to enjoy themselves
Our Children's Corner
Dear Boys and Girls:
On Sunday we will cele-
brate the joyous festival of
Purim. Saturday night and
Sunday morning, the Book
of Esther, also referred to as
the Megillah, will be read in
our Synagogues. On Sunday,
there will be parties and holi-
day programs in schools and
Community Centers.
Sunday night every house-
hold will have the traditional
Seudah or Purim dinner.
I am sure all of you know
the Biblical story of Purim.
The story deals with the
heroic Jewish Queen Esther,
her uncle Mordecai and the
villain, Haman. As a courtier
of King Ahasuerus of Persia,
Haman cast lots and deter-
mined that on the 13th day of
Adar all the Jews would be
destroyed.
He conceived this idea be-
cause Mordecai would not
bow down to him.
But Queen Esther revealed
the plot to her husband, King
Ahasuerus, and the Jews were
saved. Instead, Haman and
his sons were hanged. In
honor of the rescuing of the
Jews of Persia, we celebrate
the festival of Purim. The
name comes from the Persian
word Pur, or lots.
The tradition has been
established of exchanging
gifts on Purim.
In the Synagogues, during
the reading of the Megillah,
children usually hiss the
name of Haman or use
rattles whenever the name is
read. I am reproducing a pic-
ture of an old rattle in this
column.
Also, I am printing the
photograph of a miniature
Megillah, because interesting
art work has been created in
the making of the Book of
Esther.
I wish you all a very happy
Purina.
UNCLE DANIEL.
* * *
Miniature Megillahs
and Purim Rattles
In the Museum of the Jew-
ish Theological Seminary in
New York are to be found
interesting miniature Megil-
lahs, the Scroll of the Book of
Esther. They are on parch-
ment, in silver cases. They are
believed to have been made
in Germany many years ago.
One of them is reproduced
above.
This photograph also shows
a silver rattle, made in Russia
in the 19th century. In addi-
tion, there is a whistle and
bells. The oval opens to show
a small gold figure of Haman
swinging from a gibbet. It is
part of the Mintz Collection
in the Museum of the Jewish
Theological Seminary of
America in New York.
by Paul B. Green
ridiculing, not reviling Haman.
On Saturday evening, March
20 the parchments will be taken
out of their leather or velvet
covers and in thousands of places
of worship Jews will recite the
Megillah, that fabulous account
of romance, adventure, intrigue
and justice. Youngsters will
have the great joy of swinging
their rattles as they pounce
eagerly on every mention of
Haman's name in the Book of
Esther.
For those who love the epics
there will be fascination in
hearing again the story of a
drunken, tyrannous King As-
huerus who took himself a new
Queen because Vashti failed to
meet his humors. They will fol-
low the story of Haman's plot-
ting to destroy all the Jews of
Persia, and how a patriotic
Jew, Mordecai, using Queen
Esther saved his people from
destruction on the day chosen
for their extermination at Ha-
man's order.
Then, on Sunday morning,
where the ritual is punctilious-
ly observed, the Megillah once
again will be read, so that the
miracle of Divine Providence
may be the better remembered.
Great Bonfires
The explorers of antiquity
have a habit of taking the fun
out of almost everything: James
Frazer, for example, in the
"Golden Bough," tries to show
that Purim originally was noth-
ing more than a version of the
Spring festival. Until recent cen-
turies, Jews in the ghettos of
Europe used to observe Purim
by lighting great bonfires in
which they used to burn effigies
of Haman.
It is noteworthy that incar-
cerated in their ghettos as they
were, Jews did not make Purim
an occasion for indicting their
foes. Instead it was a , joyous
holiday, as though this was the
first - fourteenth of Adar when
the news was flashed from the
capital city that Haman's evil
decree had been counteracted by
an order from Ahasuerus that
the Jews could defend them-
selves if attacked.
(Continued on Page 7)
•
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This Megillah, the Scroll of the Book of
Esther, was made in the 17th century. One
of the treasures at the Hebrew Union College,
Cincinnati, it is part of one of the largest
collections of Jewish ceremonial objects in
the world.
-
Purim Facts and Fancies
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Our Last Purim
By Judge Louis E. Levinthal
I
President, Zionist Organization of America
'T IS NOW more than 10 years since Adolf Hitler
seized the reins of power in Germany. For that
entire decade Jewish thinkers, writers and ora-
tors have persisted in likening him to that arch
villain of another day, Haman.
It is true that the similarities are great, but no
greater than the parallels with other Jew-baiters.
For, it should be remarked, all the historic persecu-
tors of the Jew, Pharaoh, Haman, Torquemada,
Chmielnicki, Hitler, and the host of lesser anti-
Semites, have held in common their acute perception
of the physical defenselessneSs of the Jew. With
fiendish ingenuity they sensed at once this gaping
hole in Jewish armor, and thrust deeply and often.
We celebrate a Purim which marks the overturn
of Haman's plans and the vindication of the just
and righteous cause of the Jews, but all too often we
forget that salvation was only temporary. The Jews
were rescued from Persia, but were saved to under-
go other trials elsewhere.
Jewish history is the story of a succession of
dangers, each of which threatened the extermination
of the people. Nor should we proudly point to this,
that or the other element which was responsible for
our survival. Truly, we were saved many times
only by a miracle. -
But the point is that we survived only to raise
another generation which would be victimized and
forced to struggle again for preservation. I must
insist that if our ancestors had ever dreamed that
there was no remote possibility of attaining a normali
status like other peoples, we would not be here .
today.
Ours is the generation to which history has en- -
trusted the task of stabilizing the Jewish future.
In our times we begin to see the restoration of
national dignity to our gipsy people. When Hitler
is gone we shall celebrate another Purim in com-
memoration of his defeat, but let it be our last
such festival, for we shall no longer be the defense-
less, homeless, helpless folks whose very weakness
invited attack.
It hardly should be necessary to point out to
informed Jews the precise • way in which such
reconstruction of the Jewish people is taking place.
Hundreds of thousands of American Jews are taking
part in that reconstruction through the aid they aive
to the establishment of Palestine as a Jewish Com-
monwealth.
The spirit which motivates Jewish education in
this country today, the flowering of Jewish culture,
the renewed interest on the part of many in the
traditions of our faith, the increased will to live. as
Jews, the appreciation of Jewish values of the mind,
heart and spirit—may all be traced to the growth
of the Jewish homeland, and the participation in the
task by American Jews.
The dream of 2000 years, under the nurture of
Theodor Herzl and his colleagues was transformed
into a spark; the devotion and zeal and love of our
people have in the past 50 years fanned that spark
into a flame. Ours is the task to add the fuel and
tend the hearth, while at the same time warming
our bodies and illuniinating our souls with the
reflected glory of Zion rebuilt. .
Our generation has a rendezvous with destiny; we
shall keep the appointment. •
(Copyright, 1943, In,dependent Jewish Press Service)