Chag Purim
There are four mitzvahs that every Jew must do on Purim, as outlined in the Book of Esther:
She was Jewish but her husband, the King, didn't know this
The heroes of the story are Esther, a beautiful young Jewish woman living in Persia, and her cousin
JQY ON THE HOLIDAYS JQY PURIM JQY hosted a virtual community megilla reading and dance party with special guests, queer Israeli pop star, Ivri Lider, and the JQY Muppets
At the Carbon Arc Bar in Chicago, a familiar story unfolds amid the tables full of colorfully costumed families and servers shuffling by with breakfast pizzas and mimosas
The joy enshrined in Purim’s practices, the call to cultivate that original outpouring of happiness, couldn’t be more different from that which Zeresh attempted to offer her pouting husband
It commemorates the survival of Jews in the 5th century who were freed from a death decree by Persian rulers
The Gemara (Megillah 7a) offers the necessary guidelines; it states that one must distribute gifts to the poor
Dressing up in costume, eating The Talmud, a Jewish text, even states that “all who extend a hand (on Purim), we are to give (charity)
Mordecai and Esther called on Jews to give each other gifts of food, and to give charity to the needy
On Purim the Final Solution was averted
Traditionally, Jews have celebrated Purim by drinking a little extra wine at their Purim feast with friends, and if that gets you there, then it’s the halachically prescribed way to do the mitzvah
Purim