Purim is the Jewish holiday that celebrates the concepts of good and evil. The date on our calendar when we celebrate Purim fluctuates, but it is typically in March. In 2007, Purim will be on March 3rd.
In 1981, I celebrated Purim in Jerusalem. I spent the evening of Purim at one yeshiva (a place of Orthodox Jewish learning) and spent the next day at another. In both places, I watched rabbis and other Jews get drunker and drunker, all in the name of Hashem. On Purim, you see, a religious Jew is supposed to get so drunk that he is just on the "good" side of the line between Mordecai (a blessed Jew) and Haman (a Jew hater who many see as the spiritual ancestor of Adolph Hitler). Jews on Purim read the Biblical book of Esther and playfully twirl noisemakers whenever the name is "Haman" is said. Kids in particular dress up for the occasion, taking on roles like Mordecai, Haman, Esther, Queen Vashti or King Ahasuerus -- all characters from the book of Esther.
If you're thinking that Purim is supposed to be a happy occasion, you're correct. And at one of the Jerusalem yeshivas that I visited, the place was as festive as any American keg party. Everyone was dancing to music, and I mean loud music -- I might have been back at college on a Saturday night. But at the other yeshiva, I saw something very different. The yeshiva students got drunk but weren't afforded the crutch of music through which to channel their feelings. Instead, I witnessed the students and rabbis give speeches, pray to God, and in one student's case, cry on the floor that he wasn't worthy of God's love.
It was a day that I wouldn't soon forget.
When I bought my own home in the mid 80s, I began celebrating Purim in my own way. I invited friends over for a night of religion, philosophy and alcohol. Specifically, I led a brief religious service, followed by delivering an original essay that I wrote for the occasion. Then we read the book of Esther and drank a beverage of our choosing whenever the name "Haman" was read aloud (or at least the first few times the name was mentioned).
At age 46, I don't drink much any more and neither do most of my friends. But the Purim tradition continues. Attached you will find a sample of the essays that I have delivered over the years to celebrate this holiday. I have saved transcripts of still other essays, but the attached are the only words that I preserved on my present computer, so those are the ones that I'll make available on this site. (We didn't celebrate Purim this past year because it coincided with my younger daughter's Bat Mitzvah.)
Some years, the talks have dealt primarily with Jewish philosophy. Other years, they've concentrated on American politics. But they have always been inspired by Jewish values. Truly, this is a religion where if you take it seriously, your religion will inspire your thoughts and conduct regardless of what you're doing or where you're doing it. In other words, even if you're 21 and throwing up after a night where you screwed up and got a little bit closer to Haman than Mordecai, you can still be a practicing Jew.
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