Long Live Queen Esther + a Playlist
Words by: Maggie Laubscher | Music by: Abby Yemm
We are going to tell you a story. It’s a story of joy and bravery and misogyny and murder plots. It’s the story of Purim.
Do you know the story of Queen Esther and Purim? We chatted with Nellie Ilyssa Block and she gave us the overview, along with some of her family’s traditions for the Jewish holiday.
Here is the story in brief…
A Persian king gets blind drunk, orders his wife to promenade nude in front of his buddies, and then shuns her when she refuses. Then - THEN! - he lines up all the hot young women and picks his new wife from the lineup. The hot young woman he picks? She is Queen Esther and she is a boss.
Esther was a young Jewish orphan who had been taken in by her cousin, Mordecai. Girl does not reveal these origins to the king, so he is clueless about her Jewish ethnicity. All runs smoothly until the king’s right-hand man Haman gets mad at Mordecai. Since Mordecai is Jewish, Haman decides to have all Jews killed in the empire. So. Extreme.
When Esther finds out about this plot, she summons the courage to confront the king. Which is punishable by death (!). To the king’s credit, he sides with Esther and has Haman killed instead of the Jewish citizens. Just like that. He then allows Esther and Mordecai to write a new law to protect Jews.
So, yes. It’s a holiday of joy and celebration of life. But it’s also a reminder of the precariousness of life, and of the continued heroism of Jewish people.
Today, the holiday of Purim marks Jews’ victory over their enemies. It’s a day to retell the story of evil Haman and brave Queen Esther. Below are some traditions of Purim today...
Retelling
The retelling, called the Megillah, is when the story of Purim is recited at synagogue. When Haman's name is read aloud -- which occurs 54 times! -- everyone shakes noisemakers called groggers. ‘It’s an awful noise because Haman is hated,’ explains Ilyssa.
Image Credit: Assorted Colorful Tin Groggers
Charity
Known as mattanot la-evyonim, this tradition comes from the original Book of Esther story of Purim, in which it’s encouraged to give to charity and help others. One local option is Jewish Family Services.
Image credit: Nicola Fioravanti
Costumes
As part of the Purim story retelling, children dress in costumes to celebrate. It used to be costumes strictly related to Purim. When Ilyssa was a child, the choices were Haman, Queen Esther, and a hamantaschen cookie. ‘When I was little, I always dressed as a queen of course,’ she recalls. Today, it’s common to wear any Halloween costume.
Image Credit: Kippot By Design
Gifting Treats
On the holiday, Jewish children enjoy bags of sweets and other treats. In addition, families make or buy hamantaschen cookies. The term means ‘Haman's pocket’ -- or ears or hat, depending on the translation. The cookies are made of rolled out dough, any filling you like, and then three pinched corners to resemble Haman’s hat. To make your own hamantaschen, here’s one recipe we like. Or go right to the source and order Russ & Daughters’ version.
Image Credit: Russ & Daughters via Goldbelly
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