Purim, the Jewish holiday rooted in the Book of Esther recalls a failed Persian plot to exterminate the Jews; Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu gave President Obama a copy of the Book of Esther during a visit this week in which the two discussed the tension with Iran.
The Book of Esther, a story taking place 2500-years-ago in Iran, is the only book in the Torah leaving God’s Name unmentioned anywhere in the text; the Cabala explains, The word Esther comes from Hester/Hidden – thus the custom of dressing in costumes portraying good and bad.
Purim is beyond good and bad as symbolized by the 50 foot high gallows the Wicked Haman built to hang the righteous Mordechai – the number fifty is considered, forever – a number beyond logic. What life lacks in logic, life makes up for in story – the story of life.
At the last moment the Purim story turns and instead, the wicked, Haman and his ten sons, are hung. The secret of life is hidden in the story of life; what makes the story of life holy is God’s invisible presence from birth until death – the story engages God.
Although, God is unseen and unseeable, God partakes in the story of creation through astronomical events coming from the heavens, like the massive burst of light ejected a few days ago from the sun hitting the earth today, but causing no damage – just a burst of Purim light.
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