Behind the Mask

This Wednesday Night-Thursday, Jews worldwide will be celebrating the joyous, awesome holiday of Purim. What makes Purim so special, and what's it's underlying theme that we can learn from & take into our lives 2,400 years after these amazing events unfolded?

One unique aspect of "Megillat Esther" (The scroll of Purim) is that it is the only book of the 24 books of Tanach - which has NO mention of G-d, not even once! The events unfold throughout the megillah quite naturally. Sure, everything works out amazingly for the Jewish people & at every turn our arch-nemesis Haman is thwarted. But hey, we had Esther as our queen to pull strings, not to mention the influential Mordechai. Maybe it was just a case of being at the right place, at the right time?

The theme of Purim is exactly that: Our lives seem to flow naturally, without outside influence. G-d doesn't openly display his influence to us; at least not very often.
His "name" isn't mentioned. Throughout the good & bad times, it is up to us to recognize the puppeteer pulling the strings, the conductor behind the orchestra.
Megillah is etymologically connected to the word "Megaleh" - to reveal, while the Talmud states that Esther's name is connected to "Hester" - hidden. The theme of Purim is that our mission is in working to reveal He who is hidden - orchestrating the world's events and our lives.

How come there is a custom of dressing up on Purim, hiding one's face? Why do we eat hamantaschen which consist of a sweet filling hidden inside a cookie? When one wears a mask, that person hides. But if someone recognizes him and calls his name, he has no need to wear the mask anymore - the game's up! G-d's face - his presence - is hidden behind the mask of the world. It is up to us to recognize the world as merely a well fitted costume, each nuance chosen for a specific reason. And even in the bad times, events that we don't & often can't understand in our limited worldview - those too have a sweet reason behind them, like the hamantaschen, whose inner sweetness isn't always apparent from the outside.

May we all celebrate the happiest of holidays this year with the knowledge that our own lives are a megillah scroll - every event directed by G-d to produce a fantastic story. Learn about & find a synagogue near you here: PURIM

Shabbat Shalom!