Purim (redirected from Feast of Purim)

Purim (p`rĭm) [Heb.,=lots], Jewish festival celebrated on the 14th of Adar, the twelfth month in the Jewish calendar (Feb.–March). During leap years it is celebrated in Adar II. According to the book of Esther (Esther 3.7; 9.24,26) it commemorates the deliverance of the Persian Jews from a general massacre; however, the festival may have arisen in the pagan celebration of the advent of spring. Preceded by a day of fasting, Purim is celebrated as a day of joy, marked by merrymaking and feasting. The Book of Esther is read in the synagogue, and it is customary for children to make noise to blot out the name of the evildoer Haman. Other customs related to the festival included the exchange of gifts, especially of food, the giving of alms to the poor, the presentation of Purim plays, and the wearing of costumes, especially by children. In Israel, a Purim carnival is held. Purim is considered a minor festival, and work is permitted.

Bibliography

See A. J. Rosenberg, Megillath Esther (1984); P. Goodman, Purim Anthology (1988).

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Purim

Jewish festival celebrating the survival of the Jews marked for death in Persia in the 5th cent BC. According to the Book of Esther, Haman, chief minister of King Ahasuerus, planned a general massacre of the Jews and set the date by casting lots. Ahasuerus' wife Esther interceded for the Jews, and they were allowed to attack their enemies. The ritual observance begins with a day of fasting on the 13th of Adar (in February or March), the day before the actual holiday. The Book of Esther is read in the synagogue, and Jews are enjoined to exchange gifts and make donations to the poor. Purim is a day of merrymaking and feasting.

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Purim

Jewish festival commemorating salvation from Haman’s destruction. [O.T.: Esther 9:20–28]

See : Deliverance

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Purim

Between February 25 and March 25; Adar 14

Six hundred years before the Christian era, most Jews were slaves in Persia. The Persian prime minister Haman, who generally hated Jews and particularly hated a proud Jew named Mordechai, persuaded King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) to let him destroy the empire's entire Jewish population. Haman cast lots ( pur is Akkadian for "lot") to find out which day would be the most auspicious for his evil plan, and the lots told him that things would go especially well on the 14th of Adar. This is why Purim is also called The Feast of Lots .
The king did not realize that his own wife, Esther, was Jewish, and that Mordechai was her cousin, until she pleaded with him to spare her people. Haman was hanged, and his position as prime minister was given to Mordechai.
Ahasuerus granted the Jews an extra day to vanquish Haman's supporters, so the rabbis decreed that in Jerusalem and other walled cities, Purim should be celebrated on 15 Adar and called Purim Shushan, Hebrew for "Susa," the Persian capital. In leap year, the 14th (or 15th in Jerusalem) Adar is known as Purim Katan, "the lesser Purim."
The Old Testament Book of Esther is read aloud in synagogues on the eve and morning of Purim, and listeners drown out every mention of Haman's name by jeering and stamping their feet. Purim is also a time for sharing food with friends and for charity to the poor.
See also Purims, Special

CONTACTS:
Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America
11 Broadway
New York, NY 10004
212-563-4000; fax: 212-564-9058
www.ou.org
Union for Reform Judaism
633 Third Ave.
New York, NY 10017
212-650-4000
www.urj.org

SOURCES:
AmerBkDays-2000, p. 226
BkFest-1937, p. 206
DaysCustFaith-1957, p. 68
DictFolkMyth-1984, p. 477
DictWrldRel-1989, pp. 155, 588
EncyRel-1987, vol. 4, p. 438
FolkAmerHol-1999, p. 112
FolkWrldHol-1999, p. 180
HolSymbols-2009, p. 733
OxYear-1999, p. 727
RelHolCal-2004, p. 57