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PURIM

(Heb. pûrîm)

A springtime holiday in the Jewish liturgical calendar, falling on the 14th of Adar, that celebrates the defeat of Haman and the survival of the Jews in the book of Esther. The word Purim is a Hebraized Akkadian word meaning “lots,” and is thus linked to the lots (Heb. pûr) cast by Haman in order to decide on the date for his planned pogrom against all Persian Jews (Esth. 3:7; 9:24-28). It is not clear which came first, the book of Esther or the festival of Purim. In either case, the two have become inextricably linked, with the scroll of Esther being read in full in the evening synagogue service. Purim encourages a carnival atmosphere, with children bringing noisemakers to the synagogue and the congregation stamping their feet every time Haman’s name is read from the scroll. The Talmud (Meg. 7b) commands adult Jews to drink so much wine on Purim that they cannot tell the difference between “blessed by Mordecai” and “cursed be Haman.” But it is also clear that, given the threat of annihilation described by the book of Esther and the many persecutions endured by Jews throughout the centuries, the festivities of Purim harbor more serious themes.

Bibliography. T. K. Beal, The Book of Hiding: Gender, Ethnicity, Annihilation, and Esther (London, 1997); A. Waskow, Seasons of Our Joy (1982, repr. Boston, 1990); E. Wiesel, The Trial of God (1979, repr. New York, 1995).

Tod Linafelt

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

PURIM

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)