Purim at the Temple of Emanu-El

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So Today, March 4th marks the day of the Jewish holiday, of Purim, or as some refer to it as Jewish Mardi Gras. The celebration involves the reading of The Book of Esther while covering up the villain, Haman's, name. What follows after this tends to be a Purim Spiel, which is a dramatization or comedic play of The Book of Esther, this involves usually the singing and acting of adults and children in costume. Jews are also commanded by the Talmud to eat, drink, and be in a merry mood. It even commands a Jew to drink until they cannot tell the difference between "cursed be Haman" and "blessed be Mordecai," which can open to interpretation. Hamentaschen are also pastries that are triangles that are typically fruit filled, represent Haman's three cornered hat, and are the treat of the holiday to eat. 


This brings us to the topic of what even is the story that is told in The Book of Esther that this great holiday is based on? Well, it starts with a Jewish woman living in Persia, Esther and her cousin Mordecai, who raised her himself. Esther was taken for the King of Persia in a search for the most beautiful woman, and she becomes part of his harem. King Ahasuerus loved Esther more than his other women and made Esther queen, not knowing that Esther was Jewish, because Mordecai told her not to tell her true identity to him. 
The advisor to the king, Haman, is evil, and is the villain. Haman hated Mordecai because He refused to bow down to Haman, so he plotted to destroy all the Jews, knowing the Mordecai was one. Haman told the king, "There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your realm. Their laws are different from those of every other people's, and they do not observe the king's laws; therefore it is not befitting the king to tolerate them." Esther 3:8. The king gave the fate of the Jews of Persia to Haman. So, he planned to kill all of them.
Mordecai asked Esther to speak to the king on behalf of their people. This was a dangerous, but Esther fasted for three days to prepare herself, then went into the king and he thankfully welcomed her. Later, she told him of Herman's plot against her people. The king also believed Haman was trying to rape Esther after this discovery. The Jewish people were saved, and then Haman and his ten sons were hanged on the gallows that had been prepared for Mordecai. Esther and Mordecai are both heroes of the Jewish religion. 
Anyways, myself and our peer Elise, went to check out JBK's temple's Purim reading and Spiel. Although there was unfortunately no tastes to taste or smells to really smell, there were sure sights and sounds. My first time hearing Hebrew being spoken and sung, my first time seeing the inside of a temple, hearing and seeing my first Jewish service. I also saw and heard a great deal during the Spiel, including Jew remixes of popular music, that was a first. Over all it was a sense filled experience. So here's some mementos (moonlighting as a Jew was fun): 

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