Summary

Day after day, the media describes how Iran is the single greatest threat, not just to Israel and the Jewish people but to the entire world. As we approach Purim, it seems appropriate to draw a parallel between our present situation and what happened at the time of Mordechai and Esther. Haman rose to power and demanded that everyone should bow down and prostrate themselves before him. Cyrus died and Ahashvarous ascended the throne. "There is nothing new under the sun." We will never be able to understand the ways of G'd as long as we live in our finite world with our limited vision. If G'd allowed such a decree as Haman's to be issued, the Jewish people realized that He was very angry at them. Today we hear the rhetoric of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spewing forth the exact same ideas that were expressed in ancient Persia by Haman.

Threat of Iran

There is a growing fear in the western world. Day after day, the media describes how Iran is the single greatest threat, not just to Israel and the Jewish people but to the entire world. Israel is literally trapped in the web of international politics and has its hands tied.

Parallel with Mordechai and Esther

As we approach Purim, it seems appropriate to draw a parallel between our situation today and what happened at the time of Mordechai and Esther. Maybe, in this way, we can learn a lesson how to deal with the present situation.

Haman rose to power

In the Book of Esther (3:1-2) it is related how Haman rose to power and demanded that everyone should bow down and prostrate themselves before him. He got upset with Mordechai when he refused to bow down, and used it as an excuse to try and destroy all the Jews (see ibid 3:6). After he offered a heavy bribe to Ahashvarous, he received authority to issue any decree as he pleased. He used his newfound power to arrange that all Jews in the entire empire, both young and old, children and women, should be killed in one day, and to plunder their possessions (see ibid 3:13).

King Cyrus

We find another similarity between our situation today and the circumstances of the Jewish people at the time of the story of Purim. In the beginning of the Book of Ezra, it is related how Cyrus, the ruler of the Persian Empire, issued a proclamation allowing the Jews to return to the land of Israel and rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. He even encouraged the local population everywhere to support and assist them financially to accomplish this. Later (Ezra 4), it is described how the enemies of the Jewish people schemed to stop them from building the Temple and how they eventually bribed Cyrus' advisors to assist them in their evil plans. After two years, Cyrus died and Ahashvarous ascended the throne. On this occasion, the enemies of the Jewish people filed an official complaint and wrote that the Jews were building up Jerusalem with the intent of revolting against the new king. Ahashvarous accepted their slander and ordered a freeze on any building in Jerusalem and the cessation of the construction of the Temple till further notice.

Nothing new under the sun

King Solomon already made a statement and said (Koheles 1:9): "There is nothing new under the sun." Haman had an agenda to make the world "judenrein", G'd forbid, and that has been the agenda of all anti-Semitic rulers throughout the generations. The enemies of the Jewish people who lived at the time in and around the Land of Israel had their own agenda as they did not want to have a Jewish state amongst them. And history just repeats itself. As we say in the Haggadah on Seder night: "In every single generation they rise against us to annihilate us." But at the end of the day they never succeed. Yes, we may bleed heavily and lose thousands, even millions of holy and pure souls; however, "Am Yisrael Chai", the Jewish people is alive. G'd will never annul his covenant with His Chosen people and allow us to disappear from the face of the earth. As King David says (Tehillim 94:14): "For G'd will not cast off His people, and He will not forsake His heritage."

Finite world with limited vision

We will never be able to understand the ways of G'd as long as we live in our finite world with our limited vision. As the Prophet Isaiah says (55:8): "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not My ways, so says G'd." However, through the lenses of our sages, we may be able to gain some insight to understand what G'd wants of us.

G'd must be angry

From the time of our Patriarchs till the time of the Purim story, G'd had communicated with the Jewish people through the prophets. The prophets' main task was to chastise and admonish their contemporaries for their wrongdoings. This did not make them popular, and they were often persecuted and sometimes even killed. As the generations fell to such a low level, G'd decided to communicate with them in a different way. The Talmud (Megillah 14a) teaches that Haman's rise to power had a greater influence on the Jewish people than the words of fourty eight prophets and seven prophetesses. The Jews understood all too well that nothing could happen without G'd being aware of it. And if G'd allowed such a decree as Haman's to be issued, they realized that He was very angry at them. They therefore accepted Mordechai as their spiritual leader and followed his guidance. Their repentance was so complete and meaningful that the Talmud (Shabbos 88a) describes it as a renewed acceptance of the Torah, comparable to what had transpired at Mount Sinai.

Encouraging us to repent

Today we hear the rhetoric of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spewing forth the exact same ideas that were expressed in ancient Persia by Haman. We look at our enemies in and around the Land of Israel and see them following in the footsteps of our enemies when we returned from our exile under the leadership of Ezra. We must understand and internalize that all of this is nothing but a Divine message encouraging us to repent and accept the Torah upon ourselves. In this merit, may the Almighty take mercy upon us and send us His salvation as He did to our ancestors at the time of Mordechai and Esther.

These words were based on a talk given by Rabbi Avraham Kahn, the Rosh Yeshiva and Founder of Yeshivas Keser Torah in Toronto.

These words were based on a talk given by Rabbi Avraham Kahn, the Rosh Yeshiva and Founder of Yeshivas Keser Torah in Toronto.

Shalom. Michael Deverett