Purim is a very
special holiday, celebrating the miracle of Jewish survival. It is
as great a miracle today as it was 2000 years ago.
Why is the holiday called Purim?
Purim comes from the word "pur" which means "lots." The book of Esther tells us that upon receiving permission to annihilate the Jewish people, Haman
cast "lots" for the best day and month in which to execute his plan, and the lot fell on the 13th day of the month Adar. Knowing
that Moses, the leader of the Jewish people, died in the month of Adar, Haman thought that it must be an unlucky
month for the Jews, but he didn't know that Moses' date of
birth was also in the month of Adar. It turned out to be a good month for Israel and the month of Haman's downfall.
Why is Yahveh's Name not mentioned in the Megilah?
The Rabbis explain that all other Jewish holidays
celebrate miracles which clearly showed Yahveh's involvement. The
Purim miracle, however, seemed
to be "hidden" - yet looking closely, we can clearly see
Yahveh's Hand throughout. In keeping with the hidden nature of this miracle, Yahveh's Name is not to be found in
the Megilah in a revealed way.
Another possible reason Yahveh is not mentioned in the
book of Esther is that the story of Purim was also entered into the records of Persia and Mordechai
and Esther wanted to make sure that the scribes of the land will not replace Yahveh's name with names of their idols
instead.
Mordechai and Esther both played a role in
the story of Purim.
So why is the Megilah called "Megilat Esther - Scroll of Esther" only?
The Bible tells us that Esther's Jewish identity
was originally not known, so her life was not affected by Haman's decree. In spite of this, Queen Esther risked death
by revealing her Jewish identity in order to plead for her people. Since Esther put her life in danger, the Megilah was
named after her.
