There is an
image in the book of Exodus when the Torah was being given to the people of
Israel that “they stood at the foot of the mountain.” The Talmud comments on this image by saying
that “G-d suspended the mountain above them like a barrel and said, ‘If you
accept the Torah, good; and if you do not , here will be your death.” This is a rather harsh image because it leads
one to believe that the acceptance of Torah was accomplished under duress.
Obviously if
you read the Torah you see many images of our ancestors having had direct
contact with G-d. Whether it be through
witnessing the splitting of the Sea of Reeds so they could pass through on dry
land or partaking of the manna in the wilderness that sustained them for 40
years, the idea of having a direct experience of G-d was not a foreign
concept.
Today,
however, it often feels as if G-d is not present. We don’t see G-d in the same way that the
Israelites did. In fact, if you read the
Tanach, you actually can only find one book in the Bible where G-d actually
appears to be absent, where G-d’s name is never mentioned, and that is the Book
of Esther. Yet, the sages have said that
when we come to the Messianic Age, all the “books of the prophets and all the
Holy Writings will be nullified except the Book of Esther.” That is a very strong statement especially
since the story of Purim is actually about a human response to an historical
event.
In another
Midrash, we are told that only two holy days will never be annulled after the
coming of the Messiah. One is Purim and
the other is Yom Kippur. The question
that arises is how are Yom Kippur and Purim related? The first comparison is related to the idea
of random choice found in each holyday. In the Torah, we learn that Yom Kippur
was observed by bringing two identical he-goats as sin offerings before the
Tent of Meeting. Aharon placed lots upon
the two he-goats. One lot said, “For the
Lord,” the other lot said “for Azazel.”
The goat which had the lot “for the Lord” come up, was designated as a
sin offering. The other goat, upon which
the lot of “for Azazel” came up was sent off into the desert as a scapegoat to
atone for the sins of the people. The
determination of which goat would be selected for which location was purely
left to chance. The process of atonement
was highly choreographed for the community, yet in the end, the people were
left with the message from G-d that He would dwell in their midst of their
impurity.
In the story
of Esther, the selection of the date on which we Jews would be annihilated was
accomplished by the drawing of lots. In
other words, it was left entirely to chance also. Esther is called upon to act
on behalf of her people, by her uncle. After requesting her action, however, Mordechai
says one sentence which is often over-looked by us when we read the story. He said, “if you remain silent at this time,
relief and rescue will arise for the Jews from elsewhere…” In some ways this
statement is related to the statement about Yom Kippur. It doesn’t matter if you rise to the occasion,
G-d will still be with you. Esther
understood that she could either take the opportunity to act on behalf of her
people or not. The message is that even
if she did not act, G-d would still redeem the Jewish people. However, if she did
act, that redemption will happen sooner.
Esther
actually insisted that her story be written down. She realized that by writing down the
occurrences of what happened in Shushan, Jews in the future would be pushed to
act when called upon by their fellow Jews in times of need.
Unlike the
Israelites in the wilderness, we are no longer forced to see G-d. There is no mountain sitting above our heads.
We are more like Esther, who took it upon herself to make the right decision
and by doing so acquired for herself a good name. The Jews in the days of Achashverosh affirmed
and willingly accepted upon themselves the ways of the Torah having recognized
the hidden presence of G-d in their midst.
That is very similar to our own experience of reality.
We often
achieve an awareness of G-d by our experiences with nature as well as by
looking at our distinctive history. We also
see G-d by looking at the miraculous functioning of our bodies. I also presume
that when we accept Torah we do not do so under duress. We do so because we recognize the very
special relationship that observing the mitzvot provides us with G-d, who still
appears to be hidden.
As we spend
hours fasting, praying, being together, and focusing on repairing our
relationships with others and G-d on this Yom Kippur day, let us also remember
the lessons from the Book of Esther. Let
us learn to identify our responsibilities toward our fellow human beings
especially when they are in need. Let us
learn to sense the presence of G-d even when it requires us to understand that
seeing and perceiving are not the same.
Let us reclaim our past with the hope that it will provide us with an
informed sense of our future. And may we also understand the positive aspects of
remembering our heritage and how it can positively affect our determination to
act according to the mitzvot which have been given to us by G-d who loves us
even though we are not perfect.
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