Rabbi Howard Morrison

Dear Congregational Family,

As Jews have done for centuries, the holiday of Purim will celebrate the survival and resiliency of the Jewish people.

Purim 2021 will go beyond the age old observance of triumph over evil. It will mark one calendar year that our lives have been taken over by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year, Purim fell on March 9 and shortly afterward our lives changed as we began to face days filled with uncertainty.

While it may not seem like a time to celebrate, surrounded by so much illness and death; considering the historical significance of the holiday, Purim could not have come at a more meaningful time this year.

As the story goes, in the 5th century BCE, Haman, the chief minister of Persia, felt slighted that Mordecai, a Jew, did not bow before him. In anger and hate, Haman asked Persian King Achashverosh for permission to kill all the Jewish people. Mordecai's cousin and adopted orphaned  daughter, Queen Esther, saved her people by telling the king she too was in danger since she was Jewish as well.

In a twist of fate, Haman was sent to the gallows that were intended to terminate the Jewish people.

Holidays and festivals have been altered due to the pandemic. Still, variations of these occasions prove our ability to overcome obstacles and affirm Judaism's survival.

The Purim story is a story of resilience, one of a people that continues to move forward even through the unknown.

Purim was the last largely attended thing we did last year. We had  hundreds of people for Megillah reading and the BEBY Players show which followed.

This year, we will celebrate Purim via Zoom and livestream. Following the reading, we will spotlight those in costume and enjoy highlights of past Purim musicals led by our BEBY players. 

One of the major themes of Purim is "Nahafochu" - the expected being turned upside down. That which was intended for Mordecai happened to Haman.

In most years, our expression of "upside down" is demonstrated by wearing masks for fun, something not normally done.

This year, the "upside down" of masks takes on a new note, wearing masks for safety and well being.

I encourage those who wish to be seen and heard to join us on Zoom, while the one way livestream will also be available.

At the end of the Purim story, we read that the Jews went "from sorrow to gladness, and from bereavement to a good day." So may it be for us, that we see an end to this pandemic once and for all, and that our days are filled once again with "light, joy, and all that is precious."