Esther’s story is set during the Babylonian Exile, when the nation of Israel was overrun, Jerusalem sacked, and the people taken into slavery. The Jews were scattered over the Babylonian empire and ...

Yair Lapid, a cultural icon in Israel, was asked which holiday he’d like to see removed from the Jewish calendar. “I would omit Purim,” he answered without hesitation to that 2007 query. “The story ...

The Jewish Press has reviewed the recent OU Press release Megillat Esther Mesorat HaRav: Commentary Based on the Teachings of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik. Reviewer Ben Rothke cites theologian Arnold ...

Just in Time for Purim, author Ilan Sendowski is publishing “Court Intrigue: The Man Who Refused to Kneel.” Sendowski’s book offers a fresh perspective on the timeless story of Megillat Esther. This ...

Purim is about finding the miraculous in the ordinary. This was a miracle that was done be’hester, in hidden fashion, with no outright miracles, which we saw from the Exodus of Egypt. The Ramban ...

This Purim night, Dr. Ann E. Shinnar will mark the 40th year that she has chanted all or part of Megillat Esther for other Orthodox women. She started in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, in 1986, and has ...

Purim is an extraordinary festival in the Jewish calendar. It can be distinguished from all the other festivals by the character that it was granted in later generations, but mainly by its most ...

In the final chapter of the Book of Esther, the book itself is described as an iggeret, a letter. This is an unusual term for a work that ultimately would become part of Scripture. Rather than being ...

The new tradition of waving a flag when Esther and Vashti's names are mentioned celebrates the triumph of these Purim heroines. Megillat Esther has been understood as a fantasy of Jewish power written ...

This blog post was written shortly after Purim 2013. If you’re reading megillah this year and need help learning the tune, check out JOFA’s Megillat Esther App. To catch up on last Purim’s other blog ...