Shakespeare Presents: Purim

A father-in-law offers his newly-married son-in-law equal partnership in his multi million dollar business. “You’ll do the work in the factory,” he says. “I’ll do the office work.”

The son-in-law isn’t too keen on the idea. “I hate the factory. It’s too noisy and hectic.”

What wouldn’t a new Father-in-law do to please his son-in-law? And so he offers him the office work.

“But the office is boring and claustrophobic…!” the young man protests.

By now, the father-in-law is at loss: “What are we gonna do with you? You were just offered equal partnership in a flourishing, multimillion-dollar company and you turned it down?!”

The younger guy is undaunted. “I got an idea,” he says. “Why don’t you buy me out?”

*

If you didn’t know any better and were reading the story of Purim for the first time, you might have guessed that you were reading a Shakespearian play. The plot, the climax, the drama… it’s just perfect!

First of all, the story begins with a miracle – a Persian made a feast and actually invited guests: There once was a Persian king who threw a party for 180 days for all his ministers and officials, and every delicacy the mind could fathom was available with the flick of the finger.

After that comes a seven-day marathon of alcohol and beverages tailored especially for the citizens of the capitol city Shushan. Just imagine the fantastic grandeur!

On the seventh day (or rather, the 187th…) the drunken king orders his wife to appear and show off her legendary beauty. For some reason, the queen suddenly becomes self-conscious and declines, throwing in a few nasty comments to boot.

The king, fuming, follows the advice of his ministers and kills his wife. When he sobers up and regrets the rash decision, he accepts his advisor’s suggestion for a beauty contest. After a long search, the king finally picks a girl named Ester to be his wife.

Now the action begins: Ester and her adoptive father Mordechai unravel a plot to take the kings life, and they warn the king just in time. The king records the episode in The Royal Chronicles. End Part One.

Part Two: The notorious Haman rises to power. A decree is issued ordering one and all to kneel before the power-hungry minister.

Mordechai is made of stubborn material and refuses to bow. Seeking revenge, Haman devises a plan. The plot is none other than his Final Solution to the “Jewish problem.” A lot determines the 13th of Adar as the date.

Things get hot. The king willingly signs the decree, and his queen’s nation is to be destroyed by her own husband!

The Jews join in fasting, repentance and prayer for three days. The queen fasts as well.

On the third day, Ester invites the king and Haman to a feast. About to disclose the reason of the party, the queen reconsiders and requests that her two guests join her the following day again.

After the party, Haman plans his special revenge of his archenemy Mordechai, and prepared a huge gallows, planning to obtain permission the next morning for the hanging.

The suspense has reached its peak. When do all the pieces of the puzzle start forming into a collage?

The tables begin turning. The king has a restless night and asks his chamberlain to read from the Book of Chronicles. By “coincidence,” he reads of how Mordechai saved the kings life…

Events in Shushan now seem like a rollercoaster. Haman takes Mordechai on a pony ride around town… the queen begs for her life…And before you know it, Haman is hanging on the very gallows he prepared for…

And the drama finishes with the good guys taking revenge on the bad Haman guys, and Mordechai taking over Haman’s position as prime minister.

So where does G-d fit into this classic drama? Or does He? After all, in the ancient text, the name of G-d is not mentioned even once, so perhaps this is just some old Jewish folklore, an interesting story without depth?

But no; we need to look beneath the surface. Who wrote that play?

What was a Jewish girl doing in the palace? Why did Mordechai uncover an assassination plot? Why couldn’t the king sleep? What were all these details if not the Hand of G-d, pieces of His Infinite Puzzle?

The message of Purim is one so subtly powerful that it can be lost under the masks and in the gift baskets. But we need to look for it. For, as in the Purim tale, small events and stories, even mishaps, frustrations and eccentric characters, are really parts of a masterfully-planned story, leading the Jews to repentance and redemption.

We experience many events throughout our lives, and may see them as random: “It just happened”; “Just a coincidence!”

We have the choice. We can see our lives as games of chance, or we can peek through the veneer and discern the Divine Hand pulling all the right strings. We can appreciate that it’s all a beautiful story, and it has a Playwright

Purim reminds you that G-d’s love is always there. Every second, every move is tailored with love by the One who loves you more than anyone else does.

Just open the curtain, and let the real play begin.