A Weekly Mitzvah
Reading the Megillah and Partying on Purim
Parshat Titzaveh 5767
Exodus
27:20 - 30:10
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Buddy Brandt With love to their grandchildren Elka, Joshua, Lindsay, Oren Z”L, Jenny, David, Lauren, Zenfira, and Emily |
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Despite the fact that our tradition depicts Purim as a time
for carnivals and costumes, the sages emphasized the importance of hearing
the reading of the entire Megillah. This obligation rested upon
both men and women (at a time when women were generally exempt from time
bound commandments) and it applied to children as well. In fact the obligation
took precedence over almost all other obligations.
An often forgotten aspect of Purim today is the practice of
having a festive meal on Purim afternoon. In many communities
it is customary to present satires and plays making fun of the community
leaders and addressing the issues of the day at this time. The well known
practice of drinking a little too much on Purim was actually considered
a mitzvah as well and is actually codified in the Shulhan Aruch.
However, as you will see below at least some of the rabbis did not take
this practice quite so literally.
Esther Chapter
9 |
Rabbi Joseph Karo Shulchan Aruch, Orech Hayim
687: The Obligation to read the Megillah
1 A person is obliged to read the Megillah at night and to repeat the
reading again during the day. The time for the reading of the night is
all night. The time for the reading of the day is all day, from sunrise
until the end of the day. If one reads the Megillah earlier, after the
crack of dawn, he will have fulfilled his obligation.
2 One should defer Torah study in order to hear the reading of the Megillah.
Other mitzvot which derive from Torah law are certainly all overridden
by the mitzvah of hearing the reading of the Megillah. There is nothing
for which the mitzvah of hearing the reading of the Megillah is overridden,
except for the burial of a dead person who does not have the required
number of people to bury him. His burial is a mitzvah which is incumbent
upon everyone. Whoever encounters such a dead person should bury him
first and read the Megillah subsequently.
689: That everybody is obligated to read the Megillah
1. Everybody is obliged to read the Megillah: men women, converts and
freed slaves. One should educate the children to the reading of the
Megillah.
2 Both a person who reads the Megillah and a person who hears the Megillah
read fulfill their obligation, provided that the hearer hears the Megillah
read from the mouth of a person who is obliged to read it.
6 It is a commendable custom to bring small boys and girls to hear the
reading of the Megillah.
690: The Laws Concerning the reading of the Megillah
3 The Megillah must be read in its entirety out of the written Scroll.
If one recited the Megillah by heart, without reading it from a Scroll
he will not have fulfilled his obligation. It is necessary for a Megillah
Scroll written in its entirety to be in front of the reader initially
for him to read the Megillah from there. However, once it is after
the event, if the scribe omitted words in the middle, even to the extent
of half the Megillah, and the reader recited those words by heart,
he will have fulfilled his obligation.
695 Concerning the Purim Feast (Selections
in italics are additions by Rabbi Moses Isserles)
1 Gloss: It is a mitzvah to have a large Purim feast. One will fulfill
his obligation to feast on Purim with one feast. If the
Purim feast was held at night one will not have fulfilled his obligation. Gloss:
Nevertheless, one should rejoice in the night as well and have a somewhat
larger meal
2 A person is obliged to become intoxicated on Purim, to the extent
that he will not be aware of the difference between, “Cursed be Haman,” and “Blessed
be Mordechai”. Gloss: There are authorities who say that
one does not need to become as drunk as that, but he should just drink more
than he is accustomed to drink, and thereby fall asleep. Being asleep he will
not be aware of the difference between “Cursed be Haman,” and “Blessed
be Mordechai”. Whether one drinks more or whether one drinks less it
is commendable, provided that his heart’s intention is the service of Heaven…It
is desirable to engage a little in Torah study before one begins the Purim feast.
A support for acting in this manner is the verse which says of the miracle, “For
the Jews there was light, joy etc.” The traditional interpretation of
this verse explains that by “light” Torah is meant.
Questions to Ponder |
|
| 1. | Why did the halachah place such emphasis on the reading of the Megillah? Why do you think it is necessary to hear the reading of the Megillah twice? |
| 2. | Can you think of other mitzvot that should take precedence over the reading of the Megillah? Why did the sages single out the case of the Met Mitzvah, the deceased person who must be buried? |
| 3. | The Shulhan Aruch singles out four types of people who are obligated to hear the reading of the Megillah: men, women, converts and freed slaves (someone who was a slave and converted to Judaism in order to gain his freedom). Why does the Halachah single out these particular cases? |
| 4. | What aspects of Purim should we educate children towards? Do you think this holiday has a positive life affirming message? If so what is it? |
| 5. | What is about the book of Esther that makes it necessary to read the text from a scroll rather than a book? Note there are four other books in the bible that are called Megillot but we are not required to read them from a scroll: Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Ruth and Lamentations? What is so unique about this book? |
| 6. | What should our approach to public intoxication on Purim be at a time when we are deeply sensitive to the abuse of alcohol and drugs? What do you think the Talmud and Shulhan Aruch had in mind in telling us that one should be intoxicated on Purim? How does Rabbi Isserles play down this mitzvah of drinking on Purim? What do you think it means for our generation? |
“All it takes to study Torah is an open heart, a
curious mind and a desire to grow a Jewish soul.”
Copyright 2006 Rabbi Mark B Greenspan
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