You’ve heard of a Christmas record — naughty or good, toys or coal — however my household has one other form of record. Beginning in February, my oldest little one, Byrd, compiles an inventory of individuals we all know who will obtain mishloach manot, the little presents of meals that Jewish households distribute in the course of the spring vacation of Purim, this yr extending from sunset March 23 till sunset March 24. We make anyplace from 20 to 30 packing containers of mishloach manot annually, and it’s all the time a tricky name to resolve who will get one, therefore the record.
Purim originates from an historical story of underdog triumph with a robust feminine lead. Courageous Esther, newly queen and secretly Jewish, prevails over evil Haman, an adviser to King Ahasuerus, who’s plotting to eradicate the Jews. Jewish holidays have a tendency to come back with quite a lot of baggage — they’re usually a 50-50 cut up of celebration and sorrow — however Purim, regardless of the shut name of close to annihilation, is nearly all celebration. It’s joyous, it’s raucous, and it’s form of foolish.
Think about the 4 mitzvot, or good deeds, that Jews are alleged to apply on Purim.
Reciting the megillah: a dramatic reenactment or “spiel” of the Purim story, the E book of Esther, aka Megillat Esther, normally carried out for optimum comedic impact. Ladies are inspired to take male roles and vice versa to lean into the theme of secret identities.
Consuming the seudah: an open-ended feast not hemmed in by restrictions just like the Passover seder, however meant to be, like the remainder of Purim, purely joyous. Consuming to extra is definitely really helpful.
Charitable giving: carrying on the legacy of Esther and her uncle, Mordecai, by sharing with those that are much less lucky. This may be so simple as a monetary donation to a nonprofit that addresses poverty in your group or a extra intentional and direct act comparable to volunteering.
Giving presents of meals: If the perfect revenge resides effectively, then these reward baskets are one other approach for us to stay it to Haman (whose identify we loudly “boo” every time it’s spoken). “You didn’t defeat us, we’re thriving,” they are saying. “Mishloach manot” in Hebrew or “shalach manos” in Yiddish, these edible presents normally embrace two or extra treats and might be easy or themed.
There’s loads to like about Purim. You’ve received costumes, gender bending, making noise and getting drunk. A Halloween’s price of trickery and revelry are anticipated and inspired.
The vacation additionally has one thing else going for it: a signature cookie known as hamantaschen. Though there are different Purim treats, the triangular hamantaschen (a nod to the form of Haman’s hat) is its poster little one, and it’s a cornerstone in mishloach manot, so we make dozens to get pleasure from and share. Giving mishloach manot makes me really feel related to one thing greater than myself. It helps that the entire idea aligns with one in every of my favourite core values, sharing meals with different individuals.
Proselytizing isn’t a part of the everyday Jewish expertise. We don’t recruit new members, and famously, Jews can fall sufferer to a form of “Who’s Jewish sufficient” jockeying that builds partitions across the faith and tradition. Alongside the identical traces, not all of our holidays are tremendous approachable. Passover has a dizzying variety of stipulations. Yom Kippur entails fasting and atoning — neither are crowd-pleasers. However Purim is a vacation that’s good for sharing, and it provides us a candy strategy to join with our group.
Yearly, I brainstorm an formidable mixture of enjoyable, bizarre hamantaschen flavors. I’ve made PBJ-, French onion- and pickle-flavored hamantaschen, however my favorites had been mango flavored with a Tajín rim. Final yr, my buddy, baker Keya Wingfield, introduced her daughter, Uma, to whip up a batch of cross-cultural hamantaschen with my youthful daughter, Hazel. We brainstormed flavors prematurely, and Keya, a local of Mumbai, India, determined to function her savory samosa filling in a starring function. It was just a little of my world and just a little of her world, collectively in a cookie that was surprising and completely good.
Generally I fear that I’m responsible of subscribing to a pick-your-own Judaism, selecting to apply solely the rituals that really feel related to me and largely ignoring the remainder. I ponder, if I had grown up in another way, would my apply be extra full, extra significant someway? However then I remind myself that working towards any faith is all the time an train in selection: The practitioner decides the best way to reside with the faith they’ve chosen to simply accept, creating their very own mishmash of traditions and pulling from them the which means they should discover. For me, giving mishloach manot is a kind of traditions that’s brimming with which means and much-needed pleasure.
To get pleasure from hamantaschen and different Purim festivities, cease by the Purim Carnival on the Weinstein JCC, at this time, March 24, from midday to three p.m.
By no means miss a Sunday Story: Join the publication, and we’ll drop a contemporary learn into your inbox initially of every week. To maintain up with the most recent posts, seek for the hashtag #SundayStory on Fb and Instagram.