Tag Archives: Purim

(Megilat Esther) Purim Sameach (State of Nature)

Posted on March 6, 2023 by zjb

Read it! The neoclassical scroll of Esther is colorful and motley. Reader, beware. Purim is what happens when social contracts are violated by violent men and put right by the violence of dumb luck and cunning. [18th century scroll of … Continue reading →

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Purim (Sick in the Street)

Posted on March 16, 2014 by zjb

Yes, the synagogue is a public institution. But compared to in Israel, diaspora Judaism is not really social. It’s indoors. Except here and there, diaspora Judaism doesn’t happen on “the street.” It has no “space of appearance.” As “a Zionist,” … Continue reading →

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Ahasuerus = God (Book of Esther)

Posted on February 24, 2013 by zjb

So many people think that Purim story represents that point in time and place where God hides His [sic] face, decamps from the historical scene. But there He is, hiding in plain sight. God is Ahashuerus, the bumbling King, the … Continue reading →

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Shushan (Purim)

Posted on February 24, 2013 by zjb

(http://www.iranchamber.com/history/susa/susa.php) …once upon a time, a long time ago, in Sushan the capital…    

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