Library of Congress Esther Scroll made at the Bezalel School in Jerusalem

The Jewish holiday of Purim is a joyous one, commemorating the saving of the Jews from annihilation in 5th century BCE Persia. The story is recounted in the Book or Scroll of Esther (also known as the Megillah in Hebrew) where Esther, a young Jewish woman, plays the leading role in rescuing her people from a massacre at the hands of the evil villain Haman, advisor to Persian king Ahasuerus.

The word Purim means “lots” and refers to the mechanism by which Haman chose the date for the Jews’ destruction. The holiday is traditionally celebrated with wild abandon — costumes, drinking, feasting, revelry — and by reading the megillah (Scroll of Esther) and giving gifts to friends and the poor.

For Purim 2024, falling on March 23, here are some updated resources including Library of Congress primary source material and a reflection on the significance of the holiday during the current Israel Hamas War.

• Primary Sources About Purim from National Library of Israel
  Printable activities, videos, lesson plans & decorations are included. See, for example, this 1616 Illustrated Esther Scroll by Moshe ben Avraham Peshkarol from Ferrara, Italy with teaching materials.
• Purim Resources from NCSY
  Activities, infographics, text-based sessions, lesson plans and other materials related to Purim provided by National Conference of Synagogue Youth
• Lookstein Center Bar Ilan University Purim Resources
  Traditions around the world, lesson plans & activities, videos, songs, plays & skits, articles & texts.
• Marking the Holiday of Purim Before, During and After the Holocaust
  Photographs, artifacts and video from Yad Vashem (the World Holocaust Remembrance Center) including 1946 footage of Post-War Purim celebration in Children's Home in Amsterdam, Holland.
• Celebrating Purim, Bezalel-Style: The Hebraic Section Welcomes a New Acquisition
  4 Corners of the World: International Collections at the Library of Congress Blog post by Anchi Hoh, February 25, 2021
• Purim Holiday: The Library’s Esther Scrolls
  Timeless Stories from the Library of Congress Blog post by Neely Tucker,  March 2, 2023
• Carnival in Tel Aviv : Purim and the celebration of urban Zionism
  By Hizky Shoham Boston: Academic Studies Press, 2014. Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/2020718881/
• Esther and her times, in a series of lectures on the book of Esther
  By John Marshall Lowrie [Philadelphia, Presbyterian board of publication, 1859]. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, .
• Shalach monos
  Sheet music for Shalach monos or "Sending of portions/gifts" by Mogulesco, S and Joseph Rumshinsky. Hebrew Publishing Company, New York, New York, 1914. Notated Music. Retrieved from the Library of Congress,
• H.Res.976 - Commemorating the celebration of Purim by the Jewish community of the United States
  Summary notes about this resolution, introduced 03/11/2022 by Rep. Balderson, Troy [R-OH-12], mention "this resolution stands in solidarity with the Jewish community in the United States and throughout the world. The resolution also recognizes and celebrates the holiday of Purim and wishes the Jewish community a Chag Purim Sameach (Happy Purim in Hebrew) and ah freilichen Purim (Happy Purim in Yiddish)."
• How Jews are addressing the Megillah’s bloodiest chapter during wartime this Purim
  By Jackie Hajdenberg/JTA. The Jerusalem Post, March 15, 2024.
• How do we celebrate Purim in a time of mourning?
  By David I. Bernstein. Jewish Telegraph Agency, March 14, 2024.

This year, as we prepare to observe Purim, a normally joyous holiday, there is much to mourn: the terrible events of October 7, the incomprehensible suffering of the hostages being held by Hamas, the ongoing war and the daily toll it is taking along with a resurgence of Antisemitism in the United States and the many other tragic events taking place around the world.

Throughout history, the Jewish people have dealt with misfortune and adversity. Yet they move on, rather than focus only on the past. Survivors of the Holocaust managed to celebrate Purim in the immediate aftermath of the war, even in the Displaced Persons camps. They did not despair but instead chose to live life to the fullest, building a future for a better tomorrow.

Children in costume for the Purim holiday at the Landsberg DP camp, Germany, after World War II. (Yad Vashem Photo Archive)

  Purim    Jewish Holidays    Book of Esther    Antisemitism