Zachor Purim

This coming Shabbat, before Purim, is always called Shabbat Zachor, the Shabbat of remembering.

Zachor is used in two important Biblical contexts. One of them is to remember the Shabbat to keep it holy, a purely religious event. The other is to remember what Amalek did to the children of Israel as they were escaping from Egypt and were attacked (Shemot 17:8 and Devarim 25:17). The threat of Amalek reminds us how we have always had to face enemies determined to destroy us. There may well be a difference between antisemitism and certain kinds of anti-Zionism. Even though anti-Zionism is largely blamed for the current universal hatred. There can be no doubt about the huge increase in hatred from either or both. And after generations, the anxiety that many of us have is almost embedded in our genes.

Much of the Torah discusses the invasion of Canaan and the removal of pagan culture. Amalek is particularly emblematic because, on the one hand, you could justify the Canaanites fighting back. After all the Israelites were about to invade and try to take their land in a world of whoever is stronger survives. But the Amalekites were not defending their land. And the attack was particularly cruel precisely because they attacked from behind, the stragglers, the weak.

Purim is when we remember the attempt of Haman to obliterate the Jews of the Persian Empire. Here too, remembering is a constant and never-ending challenge that we’ve had to face for thousands of years of those who want to destroy us, if not physically, then ideologically. Haman is the archetypal Jew-hater, distorting facts and animated by no good reason. Salvation came not just through the powerful and the connected but also through the ordinary people.  And some hidden intervention from on high.

Wherever Jews have gone, there have been internal tensions as well as external threats. But the position we find ourselves in today is different because we are also hated for successfully defending ourselves with the tools and the advantage of Statehood. Which gives us hope and room for optimism despite the problems. We have gone through a period of almost 80 years after the horrors of Naziism, and Marxism, when, in the free world, anti-Judaism has been unfashionable and lurking beneath the surface. But now, for the first time, we are entering appeared in the modern world where the threat is global.

Zachor helps reinforce us and gives a sense of pride and determination. We remember the historical threat. And we remember that we are supposed to be a good people with standards, ethical and religious. If we betray our own morality and descend to the level of others, what then should be the point in our survival? The purpose of a religious-based culture is to propagate goodness, not selfishness. So reiterates the Torah.

The word Zachor, implies remember in abstraction, never forget. But it also implies that memory is not enough, action is required to ensure the lesson is learnt. Purim isn’t just about having a good time, feasting, drinking and dancing. We give it religious significance because we frame it in practical rituals of charity and gifts that connect people and stress friendship and responsibility for others. And recognising the concept of valuing Am Yisrael, the people of Israel, and Ahavat Yisrael, and Ahavat Zion, the obligation to love. Remembering doesn’t just mean remembering the bad but remembering the good as well. And not just the past but also what we can do to make sure that the present is better. And that we behave better, too.

The way to remember is by teaching our children the lessons of history. And not to forget that there will always be challenges as well as rewards to being Jewish. That we must take positive action, not just be passive, to combat the challenge. To take whatever steps we can to protect ourselves physically from our enemies and not always expect them to see reason.
We need to teach every generation to know their history and to ensure their commitment to the Jewish people. And to practice what we preach, religiously and socially. We cannot expect to survive as a people if we cannot practice our traditions and pass them on to the next generation.

Happy Purim.

Rabbi Jeremy Rosen lives in New York. He was born in Manchester. His writings are concerned with religion, culture, history and current affairs – anything he finds interesting or relevant. They are designed to entertain and to stimulate. Disagreement is always welcome.