יום שני, י׳ תשרי תשפ״זMonday, September 21, 2026
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Four Jews who will not celebrate Purim this year are Yitzhak Ames, Talia Ames, Kochava Even-Haim, and Avishai Schindler - all murdered by Hamas.
By Shalom Bear
Israel adopting Sundays-Off seemed like a great idea, until it was put into practice.
By JoeSettler
Google had a good idea on how to present the data.The only problem is, the data is wrong.
By JTA
Police have agreed to allow the niece of American comedian Sarah Silverman will be allowed to attend a women's Megillah reading at the Western Wall despite being banned from the site. Hallel Abramowitz Silverman, 17, was one of 10 female worshipers arrested for wearing prayer shawls during a women's Rosh Chodesh prayer service at the […]
By Batya Medad
The Jewish Month of Adar is known as a time of change, reversals, bad to good, winter to spring.
By Moshe Herman
Yishai and Malkah broadcast from sunny Florida to discuss differences between life in Israel and the US, especially when celebrating Purim. They end by discussing President Obama's upcoming trip to Israel.
By dvora
We first met Shlomie (name and some details have been changed) over 20 years ago. He davens in our shul, and he and my husband share a love of photography. Over time, we got to know each other well.
By Erica Lyons
A traditional Purim in Hong Kong requires an obligatory visit to Pottinger Street in the bustling Central District. Also known locally as Stone Step Street, Pottinger Street is more of a steep, irregularly paved pedestrian stone path (with steps too small for Western feet) than a street. My children run ahead up the stone slabs as I carefully balance my size nine feet on the thin, uneven stairs. My five year old stumbles but quickly recovers and catches up to the big kids.
Question: Why do we read four special Torah sections between Purim and Pesach. Also, why do we call each of the four Shabbatot on which we read these sections by a special name – such as Shabbat Shekalim, Shabbat Zachor etc.? Celia Gluck (Via E-Mail)
By Yitta Halberstam Mandelbaum
I know I’m going to be crucified, but if the appeal I make below helps even one girl in shidduchim, then it will be worth all the fury and outrage that shall inevitably descend upon my soon-to-be beleaguered head.
I believe we need to get back to the basics. Holiness is something we should embrace rather than stray from, and thus we should "look" for more opportunities to become holy rather then stay "safely" away from it. True, with every act of holiness comes restrictions and I can already feel the backache of cleaning the pantry from Chametz. But shall this hardship turn Pesach into the Holiday of misfortune rather than happiness?
Purim is the one Yom Tov all Jews can celebrate. Special knowledge is not required and the demands of its observance are easy enough.
By Rachel Weiss
Just last week we experienced the crowning point of the month of Adar by commemorating the extraordinary events that unfolded in the ancient Persian Empire. We read the scroll of Esther, enjoyed a hearty feast, and traded gifts of goodies with each other.
Klal Yisroel stood at Har Sinai and accepted the Torah in a state of supreme purity and complete unity. Every Jew reached a level of prophecy and witnessed an unparalleled revelation of G-d. Then Moshe ascended Har Sinai for forty days so G-d could teach him the laws and details of the Torah.
By Tzvi Fishman
After his astounding speech in Congress, the GOP has been working behind the scenes to get Israeli PM Netanyahu to run for President of the U.S.A.
By Moshe Herman
Pollard release, Syrian torture, Second day Purim in Jerusalem, the secret criminal mind of Amalek, Bibi no-nonsense speech, and the Klezmer music of Chilik Frank.
A series of new innovations coming out of Israel are making life better, easier, and more fulfilling for Jews around the world.
David Silverman, president of American Atheists, responds angrily: “The Jews have stopped the billboard. It’s really ugly bigotry. As a former Jew, it’s repugnant to see Jews act like this.”
Purim is the holiday of contradictions and tenacity-driven-optimism: Grief replaced by joy; Esther's concealment replaced by the disclosure of her national/religious identity; Haman's intended genocide of the Jews replaced by redemption; Haman replaced by Mordechai; national and personal pessimism replaced by optimism.
Israel must demonstrate confidence in ourselves and an iron determination to defy our antagonists. Mordechai teaches that it is not through appeasement that one achieves peace but rather through strength, self-assurance and unequivocally firm resistance to tyranny and injustice.
The internet pamphlet plays on a popular Purim greeting, 'sameach u'mevadech' [happy and humorous], and asks rhetorically if people really know what Purim is about.
By Rabbi Shimshon HaKohen Nadel
Being human, we are limited in our ability to understand. Tragic events seem senseless, without a rhyme or reason. World events can seem confusing, with the future uncertain. On Purim, we recognize that God’s Hand is guiding it all. The King is working behind the scenes, pulling the strings. We may not understand all of the twists and turns of the narrative, but we know the Author. All we have to do is put our trust in Him.
These are excerpts from the sefer “Inside Purim” which contains additional answers to the following questions and much more.
Purim is just a few days away, and Jews young and old are gearing up to celebrate this most festive of holidays, during which all will eat, drink and nosh merrily and in great relief over our come-up-from-behind triumph against a vicious Jew hater whose goal was to annihilate the Jewish people, but who instead had the tables turned against him in a dramatic and unforeseen manner. Sadly, bullying is alive and well in the 21st century afflicting all societies and the individuals that comprise them. For those who think that our heimishe communities have been spared the scourge of bullying - it's time to get their head out of the cholent.
It’s hard to believe it’s already here, but Purim is just a few days away. Amidst the hustle and bustle of the myriads of things we do in the days leading up to it, here are a few cute, simple, and fun ideas sure to bring smiles to everyone’s faces and get them into the Purim spirit!
By dvora
Rabbi Norman Lamm wrote and preserved the hundreds of eloquent and inspiring sermons he had delivered as a pulpit rabbi in Manhattan for 25 years prior to becoming president of Yeshiva University,
To properly fulfill the mitzvah of listening to the megillah, each word must be heard. If a word is missed, the listener should read it quietly to himself from the text in his hand. The principal purpose of reciting the megillah is to publicize the miracle of Purim. Accordingly, many poskim permit the megillah to be read in English if the reader does not understand Hebrew.
Why is Purim eternal? I would suggest that Purim is the prototype of the End of Exile, and as such will remain forever linked to the Era of Mashiach that will occur after the Final Redemption. Therefore, Purim will be part of that entire period at the culmination of history.
There certainly are many reasons to look forward to Purim. It is a time of feasting, joy, and merriment. We celebrate an important victory over our enemies, which was a precedent for many other such victories over the course of our history. We read one of the most moving stories in our entire tradition, and we have good fun while we’re doing it.
By Rabbi Shimshon HaKohen Nadel
The word the Gemara uses to get drunk on wine is “l’besumai,” literally - to become fragrant. Not stinking drunk, but rather like the incense in the Holy Temple; a sweet smelling aroma.
In honor of Purim, Outré EATS presents a new take on traditional Persian fare.
By Pnina Baim
There’s nothing like a holiday where one is required to be happy to bring out the grouch in all of us. But we should all be excited to greet Purim. Not only because of the beautiful miracle that occurred, the lessons of emunah and the role of the Jewish woman that Megillas Esther teaches us, but also because it’s the only twenty-four hour holiday that we celebrate here in Chutz L’Aretz, and it has merely four mitzvot! How simple is that?
These are excerpts from the sefer Inside Purim, which contains additional answers to the following questions and much more.
September 18, 2026 
