Recap for 13 Adar I 5773

This Shabbos we discussed 3 mitzvahs related to Purim, always remember, never forget, and rid ourselves of “almalek”, which means any enemy or evil inclination.   We need to always remember the story of Purim.  A way that we do this is by attending the Magillah readings and participating in the festivities of the holiday.  As individuals we may have also encountered our own “almaleks” that we overcame, that we should also remember.  We do not want to forget the story of Purim (or our own Alamalks) and then remember it only when we read the Magillah.  We should always be aware.  We should rid ourselves of our enemies including temptations which would cause us to act in a way contrary to what Hashem has commanded us to do.

We discussed how the story of Purim teaches us a lesson, that if we focus too much on what we don’t have we can end up losing what we do have.  Haman had a position of great status, with many of his needs taken care of but he choose to focus on what he did not have – Jews bowing down to him.  If he would have accepted that Jews were not going to worship him, he probably would not have lost everything including his life.  This is a lesson for all of us.  We should be grateful for what we have and not go insane because of what we don’t have.  We should see the glass as half full rather than half empty.  Rather than trying to get more and more things, and more and more power, we should take some time off on Shabbos and at other times to appreciate.

We discussed how when we can’t have something, we end up wanting it more.  For example, in the Garden of Eden the only thing that was out of bounds was forbidden fruit on one specific tree.  Not being allowed to have this fruit, increased the temptation to try it.  The fact that Mordechai would not bow to him, increased Haman’s desire to make it happen.  Hashem gives us free will and a world with temptations.  If we choose to do the right thing, we will grow spiritually and become closer to Hashem.

We discussed the 3 things Jews needed to do upon entering the land of Israel.  First we needed to become organized and appoint a king.  Second we need to rid ourselves of our enemies.  And finally we needed to build a Beit Midrash. This brings up a conflict in moral values, as ridding ourselves of our enemies means we have to go to war and people are going to lose their life.  But sometimes we deal with an enemy who leaves us no other choice.  If our enemy hates us and does not want us to exist at all no matter what we do, what other alternative do we have?  

In our personal lives we may have rules, guidelines, and halakah that we follow 99% of the time but sometimes conflicts can come up and there are exceptions.   An example we discussed, we may have to stop ambulances at the border to check for bombers.  Another example, we may have to eat non-kosher food if we are starving.   Another example, we may have to listen to Christian gospel in order to visit the sick.

This is a summary of what we discussed this Shabbos.  No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.