MaNishma with Rabbi Arnold Goodman

Mordecai… to Esther… 'if you keep silent in this crisis, relief and deliverance will come from another quarter, while you and your father's house will perish; and who knows, perhaps you have attained royal position la'et kazot, for a time such as this…" (Book of Esther 4: 14).

There is a tide in the affairs of men which
taken at the flood,
leads on to fortune,
Omitted, all the voyage of their life
Is bound in shallows and misery
(Julius Caesar, Act IV, Sc 3)

It's the make-or-break moment in the Purim saga. Mordecai has informed Esther of Haman's intention to attack and destroy the entire Jewish community of Persia/Medea. The date had been chosen, and the edict had been transmitted to all corners of the vast 127 nation empire.

Mordecai has now petitioned Esther to intercede with the King to annul the evil decree. Esther responds that she has not been summoned to Ahasureus for over thirty days, and it is common knowledge that approaching the throne without permission is punishable by death. She is understandably reluctant to risk her life. Mordecai bitterly reprimands her, "If you are silent at this moment you and your father's house will also be consumed in this far reaching genocidal action, and who knows but la'et kazot it is for this moment that you have attained the crown." Esther accepts Mordecai's criticism, and she sets into motion the deliverance of her people.

La'et kazot: there are always moments in which we must choose whether to act or to sit on our hands. Ukraine is an unfolding and ever deepening humanitarian crisis; the Russian onslaught continues to fbesiege cities and target civilian centers including hospitals. It is estimated over two million refugees, in large part women and children, have thankfully found shelter in neighboring countries primarily Poland and Romania. In addition to humanitarian aid from the United States and Western Europe, the call has gone out for private funding, and the outpouring of support has been amazing. For people of conscience this is a La'et kazot moment.

In 1900 my maternal grandparents with their two children (one of whom was my mother) emigrated to the United States from Ukraine where Jews eked out a livelihood while constantly aware of latent and overt anti-Semitism. That Ukraine has morphed into the democratic State now headed by its courageous Jewish President, Volodymyr Zelensky.

To paraphrase Mordecai, is it inconceivable that we are blessed with financial capability to have the capacity to respond to difficult humanitarian crises? Local Jewish Federations are among the agencies collecting the much-needed funds, and la'et kazot – may we be equal to the demands of this moment.

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From the holy city of Jerusalem my fondest wishes for a Shabbat Shalom and a Purim Sameach, a joyous celebration of the wonderful holiday.