What is Purim?
Purim celebrates Esther and Mordechai’s triumph over Haman. Set in ancient Persia, the Book of Esther tells how an inept monarch allowed a hate-filled minister to threaten the Jewish community. Mordechai aided his niece Esther to join the royal court, and their courage helped save the day.
The Fast of Esther
The day before Purim is the Fast of Esther, Ta’anit Esther, recalling the fast Esther called for before approaching the king and asking him to protect the Jewish people. For millennia, when our people faced existential crises, they fasted. Today, the planet and all peoples on it face a climate crisis. What might we glean from the Fast of Esther as a resource in our climate-imperiled era?
From Anguish to Joy: A Fast for the Climate
This text study draws these parallels, exploring how this day offers profound value and the opportunity to channel Esther’s boldness and our ancestors’ unity, as we work to save all that we hold dear. It also highlights a new ritual you might consider: a communal Fast for the Climate.
Whether taking on a traditional fast or not, donate what you spend or might have spent on that day’s food to a climate nonprofit of your choice. Individual contributions may be small—$5, $50—but as a communal practice, these actions can add up, shift our culture, and make an impact.
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On Purim night, we rejoice through recounting Esther’s story and through drinking, wearing masks, and partying. We also give back to our community – by giving mishloach manot (gifts of food) to friends and donating to charity. Here are a number of suggestions as to how you can celebrate Purim in a sustainable, fun, and festive way!….
Activities & Rituals
The Whole Megillah
Add a kick to your Megillah reading by chanting in the voice of the different characters. If you’re reading Megillah this year, make sure to practice your most evil Haman sneers and huffiest Ahasuerus demands.
Start your Pesach parsley
Purim is the perfect time to plant parsley to eat at your seder. The best part is, you can do it even in the tiniest apartment kitchen! Here are all the tips and tricks you need to plant your own parsley.
Throw a Purim Banquet
Invite your family and friends back to your palace after the Megillah reading for a fabulous Purim feast. King Ahasuerus was probably not into potlucks, but you can be. Ask each friend to bring a dish, decorate your living room with tapestries, pillows, and candles and party like it’s ancient Persia.
Green Your Costume
There are many great ways that you can incorporate “green” learning into your Purim carnival activities. A fun, useful, and easy idea to use whether you are having a carnival or not, is to use recycled materials to make masks for this holiday! If you have enough people, or if it is at a carnival, you could even have a contest of who uses the most creative recycled material for their mask!
Sustainability Tips
- Ditch the dry hamentashen | Crumbly, store-bought hamentashen stuffed with artificially-flavored jelly are a crime against Purim! Fight back by baking your own. Bake your hamentashen with fair trade certified sugar, vanilla, etc. Experiment with substituting whole wheat flour and agave nectar in the dough, and think outside the traditional fillings box. Pick up some local jams at the farmers’ market, or make your own. Try pinching a dab of Nutella or a dollop of maple-sweetened Mascarpone cheese in the center of your cookies. Your belly will thank you
- Edible Groggers | Serve crispy, crunchy, NOISY foods this Purim (try things like: fresh veggies and yogurt dill dip, blue corn chips and salsa or home made pita chips with your favorite store-bought or home made hummus). As guests snack away, their crunches will let Haman know what a wicked, wicked man he really was.
- Sustainable drinks | Don’t forget to drink sustainably this Purim. Pick an organic kosher wine or mix your drinks using freshly-squeezed juices (orange, grapefruit, carrot/ginger, wheat grass – it’s up to you!), natural sodas, Ginger Brew, or even homemade seltzer. And if you’re going alcohol-free, these delicious mixers taste just as great on their own.
- Sustainable Mishloach Manot | One of the sweetest traditions of Purim is the giving of mishloach manot, gifts of food, to family and friends. Traditionally, one is required to give at least two items of food (one of which should be prepared) to at least two people. But there’s no reason reason to stop there! Here are some tips for adding sustainable flair to your mishloach manot:
- Write it Down. Including a note with your wishes for a sweet Purim in your mishloach manot basket is always a nice touch.
- Sweeten the pot. Give fair trade certified kosher chocolates, dried fruit and nuts in your mishloach manot. Fair Trade Judaica offers this list of options for Kosher Chocolate, Coffee and Tea.
- Make someone carbon neutral. Offset your friends’ carbon emissions through the Carbon Neutral Company or Native Energy and include the certificate in their basket.
- Brew Peace. Through the Thanksgiving Coffee Co., you can purchase fair trade coffee grown by a collective of Ugandan Jewish, Muslim, and Christian coffee farmers.
- Add some color. Tuck in a few beautiful, locally-grown apples, beets, carrots, or other root vegetables in your mishloach manot basket, right next to the hamentashen. Spring is right around the corner, so now is the best time to celebrate the winter harvest, one last time.
- Give More | Purim offers two additional opportunities to give: Mechazit Hashekel (literally “giving half a coin”) and Mataonot La’Evyonim (giving gifts to the poor). Fulfill these mitzvot with a contemporary twist.
- Act Global – in honor of Queen Esther’s heroic acts, help someone help themselves by making a donation to a micro-loan organization like Global Giving or FINCA
- Donate Your Time – commit to volunteer at your local synagogue or JCC, or prepare food for an Emergency Food Provider.
