This week we celebrated 100 years of Herzl’s The Jewish State! Herzl believed it was the lack of political leadership that was the barrier to the Jewish people having their own state, and that the catalyst to the solution was a shift in perspective.
On the same day we celebrated Purim Katan: this year is a Jewish leap year, meaning we have two months of Adar instead of one. The Purim holiday detailed in the Book of Esther commemorating the miracle of the salvation of the Jews from the evil Haman, who set out to destroy them, is celebrated this year on the 14th of the Hebrew month of Adar II (the original Adar), but we still do a minor celebration on the same date in Adar I. Esther, the heroine of the Purim story, was the catalyst that moved the Jewish people from despair and hopelessness to hopefulness and activism.
This Shabbat enjoy some wine - the drink that Judaism uses in ceremonies as it is meant to inspire and comfort us, to lend dignity and importance to an occasion, and to raise an ordinary or even extraordinary human event to a higher spiritual level. Take time out to appreciate your gifts and shift your perspective. Enjoy your “extra month” and use this time to find happiness and joy, for it is something we all could use this year and every year.
Shabbat shalom
Comments