Friday, March 06, 2015

First Time "Single Purim" Day in 33 Years, but Three Megillah Readings

We moved to Shiloh, where Purim is celebrated for two days, two feasts, four megillah readings and two days of giving Mishloach Manot in 1981. So ever since we've celebrated two days of Purim. Our Rabbi has been hinting at a soon to be announced "psak," rabbinic decision to have us join Jerusalem and other old walled cities with only Shushan Purim. But it seems almost as far as the rule of the Moshiach.

This Purim I found myself in New York, rather jetlagged after the "red-eye" from Arizona Tuesday night, meaning Wednesday landing. I was so zonked I managed to fast until after the first megillah reading. See yesterday's post. 

Following my hostess's non-binding custom I ended up hearing the megillah two more times. We went to the regular morning prayers and megillah reading in her shul and then also went to the women's reading, which gave us three. That's not the four in two days I'm used to.

But to be perfectly honest, I fell asleep during that first reading--jetlag can do it to anyone--so I feel that the very competent women's reading made up for what I hd slept through the night before.

2 comments:

Sammy Finkelman said...

Talking about the fact that Purim is observed one day later in some places:

Somebody got a call here in New York - said he had gotten a call from Jerusalem (I didn't understand, I thought this was a recorded message but now I think this was a person) and was told - yesterday - that the megillah would be read that night and the next morning and he wanted to know what time. This was about 2 pm on Purim.

I told him it was the previous night and that morning. I didn't realize - Jerusalem! - somebody wasn't calling to tell him - they were speaking about themselves they have Purim on Shushan Purim.

Anyway I could have thought more but I told to contact the Lubavicher Chassidim and told him about Landau's shul where maybe they would know. There are people that read the megillah for people that missed it.

Batya said...

Yes Purim can be quite humorous. And recorded messages should be very clear.