How Purim Began

In the kingdom of King Ahasuerus of Persia, many Jewish families lived together with the others. Mordecai was a faithful Jew who passed through the palace gate each day, watching over his people. His adopted daughter Esther lived in the splendid royal palace and had become queen of the whole kingdom. But one day, Mordecai heard heart-breaking news: a cruel man wanted to hurt all the Jews. Mordecai sent word to Esther at once, asking her to take courage for their people. Esther took a deep breath and made up her mind. She put on her most beautiful royal robes and walked toward the king's golden gate. The king held out his golden scepter to welcome her and listened to her words. At the special banquet Esther had prepared, she finally told the king about Haman's wicked plot. The king at once issued a new decree to protect the Jews, and he honored Mordecai with royal robes and a golden crown. When the good news spread across the land, the Jews held one another with tears of joy. Sorrow turned into the greatest gladness. Mordecai sat down and wrote letters to the people everywhere, setting that day each year as the festival of "Purim," so that everyone could come together to share good food, send gifts to friends, and send presents to those in need. This story tells us: God saved His people, so let us, with grateful hearts, remember His wonderful deeds for generations to come.