Congregation B’nai Sholom-Beth David celebrates Purim

Purim is a festive and exciting holiday celebrating the story of Queen Esther, and her cousin Mordecai, who save the Jewish people of Persia from being killed at the hand of the royal vizier Haman.

To celebrate the occasion, members of Congregation B’nai Sholom-Beth David in Rockville Centre gathered at the synagogue on Sunday morning for a reading from the Book of Esther — or the Megillah — which was accompanied by a delightful costume parade and party.

“It’s a feel-good, joyous holiday that brings everyone together,” Nancy Hochhauser, president of Congregation B’nai Sholom-Beth David, said.

Sunday’s festivities also included a Purim spiel, which was performed by students with the Jewish Learning Center. After everyone enjoyed hamantaschen cookies, waffles and ice cream.

“At our temple, in particular, Purim is children-focused, as the joy of children brightens up any room,” Rabbi David Lerner said.

Purim is widely celebrated by completing three mitzvot, or commandments, beginning with the reading of the Megillah, featuring a series of comedic interludes and participation from congregants. Rabbi Lerner said that during the reading, whenever the villain’s name is read, everyone erupts with boos, shouts and noisemakers.

“The second goal is to give ‘mishloach manot,’ or Purim gift baskets, to all of our congregants, and to those who support our community from around the village,” Lerner said.

Connie Salwen and Sandy Friedman started the Purim Basket fundraiser more than 23 years ago. The responsibility was taken over by Elisa Matas Skolnick and Nancy Hochhauser in 2015, when they started to create a central theme for the baskets.

“We love figuring out the theme and putting the food items together that coincide with it,” Hochhauser said. “This year, ‘stronger together’ was the theme with a logo created by Samantha Melendez showing our solidarity and support for Israel.”

Each basket contained foods from both Israel and America, as well as a copy of a letter that that was included in each of the more than 200 Purim baskets that the Congregation sent to Israeli soldiers fighting in Gaza.

In addition to the congregation’s own Purim fundraiser, members of the synagogue also raised money to send Purim gift bags to soldiers with the Israeli Defense Forces by partnering with Gili’s Goodies in Efrat, Israel.

“Third, we are instructed to give matanot la’evyonim, or gifts to the poor,” Lerner said.

To fulfill these mitzvot, the synagogue hosted a clothing drive for three weeks before the holiday, encouraging Purim attendees to bring boxes of food items to use as noisemakers during the festivities. These items were then collected afterward for donation to a local food pantry.

“This festival is particularly significant this year because the Jewish community is currently under threat, with an uptick of antisemitism here, and war abroad,” Lerner explained. “We come together to recall and celebrate the eternal resilience and hope of our people, reinforcing our long-held belief that light will eventually overcome darkness and that ‘this too shall pass.’ However, this deep message is conveyed through a carnivalesque atmosphere, where joy and even silliness reign supreme. We see how topsy-turvy life can be, and we wish to take this journey with as much joy as we can muster.”