Mordechai's Triumph
When Haman ordered everyone to bow down before him, Mordechai refused.
Haman wore an idol around his neck.
By refusing to bow down before Haman’s idol, Mordechai proclaimed that G-d alone is true, and the entire Torah is true.
This required tremendous courage.
Haman was powerful. Really powerful. The police and army were behind him. But Mordechai was not afraid.He did not cringe or give in, and so everyone felt awe and fear before him.
Nowadays,we also have a Haman who demands that we bow down to him. Our Haman is the Evil Inclination inside of us, which whispers in our ear, (or sometimes screams) that we shouldn’t do anything too Jewish.
“Why do you have to keep Shabbos?” he sneers.“Why do you have to check if food is kosher? Why do you have to say blessings, and dress modestly? Why can’t you be like everyone else?”
But even a young Jewish child knows what to answer back:
“Do you think, Yetzer Hora, that you are the first one who ever tried to harm our people.You’re not. Haman came before you. He was defeated, and the same thing will happen to you!”
“Hashem saved us then, and He will save us now.You will have a downfall, and the Jews will have joy and honor, happiness and rejoicing.”
This is too much for the Yetzer Hora to accept. He cannot take it that a Jewish child will stand up to him, and dare to be different. Even worse, that he or she will influence their friends that they too should be strong and not bow down or bend the knee.
This is a great victory.
When the Yetzer Hora sees that he has no hope, he just gives up, and stops trying to make trouble.
This helps Jews who are persecuted in other parts of the world too, because their enemies are also weakened and fall.
And so Purim becomes our great holiday, and we celebrate our victory with tremendous joy, knowing that we are Mordechai’s people, and that G-d is true, and His Torah is true.
And with this knowledge we get ready for the greatest of all victories, the end of galus (exile), and the end of all the Hamans,with our Redemption from exile, and the coming of Moshiach NOW!
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