וַיַּעֲבֹר, מָרְדֳּכָי; וַיַּעַשׂ כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר-צִוְּתָה עָלָיו אֶסְתֵּר. וַיְהִי בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁלִישִׁי, וַתִּלְבַּשׁ אֶסְתֵּר מַלְכוּת, וַתַּעֲמֹד בַּחֲצַר בֵּית-הַמֶּלֶךְ הַפְּנִימִית
“So Mordechai went about [the city] and did just as Esther had commanded him. On the third day, Esther donned her stateliness and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace…”
—Esther 4:17-5:1
The Book of Esther, among many pleasant surprises, showcases remarkable transformations—not only for the title character, Esther, but also for her uncle, Mordechai.
Throughout the first chapters of the book, Mordechai directs the action. He enters Esther into the beauty contest. He discovers the plot of Bigtan and Teresh and reports it to the king. He even pressures the newly-crowned Queen Esther, into acting on behalf of the Jews.
However, once Esther assents to his demands, custody of the Jews’ fate quickly transfers from Mordechai’s hands to hers. She devises a plan, commands her uncle to play his part, and assumes her authority (donning her stateliness) before approaching the king. And Mordechai does as he is told, recognizing that the fate of the Jewish people—as well as the story being written—now belongs to a woman, and no longer to men.
The story of Purim asks us to find our voices—as Esther does—and lend them to the just and essential causes necessary to change the world for the better. However, the story of Purim also asks us to recognize when we must make room for other voices—as Mordechai does—and allow them to write the story, for the sake of us all. Because, as Mordechai recognizes, without those voices, our efforts to change the world are doomed to fail.
As we prepare to celebrate Purim—in the midst of Women’s History Month, no less—our tradition challenges us: How do we find our own voices and simultaneously create space for those voices—especially female voices—which, all too often, remain excluded from the conversation?
—Rabbi Josh Knobel