On every Purim, Jews gather
to hear the reading of the Megillat
Esther, the biblical Book of Esther. For
us it is a joyous holiday full of sharing
good food, acts of charity, fun, and song.
This film shows a few short sections of
Rabbi Uriel Rivkin's reading (which really
means singing in the traditional melody)
the whole Megillah. This takes about a
half an hour to do in total. The clips
show three distinct customs of this
reading. The first is the best known, the
drowning out of the "Hamen," the name of
the story's principal villain. We also see
the custom of reciting all ten of Haman's
sons on only one breath. Also, we see the
lifting of the hand written scroll when
the end of the text refers to its writing.
A big Yasher Koiach to Rabbi Rivkin who
sang the Megillah after having lained the
Torah and led Shabbos Musaf earlier in the
day. Being a Rabbi is a full time job!
