PURIM HOLIDAY A JOY FOR CHILDREN ESTHER'S STORY ABOUT SURVIVAL.

Byline: Holly Andres Staff Writer

NEWHALL - It's a children's holiday. It's a time for adults to act like children. It's a time to make a lot of noise. The Jewish festival of Purim will begin at sundown Thursday.

``Purim is an opportunity to be joyous. It's really considered a commandment to have fun on Purim,'' said Rabbi Mark Blazer of Temple Beth Ami in Newhall. ``But it's also the least provable, the least factual holiday, but the most true.''

The story of Purim is found in the Book of Esther. It's a story of the triumph of good over evil and celebrated annually on the 14th of Adar on the Hebrew calendar.

Esther, a beauty contest winner, becomes the queen in the Persian kingdom of Shushan. Her cousin Mordecai hears of a plot to kill all the Jews in the kingdom. Using her cousin's advice and by wining and dining her husband, King Ahasuerus, Esther foils the plan. Haman, the villain in the story, is killed instead of the Jews.

During the dramatic retelling of the tale at a Purim service, the name of the anti-Semitic Haman is drowned out by hissing, booing and the noise from a gragger, the traditional Purim noisemaker.

``Purim tells the story of a Jewish culture resisting assimilation. The Jews were close to being destroyed in the story,'' Blazer said.

``Jews are still dealing with the same tension of assimilation. Purim is still relevant for Jews because there is still a tension here of being a minority group. There is the tension between wanting to assimilate totally or resist.''

Attending a Purim service is a very different experience from other temple services during the year. Besides the noise, children and adults are encouraged to wear costumes or masks. All the traditional rules during a temple service go out the window, Blazer said.

Few things are sacred at a Purim service. Students dress up as their rabbi. The rabbi dresses up as a leprechaun or a superhero. Men dress up as women and vice versa.

``I remember we were instructed to make as much noise as we could,'' said Bill Nach, who attended an Orthodox synagogue in West Virginia when he was growing up and is now a member of the Reform congregation Temple Beth Ami.

``A friend of mine brought in a cow bell to use whenever Haman's name was read, and he was allowed to use it. We used to write Haman's name in chalk on the bottom of our shoes. When the name was read we would stomp our feet to drown out his name and rub out his name.''

When Dov Hack was growing up in Israel he looked forward to dressing up in a costume.

``I remember a cowboy costume when I was about 6 years old. You wear a costume or a mask because you're not supposed to be yourself on Purim,'' said Hack, a Hebrew teacher at Temple Beth Ami.

He added, ``It is a joyful holiday there. To me, Purim means standing up for your faith and celebrating heroism.''

Blazer explained it this way: ``I think one of the reasons is it is a humorous response to the frightening element of the story: the total destruction of the Jewish population. Sometimes impending tragedy sparks a humorous response. The laughter and the fun alleviates the tension.''

The only religious obligation on Purim is to listen to a reading of the megillah, or scroll, of Esther. It is customary to give to charity and also to give a gift of food to at least two people.

Hamantaschen, a Purim cookie with a poppy seed or fruit filling, is the most common treat to give. The cookie is shaped to resemble Haman's three-cornered hat. The cookie is called osni Haman, or Haman's ears, in Israel.

``I think Purim expresses the endurance of the Jewish people over tyrants. And we've had many tyrants in our history. It commemorates a time when Jews survived,'' Nach said.

A Purim carnival will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. A Purim service will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday. Temple Beth Ami, 23023 Hilse Lane, Newhall. Call [phone].

LOCAL PURIM EVENTS

Temple Aliyah, 6025 Valley Circle Blvd., Woodland Hills. A Purim carnival will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Rain date March 11. Call [phone].

A carnival will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at Temple Beth Ami, 23023 Hilse Lane, Newhall. Call [phone].

Chabad of the Conejo will celebrate Purim with a family festival at 7 p.m. Thursday. The festival will include a reading of the megillah of Esther. Children and adults are asked to come in costume. Admission $4 per person or $15 per family. The event will be held at the Hyatt Westlake Plaza Hotel, 880 S. Westlake Blvd., Westlake Village. A Purim service, with a reading of the megillah, will be held at 9 a.m. Friday. The service will be held at Conejo Jewish Academy, 30345 Canwood St., Agoura Hills. Call [phone].

A Purim family service, with a megillah reading, will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday. A bring-your-own picnic dinner will be held at 6 p.m. preceding the service; children's activities begin at 6:30 p.m. Temple Beth Torah, 16651 Rinaldi St., Granada Hills. Call [phone].

Kol Tikvah Temple, 20400 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills. The megillah will be read during the Shabbat service at 7 p.m. Friday. Call [phone].

A carnival presented by Kol Tikvah Temple of Woodland Hills, will be held from noon to 11 p.m. March 10; noon to 11 p.m. March 11. The event will be held in the parking lot of Taft High School, 5461 Winnetka Ave., Woodland Hills. Call [phone].

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

Rabbi Mark Blazer and the children of Temple Beth Ami in Newhall prepare to celebrate the Purim holiday on Thursday.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News

Box: LOCAL PURIM EVENTS (See text)