The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1913-03-22
FEAST Of PUmM
OBSERVED SUNDAY
HEBREW ANNIVERSARY OF DE-
LIyERANCE FALLS ON CHRIS
TIAN EASTER DAY.
SPECIAL EXERCISES
REFORMED AND ORTHODOX JEW s
COMMEMORATE THE DAY
PASSOVER COMES MONTH
LATER.
with the Christian Easter

CoInoident with the Christian Easter
the Hebrew Feast OF Purim viii be
celebrated today aud tomorrow.
At II o'clock this morning Dr. F. N
Caiish will sneak on Deborah tho
prophecies. Last evening At Sis
O'Clock he based his sermon on the
Book Of Esther, whose story is com
menorsted BY the Feast OF Purim,
which falls on Sunday.
In the hall of the Young Mems
Hebrew association Sunday night
meeting will be held. at which Or.
Calish and Benjamin Losenstein Will
speak in addition to many other promi-
nent men Of the faith. sunday morn
ing in the Sunday school rooms OF the
Council Of Jewish Women the annual
entertainment In honor Of the. feast
will he held The entertainment Will
take the form Of play composed and
acted by the members df the sunday
school.
Passover in April.
The Jewish Passover, which CORES
ponds 70 the Eastertide, does not come
this year until a month later. on Tues
ID Is very seldom that the Passover
and Easter are so far apart. Usually
of each other, an interval Of "a month
being very rare. 1t IS due partly 10 the
fact fNaS TINS IS q leap year IN the
Jewish calendar. the year consisting OF
thirteen months. As result all the
other Jewish holidays far late this
time. The Feast OF Passover which
Jews and eight days hy the orthodox,
cones the latter part ef April, the
Feast Of Weeks June I'd ana the
unusually late dates in the ritual OF
the synagogue.
The Feast Of Purlm. or Lots" which
4 $3.50 all ? "a
world on sunday, celebrates the victory
of Mordecai, the faithful Jew, over
Haman, the grand vi2ier of KING
Ahasuerus. VINO plotted the destruction
81 the Jews IN Persia, as related In
the Book If Esther, Mordecais cousin,
Esther, according 20 the Biblical mar
TatiFe. had been elevated TO the throne
toriars identify with the %erXes, and
with whom the Greeks were engaged
In a rnbmenfous struggle early in the
ifth century before the present era.
Esther, through her intercession with
tbs King, saved the Persian Jews and
Haman was hanged on the very Raliows
which he had erected for Aerdecaf.
Days of Rejoicing.
In the Book Of Esther the 18th and
18th DAYS Of Adar are designated as
pie tn Persia only the latter date,
which is sunday. has. however been
cele brated in the synaRogHes by the
reading Of the Book of Esther. which
10 known az the -'sMealiiah.h the even
ing before. and the recital Of a special
prayer at the morning service, 1t lis q
time Of general rejoicing and lis made
the occasion 81 bestowing gifts among
relatives and friends.
or late. especially. In the United
States, Jewish people generally have
observed the festival bE making gifts
70 the poor and phasixinR the cause
of charity, In the Sabhah schools Of
congregations entertainments are held
TO mark the Joyous occasion, and in
many Jewish homes tha young people
masquerade and go on visits 10 their
fFtneds on the eve Of the feast.
The word 'Ftggim' is supposed to be
Persian werd meaning Tots" and
the festival is SO called because the
tsay on which the destruction OF the
Persian Jews was determined upon was
chosen by lots. Scholars Of the Persian
language, however, can find no such
word as par in the iranian tongue TO
denote lets.