Queen Esther, seized with mortal anguish, had recourse to the LORD. By a happy coincidence, or actually we should call it a providence, on the day when the Lenten reading of the Church mentions Queen Esther is the Feast of Purim on the Jewish calendar. Purim is the festival which recalls that it was Queen Esther’s courage and fidelity that saved God’s people from a pogrom. It is a day of great rejoicing for Jews — kind of a version of Halloween with costumes and fun food and lots of noise. The providence part: today we can feel like the world is going to hell in a handbasket. The story of Queen Esther serves as a reminder that God isn’t finished, that God continues to work at salvation. We remember the stories of God’s providential care in the past to give us hope in the present. As a song in Fiddler on the Roof puts it: “God would want us to be joyful even when our hearts lie panting on the floor. How much more can we be joyful when there’s really something to be joyful for.”
