Not the “Gontzeh Megillah”



 

Let’s get ahead of the curve. Although Purim will be celebrated on Wed. –Thur. March 7-8, we need some extra preparation time this year. “Why?, you may ask. Because this year, you will have the opportunity to read from the Scroll of Esther.

Don’t stop reading and say “this is not for me!” Let me explain.

Do you know what the Yiddish expression “De Gontzeh Megillah” means?

Literally, it means “the whole/entire Megillah, usually referring to the “Scroll of Esther” which we read twice on the holiday of Purim. This expression is often used in the sense of “Don’t tell me the “Gontzeh Megillah”, in other words, the full blow-by-blow story. Just give me the Reader’s Digest version of the story.

So, if you ever wanted to read from the Megillah but found it too daunting a challenge, this year you will have the opportunity to learn one or two verses (or more) with the Rabbi, and perform it at our communal reading on Wed. night or at the Religious School’s children's Megillah reading on Sun. March 11th, as part of our Purim Carnival and celebration.

Please let me know if you are game. I will meet with you and/or send you an audio file with a copy of your verse to memorize.

How wonderful would it be if we got many volunteers to communally read the Megillah! (For any over-achievers out there, you could undertake to read the Ten Sons of Haman. Only ten words or so –but you have to read them in ONE breath!)

“Not the Gontzeh Megillah” is a good lesson to adopt for our everyday lives. Don’t be intimidated by a large, challenging task. Take it step by step. By experiencing new opportunities incrementally, one overcomes the hesitation and anxiety of breaking new ground in many areas of human endeavor.

RABBI Shmuel Mann