From Haman to Tehran: In the Shadow of Persia |
As we approach Purim, the Jewish calendar brings us back to a story that feels less like distant history and more like a recurring pattern.
The Megillat Esther tells of Haman, royal advisor to King Ahasuerus, who persuades the king to authorize the extermination of the Jews throughout the Persian Empire. His fury is triggered by one man: Mordechai the Jew, who refuses to bow.
Everyone else bows. Mordechai does not.
That refusal becomes the catalyst for one of the greatest reversals in Jewish history. Queen Esther, who has concealed her Jewish identity, reveals herself and exposes Haman’s genocidal decree. The gallows prepared for Mordechai become the instrument of Haman’s own downfall.
V’nahafoch hu — it was reversed.
Purim is not fantasy. It is a memory. And its themes echo across centuries.
For decades, Iran’s Supreme Leader elevated Israel’s destruction into doctrine. Iran shares no border with Israel, yet the regime invested........