Megillat Esther

Transcription

Megillat Esther

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Judaic Studies Lesson Plan
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The Lookstein Center
By Moshe Abelesz for The Lookstein Center, 2003
‫אילן‬-‫ אוניברסיטת בר‬,‫בית הספר לחינוך‬
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School of Education, Bar-Ilan University
Megillat Esther
Repairing Sha’ul’s mistake
Teacher’s Guide
Student Worksheets
Teacher’s Guide
Introduction
Most children equate Haman with Amalek, for that is what they have been taught, based
on traditional non-Biblical sources. Yet not once in Megillat Esther is Haman referred to
as an Amaleki.
In contrast, children cannot trace Mordechai’s ancestry to Sha’ul, even though the author
goes out of her (according to tradition, the core of Megillat Esther was written by Esther
herself) way to stress it.
In this lesson we will trace back both Mordechai’s and Haman’s ancestry and we will see
that their battle mirrors the battle fought by both their ancestors many centuries
previously. Even though the result remains the same (i.e. victory to Israel), subtle
differences allow Mordechai’s victory to be more permanent.
In order to understand this lesson, students will need to know some background
information:
a) The divisions of the Kingdoms of Yehuda and Israel.
b) That the tribe of Benyamin sided and assimilated into the Kingdom of Yehuda.
c) The story of Pilegesh BeGiva – how the few Benyamin survivors of the civil
war between Benyamin and the rest of Israel married with the residents of Yavesh
Gilad.
It is possible to explain this background before or during the course of the lesson, but it
would be far more beneficial if the students have studied this material previously.
As well as the objectives on the student worksheet, the teacher should be aware of the
following objectives:
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Content: Students will be able to describe:
1. The ancestry of the main characters in Megillat Esther:
a) The ancestry of Mordechai – including the history of Yavesh Gilad.
b) The ancestry of Haman.
2. The battle between Sha’ul and Amalek:
a) How Sha’ul succeeded.
b) How Sha’ul failed.
3. The battle between Mordechai and Haman:
a) How the battle compares to Sha’ul’s battle.
b) How it differs to Shau’l’s battle.
Skills: Students will be able to:
1. Examine and analyze Biblical text.
2. Compare texts from different Biblical sources.
3. Find sources in different texts.
4. Use a concordance.
Values: Students will be able to appreciate:
1. How Israel’s history seems to have a Divine design to it.
2. How one generation can correct the errors of a previous generation.
Suggested Answer to Question 1
a) (i) Ish Yehudi – a man from the tribe of Yehuda. (ii) Ish Yemini – a man from the tribe
of Benyamin.
b) Yehuda and Benyamin were separate tribes. How was it possible for Mordechai to
belong to both?
c) You will need to explain some history to those students who are unaware of the
background:
After King Shlomo’s death, ten tribes split away from the ruling tribe, Yehuda, to form a
separate country: The Kingdom of Israel or the Northern Kingdom. The tribe of
Benyamin remained loyal to Yehuda. Together they formed the Kingdom of Yehuda or
the Southern Kingdom (it may be useful for you to use a basic map to demonstrate this
distinction).
The Kingdom of Israel was eventually destroyed and its inhabitants exiled. (They have
now known as the Ten Lost Tribes and their whereabouts are unknown.) The people of
Benyamin assimilated with its dominant partner: Yehuda. Eventually, all the inhabitants
of the Southern Kingdom became known as Yehudim (Jews), irrespective as to their
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origin. This can be compared to Leviim, who do not originate from the tribe of Yehuda,
but are nevertheless, also called Yehudim.
The author emphasized that although Mordechai was a Yehuda national, his ancestry
stemmed from the tribe of Benyamin.
Suggested answer for Question 2
a) Yair
b) Shimi
c) Kish
You should mention that it is possible the author was just mentioning Mordechai’s father,
grandfather and great grandfather by way of general introduction. However, basic
research refutes this claim: these figures are noted in the Tanakh for being heroes of
Benyamin ancestry. It is more likely, then, that the author was trying to associate
Mordechai with these heroes to show that Mordechai was of noble blood.
It is therefore incumbent upon us to learn more about these people.
Questions 3–5 provide an excellent way to introduce your students to a concordance and
demonstrate its value. You should explain the purpose of a concordance and how it is
used. If you have enough copies, ask your students to look up the names “Yair”, “Shimi”
and “Kish” in the concordance, so that they can find the references on their own. You
may prefer to send them to the library to research this work. If there are not enough
copies, the appendix at the end of this guide contains a scanned copy of most of the
relevant pages.
a) Yair was known as Yair HaGiladi (Yair from the Gilad). This was the area of land on
the trans Jordan that was inhabited by half the tribe of Menashe.
b) Early on in Israel’s history, the tribe of Benyamin was almost destroyed completely in
a civil war. In their anger against Benyamin, the other tribes swore not to allow their
daughters to marry the six hundred surviving men. The people of Yavesh Gilad however,
did not make this oath, nor did they fight against Benyamin, and therefore, permitted
intermarriage. This guaranteed Benyamin’s survival.
NB: Sha’ul’s first act as king was to defend the inhabitants of Yavesh Gilad from the
threat of Nachash HaAmoni. It is possible that Sha’ul determined to fight such a risky
battle as he considered the Giladim to be family (see Samuel I Ch.11).
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The ancestors of Gilad were also the ancestors of Benyamin. Yair remains a hero for the
tribe of Benyamin as well as the people of Gilad.
Suggested Answer for Question 4
a) Shimi was from the tribe of Benyamin and was the only surviving relative of Sha’ul.
He was the next in line to the throne and would have been king had David not taken it
away from Sha’ul.
b & c) Shimi considered David the murderer of Sha’ul’s whole family so that he would
not have any challengers to the throne. When David was dethroned by his son Avshalom
and was retreating from Jerusalem, Shimi took the opportunity to vent his anger against
David, by stoning, cursing and calling him “the man with blood on his hands.”
Kish was Sha’ul’s father, from the tribe of Benyamin.
The author seems to be going out of his/her way to associate Mordechai with Sha’ul’s
royal blood. The students may ask why the author did not say this explicitly.
The story of Megillat Esther was written around four hundred years after Sha’ul’s death
and the exile of the Jews to Persia. It is possible that the author relied on tradition, rather
than direct evidence, given the time discrepancy between the two events. Rather than
write something that could not be proven and that could potentially stir up criticism, the
author instead hinted at Mordechai’s ancestry, which only the learned understood.
It should be noted that Megillat Esther comes from the Ketuvim section of the Tanakh,
not the Nevi’im section. That is, even though the author was undoubtedly a great scholar
who was religiously inspired, s/he was not a prophet who could corroborate all facts
through prophecy.
Now that we have examined Mordechai’s ancestry, we will examine Haman’s.
a) Hamedata
b) The Aaggi.
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Agag was the name of the Amalekite king, whom Sha’ul defeated and brought home in
chains. Note: while Shmuel preached that Sha’ul made a terrible mistake by not slaying
Agag immediately and confiscating their cattle, militarily and in the eyes of the people,
the war against Amalek was a tremendous success. What bigger sign of victory can there
be when all the enemy’s wealth has been confiscated and their king captured and brought
before the victor tied up in chains?!
Hamedata may have well-known character for whom we no longer have any records. You
may point out that we have lost many ancient books mentioned in the Tanakh, such as
Sefer Milchamot Hashem (Numbers 21:14), Sefer HaYashar (Joshua 10:13) and even
Divrei HaYamim LeMalchut Paras Umadai (Megillat Esther 2:23).
Despite this drawback, we can still conclude that the author is associating Haman with
Amalek. Perhaps s/he does not say it explicitly because there is no direct proof. Or, it is
possible that Haman displayed certain characteristics of blind hatred towards Jews
including the desire for their physical annihilation, and this indicates that he was either
the physical descendant of Amalek or a spiritual heir. This would be similar to the way
Nazis are considered the descendants of Amalek, even though there is no chronological
evidence to this claim.
a) Both these battles are attempts at total annihilation of the enemy.
b) Sha’ul was forbidden to take from the spoils of war, but he did anyway. Mordechai
was permitted to take from the spoils of war, yet he he did not.
Mordechai is associated as being the descendant of Sha’ul, while Haman is seen as being
the heir to Amalek. They seemed to have played out the same battle that their ancestors
fought. This time however, Mordechai, corrects the mistake of his ancestor, by not taking
from the spoils of war.
Sha’ul’s battle with Amalek is the haftorah for Shabbat Zachor, the Shabbat before
Purim.
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Appendix
‫מהקונקורדנציה חדשה לתורה נביאים וכתובים‬
1986 ,‫ירושלים הוצאת "קרית ספר" בע"מ‬
‫שושן‬-‫בעריכת אברהם אבן‬
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Worksheet
Name: _________________
Megillat Esther
Repairing Sha’ul’s mistake
Traditionally, Haman’s ancestry is traced back to Amalek. In this lesson we will trace the
ancestry of both Haman and Mordechai. By doing so we will see that their battle against
Haman, mirrors the battle fought by both their ancestors many centuries previously.
Your objectives for this session are to:
a) Investigate Mordechai’s ancestry.
b) Investigate Haman’s ancestry.
c) Investigate the battle between Sha’ul and Amalek.
d) Examine the similarities and differences between their battles.
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1. Examine Megillat Esther 2:5. Mordechai is described with two adjectives, one at the
beginning of the verse, the other at the end.
a) What are the adjectives?
b) What problem is there with both these adjectives? Explain
c) Explain how we can resolve this problem?
a)(i)__________________________
(ii)_________________________________
b)______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
c)______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. According to the text, who were Mordechai’s ancestors?
a)___________________
b)__________________
c)___________________
We will now examine this further.
3. Yair – Who was he? Read Judges 10:3-4 and answer the following questions:
a) Which region of the country was Yair from?
b) How was it possible for Yair to be an ancestor of Benyamin? (See Judges 21).
a)______________________________________________________________________
b)______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
4. Shimi – Who was he? Read Samuel II 16:5-13 and answer the following questions:
a) Who was Shimi related to? What tribe was he from?
b) What did Shimi do to David?
c) Why did he do it? Explain your answer.
a)___________________________________________________________________
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b)___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
c)___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
5. Kish – Who was he and what tribe was he from? See Samuel I Ch. 9.
________________________________________________________________________
6. Using the information you have understood above, explain the conclusions that can be
drawn from Mordechai’s ancestry.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
We will now examine Haman’s ancestry.
7. Read Megillat Esther 3:1. Who were Haman’s ancestors?
a)______________________________
b)__________________________________
8. Who was Aggagi? Read Samuel I 15: 8-9, 32-33.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
9. We have no other source with the name Hamedata. What conclusions can we draw
from this information? Explain.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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10. Compare Samuel I 15:3, 8-9 to Megillat Esther 8:11, 9:10.
a) How do both these battles compare? Explain.
b) How do both these battles differ? Explain.
a)______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
b)______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
11. What conclusions can we draw from Megillat Esther? Explain your answer.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Chag sameach!

Megillat Esther

Transcription

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