The Ba’ale Ha-Kabbalah discovered mystical associations between Purim and Yom Kippurim, the only difference in Hebrew spelling between the two names being an initial kaf in Kippurim. Yom Kippurim then, would mean “a day like Purim.” This is no doubt a strange association. To suggest that Yom Kippur is like Purim is a most unusual way of looking to this awesome day.
What is the possible meaning behind this observation?
The Talmud (Shabbat 88a), in its discussion of the revelation at Sinai, makes us aware of a theological problem. As is well known, our ancestors have been praised for their spontaneous outburst when they declared that they would observe the mitzvot even before they had an understanding of what this would consist of. Their proclamation of “Na’ase” (we shall do) before “Nishma” (we shall listen) has been viewed as one of the highest levels of religious devotion.
Still, our Talmudic passage draws our attention to the fact that this devotion had a parallel in the way the Jews behaved in the days of Purim. Towards the end of the Book of Esther, we are told that after their miraculous deliverance from the “final solution” devised by the architects of the Persian genocide program, the Jews accepted upon themselves the observance of Purim for ever after. “Kiymu ve’kiblu,” “the Jews confirmed and took on themselves” and their children after them to observe these two days of Purim. Logic would dictate here as well that the two key words should be in the reverse order. First, they should have “taken” (kiblu) this day of Purim on themselves, and then they should have “confirmed” (kiymu) it by actually observing Purim. It is probably because of this inversion of the proper order in the verse that our rabbis read a special meaning in this phrase.
When the Lord revealed his Torah at Sinai, they tell us, He lifted up the mountain and held it over the heads of the Israelites, gathered below, as if it were a cask, and He said to them, “If you accept the Torah good and well; but if not, I shall drop the mountain on your heads and there shall be your burial place.” The rabbis then proceed to draw the conclusion that the Israelites were coerced into accepting the Torah. Rabbi Aha ben Yaacov argued that if this is the case, then “moda’a raba l’oraita” – this becomes a strong protest against the obligatory nature of the Torah. It is giving notice to God, that although the Torah is meant to be a binding contract between God and Israel, a contract signed under duress is invalid. Thus, the Jewish people could argue that it was not really bound by the Torah’s requirements.
Nevertheless, Rava adds, the Israelites reaffirmed the Torah voluntarily in the days which Purim commemorates, upon which it is written, “kiymu vekiblu,” that the Israelites confirmed and then accepted which means: “kiymu mah she’kiblu kevar.” After the Purim incident the Israelites confirmed what they long ago had accepted. That is, now after their deliverance from Haman they confirmed their voluntary acceptance of the Torah which they were first forced to accept at Sinai.
There is a deep theological and psychological insight behind this unusual Talmudic passage. A moral act is only authentic when it issues out of genuine freedom of choice. The Torah is only meaningful when the human being is free in accepting it. “I have set before you this day life and good and death and evil….and you shall choose life.” (Devarim 30:15-19)
According to Jewish law, a person cannot be held responsible for an act which he was forced to do. In such a case, a person acted under compulsion and is not guilty. This is first of all true when one is forced to do evil or to transgress a prohibition, such as under physical or mental distress.
But responsibility is also in abeyance when one has encountered a most unusual religious experience, such as the sudden occurrence of an angel who gives a commandment to perform a mitzva. In such a case, one cannot claim that one should be credited for such an act. After all, one was forced into this mitzva, due to an unprecedented angelic vision.
This was indeed the problem at the time of the theophany at Sinai. The Israelites had no choice but to accept the Torah. This full confrontation with God had elevated them to such an extent that they were totally robbed of their freedom of will. Clearly this is the meaning of the statement of the rabbis that God held the mountain over them. They had no choice but to accept it.
What this means is that human freedom is only applicable when one is neither forced into evil nor overwhelmed by an unprecedented religious experience. Compulsion and freedom are mutually exclusive. So, where then is human free will to be found? It seems that it is “neither here nor there”—only when one is not forced one way or the other. When things are normal, and the world runs its course, and God is neither too much here nor too much absent, only then do we have true choice.[1]
The Purim story stands for this very principle. In those days there were no open miracles that would reveal God to such an extent that the Jews lost their freedom to choose. Neither was it a time when God was totally absent, which might cause them to deny His existence. The victory of the Jews over Haman and the frustration of his nefarious plot was a triumph which nobody had really expected nor completely denied. It is only in such conditions that humans can make a choice. Hence, in turning to God and accepting the Torah, this was a genuine and binding commitment, kiymu vekiblu, they confirmed what they had agreed on before and took it on themselves.
It is this thought which makes us to understand the reason behind the Sages’ belief that Yom Kippurim is a day like Purim. Yom Kippur has meaning as a day of atonement only when we live in Purim-like conditions. Only in a situation where God’s providence is not too much revealed, nor too much absent can we claim merit for our good deeds. Any other situation would make Yom Kippur impossible. If our last year was spent in a continuity of open miracles, we would be forced to live a life of righteousness. And had the whole year passed with an overwhelming feeling that God had left us altogether, we would have believed that this world has no purpose, and that our moral standards are self-created. Yom Kippur would be a farce. Only in a case such as Purim are we able to confront our responsibilities in an even-handed way.
It is for this reason that Yom Kippurim is a day like Purim.
[1] See also Norman Lamm, Neither here nor there, The Royal Reach Feldheim, NY,1970.
Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo
Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo is the Founder and Dean of the David Cardozo Academy and the Bet Midrash of Avraham Avinu in Jerusalem. A sought-after lecturer on the international stage for both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences, Rabbi Cardozo is the author of 13 books and numerous articles in both English and Hebrew. He heads a Think Tank focused on finding new Halachic and philosophical approaches to dealing with the crisis of religion and identity amongst Jews and the Jewish State of Israel. Hailing from the Netherlands, Rabbi Cardozo is known for his original and often fearlessly controversial insights into Judaism. His ideas are widely debated on an international level on social media, blogs, books and other forums.
