The Jewish holiday of Purim begins at sunset, Saturday, March 23. At synagogues across the world, people will read the Book of Esther.

Amid that anxious reality, the Purim story seems as relevant as ever. The one-day festival commemorates the Jews' salvation from near destruction in ancient Persia about 2,300 years ago.

A child wearing a mask listens to a music show as Romania's Jewish community celebrates Purim at the Coral Temple synagogue in Bucharest, Romania, Monday, March 6, 2023. The Jewish holiday of ...

0 Photo Credit: David Cohen/Flash90. A “sofer” (Hebrew for “scribe”) writes the scroll of Esther for the Jewish holiday of Purim in the northern Israeli city of Safed on March 5, 2025.

What Purim means: The word means "lots" in Hebrew, and the term refers to a lottery that Haman, adviser to the Persian King Achashverosh, used to determine the date he would kill the Jews.

Some Jewish people honor Queen Esther's fasting and prayer period with a fast of their own during Purim. This year, those honoring the Purim fast (also called the Fast of Esther) will fast on ...

Purim, one of the most joyous Jewish holidays, will begin at sunset on Wednesday and continue Thursday. It commemorates the deliverance of the Jews from a massacre in the Persian empire and ...

1 of 4 Jewish men and children in Purim costumes celebrate in the Mea Shearim ultra-Orthodox neighbourhood in Jerusalem, on March 18, 2022. The Purim holiday is celebrated with parades and costume ...

What Purim means: The word means "lots" in Hebrew, and the term refers to a lottery that Haman, adviser to the Persian King Achashverosh, used to determine the date he would kill the Jews.

This story was published more than 1 year ago. The Jewish holiday of Purim begins at sunset, Saturday, March 23. At synagogues across the world, people will read the Book of Esther.