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Thought for the Day: The Obligation of Women Regarding M'gilas Esther is the Obligation of Royalty

As is very well known, women are not obligated in time bound positive mitzvos. As is also well know, there are three notable exceptions: Shabbos, Pesach, and Purim. As usual, just because things have a similar structure, it doesn't mean they have the same underlying reason(s).

Women keep the once weekly mitzvos of Shabbos because the mitzvah of Shabbos was expressed in one edition of the עשרת הדיברות as "don't transgress" and in the other edition as "keep/guard/protect/do". We learn from the double expression that anyone who is obligated to not transgress -- all Jews, men and women -- is also obligated to keep/guard/protect/do -- all Jews, men and women. It is basically a technicality of the way the mitzvah was presented to us.

The once annual mitzvos of the Pesach and Purim is because אף הן היו באותו הנס/they (f.) were also part of the miracle. Not a technicality in halacha, but a logical imperative. That being the case, one may ask why women have a different obligation regarding M'gilas Esther than men do -- Men have an obligation to read the m'gilah, women have an obligation to hear the m'gilah. That difference has an important halachic ramification. Whereas men can fulfill their obligation by hearing another man read based on two halachic principles: (1) all Jews are guarantors for each other, (2) hearing is the same as saying. But women don't have the obligation to read, so they should not for men (who have a different obligation) nor even for other women, nor even a woman for herself -- she should hear M'gilas Esther from a man. (See discussion and details in Mishna Brura and Bi'ur Halacha to תרפ''ט/689.)

Seems strange, no? Especially since not only אף הן היו באותו הנס; but the Esther was the the star of that miracle! I saw an incredible idea to explain this from R' Chaim Tzvi Hollander, z''tzl. I did not have the merit to hear it from him directly, but just saw it in a sefer he wrote -- זבח משפחה -- that I did have the merit to receive directly from R' Hollander.

Suggests R' Hollander, it is not strange that women have a different obligation, especially given that Queen Esther was the star of that miracle. Just the opposite: It is because Esther was the queen and women today are standing has her representatives that men have an obligation to read the m'gila to them -- royalty -- as we see from Achashverosh himself -- do not read the national chronicles; they are have scribes who reads to them. Isn't that cool?! Women are so important to this miracle that we stand before them to read the history to them, as scribes reading to royalty.

Interestingly, maybe our (ie, men's) participation in Purim is because אף הם היו באותו הנס!

A freiliche Purim!

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