Machshava:

Purim 

Midrash:

Midrash Rabbah - Megilot 

Nach:

Esther 

Description

The reception of Megilat Esther as a canonical book was mired in controversy, as recorded in BT Megilah 7a. Beyond that, even after the full acceptance of the holiday and the text, attitudes towards the events celebrated on Purim and described in the Megilah were not viewed monolithically; within the world of the Talmud and Midrash there were divergent approaches as regards the miracles and impact of the events. In this shiur, we assay a few selected sources and suggest that the attitudes broke down along geographic lines. Sounds intriguing, no? Give it a listen...