Love doesn’t have to be loud!
When Haman draws lots to decide when to kill the Jewish people, they fall on the month of Adar, and it was specifically this month that was his downfall. The month of Adar is a month of good fortune for the Jewish people.
What is so special about Adar?
In the month of Nissan, the month in which we celebrate Pesach, there were many open miracles which happened. The ten plagues, the splitting of the sea, and all of this leading up to the sound and light show that was the giving of the Torah at Sinai. These open miracles help us to establish our faith in God. The festival of Purim however is not about faith, there were no open miracles, everything was hidden. Purim is about love.
God shows his love for the Jewish people not via open miracles but through hidden ones. Even during times when it would seem as if He has turned his back on us, we must remember that in truth He has a deep love for us, and is planning our redemption.
Similarly, when it comes to loving other human beings, we have to realise that the main fostering of loving your fellow man is not running around and starting campaigns. Rather, love is expressed through thinking about people, caring, being sensitive about what you don’t do or say in front of them, praying for others. All of this can and perhaps should be done without them ever knowing.
We live in a world where people broadcast everything about themselves and their lives. However, the true test of how much you love someone is not through spectacular gestures or even lavish gifts, it is in the small quiet things. The true test is what we do without people knowing, the fact that we think about people and do things for them just because we care.
Rabbi Chaim Shmulevitz, the legendary head of the Mir Yeshiva used to say that everyone should make time to help others. He explained that this does not just apply to helping people in a loud and obvious way, so that we receive recognition and thanks for our help. Rather, we should also think about what we can do to help other people without them noticing. This is how God shows His love to the Jewish people, especially in the month of Adar.
Let us use this month to do something quietly for someone we love, without them knowing, just because we care.
