At the time of the giving of the Torah, the Jewish people rose to the level of Adam before the sin. How did they fall so quickly after that with cheit haegel (the sin of the golden calf)? The commentators explain that their intentions were not evil. They thought Moshe had died and that they had been left alone in the desert. Perhaps they reasoned that it was a question of life and death and that they could suspend Torah law to create an intermediary that would connect them with Hashem.

Shem Mishmuel points out that often people will sin with good motives, and that good intentions are never lost. Hashem takes them, purifies them and adds them to the sinner's credit. We see this with the story of the Korach rebellion. Hashem commanded Moshe to take the 250 fire pans that had been used for sin and fashion them into an iron plate to cover the altar. The 250 people desired to come closer to Hashem through the position of the kehuna gedola (high priest). They had a noble goal but their actions were wrong. They were punished, but the vessels they used were consecrated for the holy mishkan.

The Torah teaches that actions are more important than intentions. The ends do not justify the means. Whether one achieves one's goal or not doesn't matter so much, but the way we do it must be right. Nevertheless good intentions still count. Moshe burned the calf and mixed the ashes with water and had the Jews drink it. His intent was to destroy the Jews' evil deeds and retain their initial pure thoughts which had been to serve Hashem. Their good intentions were captured in the water and it saved them when they drank the potion. Those who were true sinners died.

Other religions downplay actions and upgrade intentions. Judaism teaches the opposite. Evil actions bear consequences. Yet if one's intentions are noble they are not lost.

Purim is a holiday of nes nistar (hidden miracles). A nes nistar is when Hashem intervenes and helps us, within the laws of nature. Megilat Esther does not tell of any supernatural miracles. In fact, Hashem's name is not found even once in the text. He is hidden in between the lines to show us that even when one cannot see Him He is there.

Both the Gra and the Malbim point out the seemingly coincidental occurrences in the megilah that were really veiled miracles.

In chapter one it says, "V'hashtiya kadat ein oness (The drinking was by law without force)." A major theme of the party was full freedom. It is therefore ironic that the king commanded Vashti to do something against her will. Hashem put into Achashevirosh's head to do this, so Esther would become the next queen.

After Vashti disobeyed the king and Achashevirosh asked his advisors what to do, Memuchan said that she should be killed and that a new royal edict should be issued. The official law of the land was that any court case involving the king had to be decided together with his advisors. Haman said to change this so the king could decide on his own. Nine years later, when Esther told Achashveirosh, "Haman wants to kill me," the king immediately ordered Haman executed. The Gra notes that Haman helped kill himself. If the law hadn't been changed, Achashveirosh may have calmed down after some time or Haman could have bribed the king's advisors.

After Achashveirosh killed Vashti, he sent out letters that every man should rule in his own home. This was another hidden miracle. It made Achashveirosh look foolish. When he sent out another letter to kill the Jews, the people waited and didn't jump to follow his order because they already knew not to take him seriously.

Haman's lottery fell on the 13^th of Adar, eleven and a half months later. This allowed the Jews time to repent and save themselves. Haman put his faith in mikreh (coincidence) but Hashem worked it out for the good of the Jews.

The tree Haman built was 50 amot tall. It could be seen throughout Shushan. After Achashveirosh came in furious from the garden, Charvona appeared and pointed to the tree where Haman planned to hang Mordechai. This set Achashveirosh off even more and he immediately ordered Haman killed. Haman had prepared his own gallows.

The ultimate nes nistar was the night Achashveirosh couldn't sleep. When the megilla says "Hamelech" it refers to Hashem, and at this point in the story it is read to the tune of the High Holidays services. Hashem wasn't sleeping. He was actively saving the Jews. On that very evening, Haman planned to get Achashveirosh's permission to kill Mordechai. The king's servants read him the story of how Mordechai saved the king, which happened nine years previous. Had he been rewarded earlier, things wouldn't have happened the way they did. The very second that Haman knocked to enter, the servants finished reading the tale.

"Vayomer Charvona echad min hasarasim (And Charvona, one of the advisors said)." The hey in hasarasim is a hey hayediah. The simple translation is that he was one of the known advisors, but this seems odd because he was never mentioned before. The Gra and the Malbim explain. At the end of the sixth chapter, the megilah says that while Haman and his family were talking, the king's advisors arrived. Charvona knew about the tree because he was one of the sarisim who barged in in in the middle of the discussion. Hashem timed it to the second so that Charvona would overhear.

The book of Nechemia tells how the king asked the prophet Nechemia why he looked sad. He replied that he was mourning for the ruins of Jerusalem. The king then gave permission for the Jews to rebuild the beit hamikdash. The Navi notes that the queen was sitting next to the king. Chazal say that the king was Daryavesh and the queen was his mother Esther. Daryavesh gave permission to rebuild the beit hamikdash because his mother advised him to.

The entire Purim story was part of Hashem's hidden master-plan to bring the redemption closer.

The Likute Maharan notes that there is a deep connection between Purim and Parshat Parah. Both are related to the root word pur, a lottery.

A lottery is something beyond understanding. Teshuva is beyond logic. In this world, if a person sins and confesses, his punishment may be lessened, but he is still penalized. But with repentance, if a person repents, not only are his sins erased, but they turn into merits. The kohen gadol's task on Yom Kippur was to bring down the awesome power of repentance by drawing lots. The lottery determined which goat would be sacrificed and which would be thrown off the cliff.

There are fifty levels of impurity and fifty levels of purity. The fiftieth level of holiness is keter, which was never revealed, except on Yom Kippur when the kohen gadol drew lots.

During the Babylonian exile, klal Yisrael sunk to the fiftieth level of impurity. They lost their Jewish identity. Amalek, the root of all impurity, represents this lowest level of evil. Their hatred of klal Yisrael was beyond logic. When the Jews sinned, they gave power to Amalek. We see that Haman, a low advisor, soared to the highest position in the royal court. He convinced the king to decimate the entire Jewish nation. Before he would follow through with his plan he devised a test. He encouraged Achasheveirosh to make a feast. It was optional, nobody was forced to eat or drink but the Jews came anyway. This was the proof Haman was waiting for. The Jews had sunk to the lowest level.

Mordechai understood that they needed to repent. He led the people in fasting and praying. Esther too cried out to Hashem, "Keili lama azvanti," (Hashem why have you abandoned us). Klal Yisrael were spiritually depleted. Esther beseeched Hashem, we are bereft of our Jewish identity, bring us back. Hashem accepted her heartfelt prayers and revealed to them the 50^th level of kedusha. He removed us from the point of no return and helped us regain our identity.

On the 13^th of Adar, the non-Jews opened the letter Achashveirosh had originally sent. They knew the Jews could defend themselves so they did not venture to fight them. Amalek, whose hatred is illogical fought anyway and the Jews defeated them. This great miracle revealed the 50^th level of holiness. As soon as Klal Yisrael repented, Haman fell.

Similarly, the whole process of the para aduma (red heifer) is beyond logic. If a person became spiritually contaminated, the kohen would purify him by sprinkling the ashes of the red heifer. But the kohen would then become impure. This teaches us that there is much more beyond human comprehension. When we are meritorious, Hashem reveals it to us.

Every year on Purim the great light of keter comes down. There is an incredible level of clarity and an understanding of who we are. Purim is greater than Yom Kipppur in some ways. Hashem gives us the capability to reach awesome heights. May we merit to utilize the day to the fullest.

Explore the four mitzvot of the day with your children. Memory games are fun, so are Guess Who games. Mention something in the Midrash such as "I did ___" and then describe an occurrence and have the children figure out who it was.

Involve your kids in the mitzva of matanot la'evyonim directly. Discuss the tzedaka stories with them. Help them visualize what would it be like to be poor. Would this person have thought he would be in such a situation five years before? Could this happen to anyone? What is the nisayon of a poor person and a rich person? What is the best way to give charity? What's the worst way? If you are giving away significant sums on Purim, you can set aside a small amount for your children to decide where it should go. If they have their own allowance money let them give some of it away with joy and empathy. Make the mitzva as endearing and fulfilling as possible.

At this age, shalach manot has a lot of social value. Whatever you can still say to little kids you can't say to kids this age. If they need to show off a bit and express themselves creatively, let them. You can try to make them think who needs to receive also. If the social pressure at this age is that you have to give to all of the girls in the class then your child has to conform. In most schools, everyone comes to school with one nice shalach manot and then the teacher randomly picks out names. In other schools, there's a cash limit on how much a student is allowed to spend. You should not make your kids be different because at this age it's so important for them to feel accepted and normal.

Be organized and do the shopping a week or two before Purim so you have time to do craft activities with your children. Help them be creative. You may want to look at crafts books or how-to articles. Have their shalach manot ready in a box early so they can decorate it in a relaxed atmosphere.

Going to shul for megilah is important. Try to get them to sit through the reading. Set limits on what they will do during Haman. You can't and shouldn't tell them not to bang. It's part of tradition. But you should let them know that it's important for the people in shul to hear every word and that they have to stop in time.

The drinking at the seudah won't be frightening for kids this age. They may actually enjoy it as long as you prepare them for it. It's a celebration of v'nahafoch hu. We're not getting drunk on Achashveirosh's wine, we are celebrating with Hashem. There should be happy music in the background. If the revelry causes material damage, remember it's Purim. Don't ruin it because of your personal frustration, regardless of what you think. You can feel distressed, but keep a grip on yourself. It's not worth losing the joy of the holiday.

With preteens and teenagers, talk about the miracles as much as you can before Purim. Try to engage them at the table. Discuss why anyone would want to be Achashveirosh. Ask them whether Haman would have been easily recognizable before he made his decrees? Talk about what happened to Queen Esther at the end and how Daryavesh, her son, gave permission to build the second beit hamikdash. Point out Hashem's hidden ways and how Purim is relevant to us in exile because we constantly experience veiled miracles. Kids can understand these ideas if you simplify it.

Be sure to make it clear before Purim that doing dangerous things is really listening to the voice of Achashveirosh and the voice of arrogance. This includes drunk driving, handling anything explosive or sharp, or giving people hard liquor when they think they are drinking something soft. Boys will be going around collecting for their respective yeshivot. They should understand that their role is to bring simcha to the homes they go to. They should be making their host feel good about the charity they are giving, not terrorizing them.

With older kids you need to plan the day beforehand. Don't let your boys wander around drunk. If there's a rabbi in the neighborhood who is willing to make a mesibah (festive gathering) for them, that's great. If not, give your husband the job.

Give your teenage girls a day plan too. Otherwise Purim becomes a drag for them as they watch the boys get drunk while they're stuck cleaning up the mess. Purim is a day for prayer. In the morning, take them with you to daven. If you are in Israel, go with them to the Kotel so they feel the spiritual essence of the day. Let them deliver shalach manot to their friends. When you arrive home for the seudah, everyone should be in a good mood. Fill the empty spaces in the afternoon with reading and discussing stimulating topics about the megilah or Purim.

May the pure simcha of this special day create lasting memories for your children.