The Meaning of Several Jewish Holidays

There are plenty of religious holidays that everyone is familiar with. We all know the meaning of Christmas, Easter, even Ash Wednesday, some even slightly understand Chanukah. There are a great deal of Jewish holidays that we don't understand or even simply know about. We know the holidays are of great significance to those of the Jewish faith, but why? Each holiday represents something different and is a way to remind Jews of certain aspects of their faith and how far their faith has come since the time of Moses and the Exodus. The holidays occur throughout the year and some coincide with each other while others don't. I don't fully understand them myself so, I ask forgiveness if I get some descriptions a little off.

The first holiday we'll look at is Purim, which will be March 21 of 2008. It is also known as the Fast of Ester." Purim is the day to remember when Ester risked her life to saved the Jews from execution. It was originally a three day holiday, but now is celebrated on the day that Haman wrote the decree to kill all the Jewish citizens. This fast is more lenient than some of the other fasting days. Pregnant and nursing women as well as those weak in health don't need to fast.