Purim 5785 in the Bay Area

Purim is just around the corner! As ever, there is plenty going on in the Bay Area for this festive holiday. In these challenging times, it may feel particularly tough to seek out joy. Our Community Rabbi, Gray Myrseth, brought this except from an essay to a recent team learning about the Jewish month of Adar:

What happens if joy is not separate from pain?… Or even more to the point, what if joy is not only entangled with pain, or suffering, or sorrow, but is also what emerges from how we care for each other through those things? What if joy, instead of refuge or relief from heartbreak, is what effloresces from us as we help each other carry our heartbreaks?… 

My hunch is that joy, emerging from our common sorrow—which does not necessarily mean that we have the same sorrows, but that we, in common, sorrow—might draw us together. It might depolarize and de-atomize us enough that we can consider what, in common, we love.  And though attending to what we hate is too often all the rage (and it happens to be very big business), noticing what we love in common, and studying that, might help us survive. It’s why I think of joy, which gets us to love, as being a practice of survival. 

—Ross Gay, Inciting Joy

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We hope this text can provide some support and inspiration as you move deeper into Adar. Below is a brief ‘guide’ to observing this holiday, including events, resources, recipes, and more!

(If we missed your event, take two minutes to submit it!) Not sure where to go for Purim? We’d be happy to chat over coffee or virtually.

We can’t wait to see you out and about — Happy Purim! Chag Purim Sameach!

Events on the GatherBay Calendar

• Mar. 10, 5:00 pm, Creating with the Seasons: Adar – Holy Laughter with Sharoni Sibony
• Mar. 11, 7:00 pm, Purim Happy Hour with ENGAJ
• Mar. 12, 6:00 pm, The Jewish Studio Process: Purim Edition in Berkeley
• Mar. 13, 5:30 pm, Purim at The Kitchen in San Francisco
• Mar. 13, 7:00 pm, Urban Adamah Purim Megillah & Dance Party
• Mar. 13, 7:30 pm, Mission Minyan Purim Party
• Mar. 13, 9:00 pm, Purim at Madarae with MoHo Castro & Chabad SF YJP
• Mar. 14, 1:00 pm, Mission Minyan Megillah & Seudah
• Mar. 14, 4:00 pm, Purim Megillah Reading with Minyan Dafna & Netivot Shalom
• Mar. 14, 4:30 pm, Purim Megilah & Seudah with Base Bay
• Mar. 14, 8:00 pm, Purim Spiel MISS APOCALYPSE 5785 at Chochmat HaLev
• Mar. 15, 9;00 pm, Cloud9 & Safra present Purim
• Mar. 17, 5:00 pm, Creating with the Seasons: Adar – Holy Laughter with Sharoni Sibony

More Events

J has a round-up of a number of Purim events, particularly for folks with young families! They also include events on the Peninsula, South Bay, Contra Costa County, and beyond, so head to their guide if you’re looking for a celebration in those regions.

Purim Giving

There are four mitzvot (good deeds or commandments of religious duty) commonly associated with Purim, and two of them involve some form of giving: Matanot L’evyonim (gifts given to those in need) and Mishloach Manot (gifts given to friends and community members).

Our tradition says that we should give enough on Purim to provide a minimum of two meals to two needy people. There are so many worthy causes to give to, and we imagine you might already have some places in mind. For example, Congregation Netivot Shalom in Berkeley is inviting people to donate to the Alameda County Community Food Bank — you can do so here.

Food & Recipes

Around town: get the scoop on where to find hamantaschen and other Purim pastries from J.

At home: how to make hamantaschen

• Buttery Hamantaschen by Tori Avey
• Cardamom Scented Hamantaschen with Pear and Goat Cheese Filling by Pessy Haskelevich from Jamie Geller
• Filling Options For Your Gluten-Free Hamantaschen from Something Nutritious
• Gluten-Free, Low Sugar Hamantaschen by Aly Miller from The Nosher
• Joan Nathan’s Chosen Hamantaschen by Joan Nathan
• Puran Poli Hamantaschen by Rachel Kruge from Jewish&
• Red Bean Hamantaschen by Tobie Meyer-Fong from Jewish&
• Savory and Spicy Vegan Hamantaschen by Healy Slakman from Jewish&
• Savory Vegan Goat Cheese and Tomato Hamantaschen from 86 Eats

Purim Recipes That Aren’t Hamantaschen

• Fassoulyeh b’Chuderah by Adeena Sussman
• Minhag Purim Nunt from Kosher.com
• Pull-Apart Sweet Surprise Challah by Shannon Sarna from Jamie Geller
• Vegan Stuffed Cabbage for Purim by Linda LaRue

Resources & Readings

• Purim 101 from My Jewish Learning
• Must-Know Purim Words and Phrases from My Jewish Learning
• ‘Home for Purim’ Is the Queer Purim Movie I Wish Were Real by Rosa Escandón at Hey Alma
• Joyous Purim: Simple Actions for LGBTQ+ Belonging by Jay Smith from Keshet
• The Completely Correct and Only Guide to the Right Hamantaschen for your Zodiac Sign from Keshet
• The Four Mitzvot of Purim by Rabbi Becca Walker from Exploring Judaism
• The Story of Purim by Rabbi Robert Goodman at My Jewish Learning
• Triangle Foods for Purim That Aren’t Hamantaschen by Sara Lebow at Hey Alma
• What Queen Esther Taught Me by Talia Makowsky at Keshet, where Keshet has a robust list of resources
• Why Do Jews Send Mishloach Manot on Purim? by Rabbi Shmuel Herzfeld at My Jewish Learning

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Huge hat tip and gratitude to our sibling org, GatherDC, and their incredible Purim guide! A lot of what’s listed above is drawn from their site and we’re so grateful for their collaboration.

The views and opinions expressed by the organizations featured on this guide and on this website are solely those of the original organizations. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the organization GatherBay the GatherBay staff, the GatherBay board, and/or any/all contributors to this site.

Photo credit: Llanydd Lloyd on Unsplash