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Haman Is Alive And Well


                 After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him and giving him a seat of honor higher than that of all the other nobles. All the royal officials at the king’s gate knelt down and paid honor to Haman, for the king had commanded this concerning him. But Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor. Then the royal officials at the king’s gate asked Mordecai, “Why do you disobey the king’s command?” Day after day they spoke to him but he refused to comply. Therefore they told Haman about it to see whether Mordecai’s behavior would be tolerated, for he had told them he was a Jew. When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor, he was enraged.  (Esther 3:1-5) 

            Time passes. Suddenly, as most things Xerxes does in this story seem to happen suddenly, Xerxes decides that Haman the Agagite is his main man. According to Jewish tradition, Haman was the descendant of the Amalekite king, Agag, one of Israel’s enemies during the time of Saul. That enmity was just a continuation of the struggle between Israel and Amalek going back to the time of Joshua (at least.)
            Xerxes had commanded that all people should bow down to Haman and he was enjoying his time in the sun tremendously, until officials at the king’s gate reported that there was one guy who wasn’t with the program. My first question: Why was it necessary for Haman to be informed? Didn’t he see this infringement himself? Second question: why did the officials report it? Could it be as revenge for Mordecai turning the would-be assassins in? Eventually, he saw for himself that Mordecai could not be intimidated, He was enraged. Not just angry – think road rage.
            I don’t have answers. What I do have is yet another timely parallel. The officials of the land have declared, this group of people is to be granted the status they have coveted. When we, the people of the land, encounter them, the government has decreed that we bow down to their wishes with regard to treatment of them. There have been more than one of these groups, but the response is the same. When a group of people refuses to bow, when one says, “I’m sorry, I can’t bake that cake” or take the photographs, or perform the ceremony, or host the ceremony, or whatever form the not bowing down takes, the group denied the honor from that one person, or that group is enraged.
            Sadly, Haman is alive and well and living in the United States, and while I may not yet be Mordecai, I stand with those who are.

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