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Esther
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From the late nineteenth century onwards, several scholars explored the theory that the Book of Esther actually was a myth related to the spring festival of Purim which may have had a mixed West-Semitic/Akkadian/Canaanite origin. According to this interpretation the tale celebrates the triumph of the Babylonian deities Marduk and Ishtar over the deities of Elam or more likely the renewal of life in the spring and the casting out of the scapegoat of the old year. Although this view is not widely held by the religious scholars today, it remains well known. It is explored in depth in the works of Theodor Gaster.
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Many of Esther's stories are about history or nature. Esther says her awareness of her family in history is a process that continues to this day. The themes of her books, especially the Lemon Tree Series, arise out of her fascination with the stories and mental snapshots from her family's past." For instance, the greenhouses, the windmill, the big and little houses, and the flower gardens in the Katie book were modeled after those on her grandfather's homestead. The fictional lemon tree grew out of a real lemon tree grown by Esther's great-grandmother in the greenhouses. The triplet babies in the Virginia book, the redemptioner in the Elisabeth book, — all were borrowed by Esther's imagination from the realia of the past.
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How special Esther must have felt! She had no idea at this point that she would become the savior of her people. She didn't have a clue what would be happening in her life, but she did know that she was chosen by the king, and the love he immediately felt for her must have been evident in her eyes.
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This story begins in rural Montana where Esther Elizabeth Reed spent her childhood. Esther was the youngest of eight children and showed promise as an above average student. Esther loved to debate and thrived on her high school speech team. Unfortunately Esther took her parents divorce hard and she dropped out of school her sophomore year.
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Though Esther Baxter's still known mostly for her work in music videos, Esther Baxter has recently started branching out by participating in photo shoots for hip-hop magazines and producing her own calendar. That Esther Baxter's got a humble, down-to-earth quality about Esther Baxter's only adds to her allure, and it's clear that Esther Baxter's going to be around long after her looks start to fade.
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In view of all the evidence the authority of the Book of Esther as a historical record must be definitely rejected. Its position in the canon among the Hagiographa or "Ketubim" is the only thing which has induced Orthodox scholars to defend its historical character at all. Even the Jews of the first and second centuries of the common era questioned its right to be included among the canonical books of the Bible (compare Meg. 7a). The author makes no mention whatever of God, to whom, in all the other books of the Old Testament, the deliverance of Israel is ascribed. The only allusion in Esther to religion is the mention of fasting (iv.
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Esther