When the Book of Esther Is Read

“Remember (in Hebrew, Zachor) what (the nation of) Amalek did to you (the Children of Israel), on the way, after you left Egypt.  How he met you along the way, attacking the stragglers at the rear, when you were faint and tired, and he was not afraid of God.  Therefore… blot out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens.  You should not forget!”  (The Torah portion of Ki Teitzei, Deuteronomy, 25:17-19).  These words, in addition to the regular Torah portion, are read on Shabbat Zachor, the Shabbat before Purim, when the Book of Esther is read, because the holiday commemorates the Jews’ victory over the evil Haman, the Agagite, a direct descendant of Amale