Question

Greetings and blessings to the honored Rabbi, may he live long and well. It is explained in the Talmud (Megillah 14b) that Esther was one of the seven prophetesses, as it says (Esther 5:1), “And Esther clothed herself in royalty” — meaning that she clothed herself with the holy spirit. But this requires clarification, for it is explained in Moed Katan (25a) [according to Rashi’s second interpretation on the words “that there was,” and so too Rashi explains in Ezekiel 1:3] that the Divine Presence does not rest upon a prophet outside the Land of Israel unless it had already rested upon him previously in the Land of Israel. If so, how did the Divine Presence rest upon Esther such that she was included among the seven prophetesses, given that we do not find that she prophesied earlier in the Land of Israel? [Now as for Sarah and Miriam, who also prophesied outside the Land of Israel, that is not difficult, since this was before the Land of Israel had been chosen, as explained in Tanchuma, Parashat Bo (sec. 5), that once the Land of Israel was chosen, the other lands were no longer fit for divine speech. But Esther remains difficult.]
 
Further, I wondered to myself whether in the messianic era the Fast of Esther will still be observed, or whether it will be abolished. By way of introduction: Maimonides wrote (Laws of Fasts 5:19): “All these fasts are destined to be abolished in the messianic era.” This implies that all fasts are abolished, and presumably the Fast of Esther is included. On the other hand, one could say that although all the fasts instituted because of the troubles that occurred on them will be transformed into joy and gladness, the Fast of Esther is tied to the day of Purim; and since Purim is not abolished, perhaps the Fast of Esther will likewise not be abolished, since it is part of the structure of the Purim festival. And so Maimonides wrote regarding Purim (Laws of Megillah 2:18): “Even though all memory of troubles will be abolished, as it says (Isaiah 65:16), ‘For the former troubles are forgotten and hidden from My eyes,’ the days of Purim will not be abolished, as it says (Esther 9:28), ‘And these days of Purim shall not pass away from among the Jews, nor shall their memory perish from their seed.’” One can analyze Maimonides’ wording: since he opens by saying, “Even though all memory of troubles will be abolished,” etc., and yet says that nevertheless the days of Purim will not pass away, this implies that regarding the days of Purim, even that which is connected to the “memory of troubles” will not be abolished, since all this is included in the statement that the days of Purim will not pass away from among the Jews. According to this, presumably the same would apply to the Fast of Esther as well, that it too will not be abolished, and this requires further analysis. [See the wording of Ran (Ta’anit 7a in the pages of Rif) in the name of Raavad: “The thirteenth of Adar is not like the other fasts, for it is a remembrance of the miracle that occurred on it,” etc. Also see Ibn Ezra’s commentary (Esther 9:31); and the wording of Maimonides (Laws of Fasts 5:5), and consider it carefully.]