This halacha (Jewish law) be for the honor and protection of Klal Yisrael and all the troops who are helping protect Klal Yisrael and the world.
Rabbotai (my masters), there's a halacha in Hilchot Purim that is very interesting. Yesterday we discussed that the ikar (essence) of the salvation of Purim really is when Esther says to Mordechai, “Kenos et kol hayehudim (Jews),” get all the Yehudim together. That was the ikar of Chag HaPurim: the unity between the Jews, who were mefozar u'meforad—spread out within the nations—with division also within the nation.
We said that even halachically, you're going to see that all the halachot have to do with this. In Kriyat Megilla (reading of the Megilla), however, we know that a person who is by himself or by herself is allowed to read the Megilla. Rabbotai, I said there are some differences. So let me explain to you, since this is a halacha couple minutes class, what I meant by this.
There is a halacha l'maaseh (practical halacha) difference between having a minyan (quorum) and not having a minyan when it comes to the berachot (blessings). When it comes to the first berachot, there's no difference. Even a person by himself, or a group with fewer than a minyan, is going to read the three or two berachot, depending on whether it is at night or in the morning, because every individual is chayav (obligated) to do the mitzvah (commandment) of reading the Megilla.
However, there's an added point that the Chachamim (Sages) say, which is similar to Chanukah and is called Pirsumei Nisa (publicizing the miracle). The same way on Chanukah you have a mitzvah of Pirsumei Nisa and you have a minhag (custom), we have a strong minhag to light in a Beit Knesset (synagogue). You need to have a minyan because the concept of Pirsumei Nisa is mitparsem al yedei (is publicized through); you have to have a tzibbur, a minyan, to be able to take the concept of the nes (miracle) and share it with the world.
So too, in the Megilla there is an aspect of this, which is Pirsumei Nisa. The Gemara discusses it. Where is that Pirsumei Nisa being underlined? With the last berachot: Harav et riveinu (Who pleads our cause), etc. You're going to say that after reading the Megilla, we say a beracha. There's a very big machloket (dispute) about whether a person who is not with a minyan, or a group of people that does not have ten men, is allowed to say these berachot.
If it is based on the Pirsumei Nisa, then you would need to have a minyan. If it's not, then you wouldn't need to have a minyan. It seems that the Ashkenazim have the minhag to say the beracha regardless of how many people are there. The Sephardim, however, follow what the Shulchan Aruch writes: you can say this beracha only if you have a minyan, because the aspect of the Megilla is not only a personal aspect but also a tzibbur aspect. If you don't have ten men, you wouldn't be able to say the beracha.
Then come the Acharonim (later authorities), and they say, “What about if you have ten women? Or if you have five men and five women?” We know that women are obligated in this mitzvah as much as the men are obligated in this mitzvah. So if it depends on ten people, then who cares about the gender of the attendees? If you have ten people, then you have a Pirsumei Nisa. Especially women—they talk a lot—so you'd be able to have more Pirsumei Nisa if you have ten women than ten men.
However, if you do need a din tzibbur (communal status), then it's true that Pirsumei Nisa would be ten people who are chayav in the mitzvah. But if you need a tzibbur, then you know that, like any devarim shebikdusha (matters of sanctity), maybe it's already within that concept that you need a tzibbur. Although they are chayav, according to halacha they don't make a tzibbur.
So what is the halacha in this? It's a very big safek (doubt). According to the Ashkenazim, there's no problem because they will say the beracha even if they don't have a minyan; there's no problem with that. But according to the Sephardim, Hacham Ovadia says safek berachot l'hakel (doubtful blessings are treated leniently). He says not to say the beracha; he says to say the beracha without Shem u'Malchut (Name and Kingship), to say the beracha without Shem u'Malchut because of the safek.
But you see that the concept of bringing people together, even in this mitzvah, for which a person is also chayav, is the ikar of the point of the entire Purim.