Why are Christians obsessed with Queen Esther?
From the Heritage Foundation’s ‘Project Esther’ to Texas’ Bible-based school curriculum, Queen Esther has become a Christian touchpoint
Attendees at the “Esther Call to the Mall” march in D.C. wore Esther-themed T-shirts. Courtesy of Dehavilland Ford
By Benyamin Cohen March 5, 2025
Dehavilland Ford, a Texas pastor, has long felt a kinship with Queen Esther. This fall, just ahead of the presidential election, she helped organize An Esther Call to the Mall, a march in Washington, D.C., that drew tens of thousands of like-minded Christian women. At the event, the ancient Jewish queen’s story was recast as a modern symbol of moral bravery, applied to contemporary conservative issues like abortion and transgender rights.
Ford’s connection to Esther runs deep, shaped by her own life experiences. Raised in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, she grew up in the shadow of the Hasidic community — close enough to hear the sing-song of their prayers but far enough away that it felt like another universe entirely.
And yet it wasn’t until she stood thousands of miles from Brooklyn, in Israel, at age 26, that she felt the stirring of something undeniable. “God began speaking to my heart,” she recalled, urging her to see the Jewish narratives in the Bible as more than stories — rather as calls to action.
“I was given up for adoption and my name was changed,” Ford told me. “I felt like Esther. She was an orphan. She wasn’t the one that was first picked. I’ve felt like that in my life many times. Every woman can relate to this — the rejection, the insecurities.”
And yet, for Ford, Esther’s story is more than one of rejection. It is about rising to the occasion, stepping into a role when no one else will. “She could have stayed totally comfortable in the palace,” Ford said. “But when Mordechai asked for her help, she stepped up to the plate.”
In the years since Ford’s epiphany, Esther’s reach has extended beyond the Jewish world to become a model of courage, divine providence and standing firm against evil. This shift is not just symbolic but has found its way into the political landscape.
The Washington march that Ford helped organize is just one example of the growing politicization of Esther’s legacy. The Heritage Foundation, the influential conservative think tank behind the Project 2025 blueprint for the second Trump administration, launched “Project Esther” to combat antisemitism. It was drafted largely by evangelical organizations. At the same time, Texas schools recently adopted a Bible-based curriculum that gives Esther a starring role in lessons about historical courage alongside figures like Jackie Robinson and Rosa Parks.
Esther in Christian entertainment
Esther’s popularity has spread even further. In Branson, Missouri, a city known for its family-friendly entertainment, the Book of Esther was adapted into a Broadway-style production. The performance, which ran for nearly two years in a 2,000-seat theater, featured live animals and flowing costumes meant to evoke the opulence of ancient Persia. It was spectacle and sermon all in one, a production that — if you squint hard enough — resembled Disney’s Aladdin. This month, they are launching a show based on the biblical David.
“It’s one of the very few stories in the Bible that has a clear beginning, middle, and end,” said Kristen Brewer, one of the Esther show’s creators. “It reads like a play. You have an antagonist, a protagonist, and a plot twist. It’s masterfully crafted.”
And yet, while the Book of Esther is firmly rooted in Jewish canon, this Branson production was unambiguously Christian. “She’s a natural figure to attach to,” Brewer said. “A good female role model, standing for what’s right, no matter the cost.”
Indeed, Esther’s story has been reframed and repackaged for decades in Christian circles. VeggieTales, the Christian cartoon series, aired an Esther episode back in 2000. A former pastor wrote a 2004 novelization of the Book of Esther, called Hadassah: One Night with the King. The story was turned into a 2006 sandals-and-swords epic in the style of Gladiator, with cameos by Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif, both from Lawrence of Arabia. Sarah Palin’s pastor suggested the Alaska governor look to the biblical Esther for a role model in leadership, as they were both former beauty queens called to serve.
Misinterpreting the Bible
But not all have embraced this reimagining of Esther. Mark Chancey, a professor of religious studies at Southern Methodist University, argues that this new interpretation distorts Esther’s story. He noted that the Texas curriculum, called Bluebonnet, not only misrepresents Esther’s story but also imposes modern political ideologies on an ancient text. “What is at stake in the Book of Esther is Jewish survival,” he said, “not freedom of religious practice.”
Bluebonnet also refers to Esther’s faith in God. But, Chancey pointed out, “the Book of Esther famously does not even include the word God,” adding that evangelicals are “adapting the lesson for a particular political agenda and imposing particular religious interpretations on this lesson.”
For Bill Borror, a pastor and podcaster, the way Christians fetishize Esther is equal parts curious and contrived. “Christians sanitize Esther and turn her into a Disney princess,” Borror told me. “She was in the king’s harem,” he said, referring to Esther’s position as one of many women in the king’s palace.
For Borror, Esther is an example of how the Bible is often misread — or worse, misused. “Part of reading it honestly is struggling with it,” he said. “There are passages that are deeply uncomfortable, especially for people living in the 21st century. But that’s the point. You’re supposed to wrestle with it.”
But Borror isn’t blind to why Esther resonates. She’s a heroine who saved her people, a figure who stands out in a book often dominated by men. But he’s quick to point out that Esther isn’t the only woman in the Torah who deserves attention. “The Bible is full of women doing incredibly significant things,” he said, “and often in creative ways.” Still, Esther’s story is popular among Christians perhaps because it’s easier to digest than some of the others, he said.
Take Ruth, for example. “The whole point of Ruth’s story was to convert to Judaism,” Borror said. “And that’s not exactly something Christians want to teach people.” Then there’s the story of Tamar who, in the Book of Genesis, seduced her father-in-law Judah; the union led to the royal line of David.
“It’s an incredible story,” Borror said, “but try teaching that in Sunday School.”
Esther, the social justice activist
For Ford, the Texas pastor, Esther’s message feels particularly resonant at this moment. “What’s going on with this attack on the Jewish people,” she said, referencing the Hamas massacre of October 2023, which “can actually happen on my watch, in my backyard. There is antisemitism in America right now.” For Ford, this isn’t a distant political issue; it’s a personal one. “I try to put myself into the Book of Esther: What if this happened to her? How can I, this little Black girl who grew up in New York, make an impact?”
The answers haven’t always been clear, but Ford has found them nonetheless. She spent six months teaching a course on the Book of Esther over Zoom to prepare women for the D.C. march. “God is calling on American women to not turn a blind eye, but to be like Esther, when it’s not popular, and say, ‘I’m going to stand with Jewish people.’”
Ford has been disheartened by what she hasn’t seen: mass rallies or moral outcries in support of the Jewish community. Instead, she’s seen social justice activists in the Black community rallying around the Palestinian rights movement. For Ford, this is a betrayal of the storied history of Black and Jewish solidarity during the Civil Rights era. “We can’t be selective when it comes to what justice looks like,” she said.
Her path, like Esther’s, has been one of transformation — from rejection to purpose. “It’s been that kind of journey for me,” she said.
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