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Day Of Atonement
Yom Kippur is a time of affliction.
Elizabeth Applebaum
Special to the Jewish News
When
This year, Yom Kippur begins at
sundown on Friday, Oct. 7, and lasts
though Saturday, Oct. 8.
What The Holiday Is About
Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement
(yom in Hebrew means "day:' and kip-
pur means "atonement"), the day we
seek expiation for our sins.
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Why We Celebrate
The commandment to observe
Yom Kippur is found in the Torah:
Leviticus 16:29, and Numbers 29:7.
Further expansion on the holiday is
in Levitivus 16:30-34, 23:26-32, and
Numbers 29:8-11.
Rites and Rituals
The commandment to observe Yom
Kippur states that the Jews shall
"afflict" themselves. The ancient rabbis
interpreted this to mean five things:
no food or drink, no wearing leather
shoes, no bathing for pleasure, no mar-
ital relations and no anointing with oils
(in ancient times, people used oil to
clean, soften and perfume the skin).
The prohibition against food and
drink includes chewing gum and
smoking. Persons on a regimen of
medication should consult with their
rabbi for the proper procedure for tak-
ing medicine.
Like all Jewish holidays, Yom Kippur
includes extra prayers and a Torah
reading. The prayers of Yom Kippur,
however — for all services — are the
longest of any day in the year. In many
congregations, the recitation of prayers
takes up the better part of the day.
A significant feature of the Yom
Kippur liturgy is the vidui, or con-
fession. This consists of two parts:
Ashamnu ("We have trespassed"), an
alphabetically arranged list of sins,
and Al Chet ("For the sin"), a long
inventory of transgressions, accompa-
nied by beating of the breast. The con-
fession is recited at all of the services
of Yom Kippur.
Along with Rosh Hashanah, Yom
Kippur is the only day we prostrate
ourselves in prayer, in a modified
form, as was done in the days of
the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. The
prostration is done during the can-
tor's repetition of the Musaf service.
Prostration is performed by kneeling
and touching the forehead to the floor.
Yom Kippur includes two unique
prayer services: the famous Kol Nidre,
which begins Yom Kippur and in
which we nullify all personal vows
for the coming year, and Neilah,
which closes the holiday. Unlike Rosh
Hashanah, we do not blow the shofar
during Yom Kippur. Instead, the holi-
day ends with a shofar blast.
Thematic Significance
Yom Kippur is regarded as the day that
God seals the decision God made on
Rosh Hashanah regarding the fate of
every person. The image created for
the High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah
and Yom Kippur is the Book of Life
in which appears the name of every
human. On Rosh Hashanah, God
decides the fate of each person; and on
Yom Kippur, God seals it.
Although it is generally said that
Yom Kippur — unlike other holidays
such as Pesach, Shavuot, Chanukah
and Purim — does not commemorate
a historical event, traditionally, we
believe that Yom Kippur is the anni-
versary of God's forgiving the Jewish
people their first disastrous, national
sin: the infamous episode of the
golden calf.
Moses chastised the people,
destroyed the tablets of the Torah
given by God and went back up the
mountain a second time to pray for
God's forgiveness, and to receive new
tablets (Exodus 32:30-35). He returned
to the encampment and then ascended
the mountain a third time (Exodus
34). This reckoned as the first day of
Elul, the month immediately preced-
ing Rosh Hashanah.
Moses prayed for God to grant the
Jewish people complete atonement.
After 40 days, God erased the col-
lective sin of the Jews, and Moses
returned to the people with new tab-
lets of the Torah on the 10th of Tishrei,
Yom Kippur.
Customs and Traditions
It is traditional on Yom Kippur to wear
white to remind us of our morality
because burial shrouds are white, and
also as a symbol of purity because we
hope that God will forgive our sins
and restore us to lives of virtue.
It is customary to greet one another
with: Gmar chatimah tovah ("May
your fate be sealed for the good");
some people shorten the greeting to
Gmar tov. I 1