 OCTOBER 24 • 2019 | 5

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D

id our ancestors live 
like this? Did they 
approach the High 
Holidays with a strict sense 
of piousness — 
as I’
ve always 
assumed — or 
did they also 
bend the rules to 
suit themselves, 
just like so many 
Jews do these 
days?
I asked myself that ques-
tion during the Yom Kippur 
service. The service itself 
— the singing, the sermon, 
the prayers — was beauti-
ful, as always. But at times, I 
admit, my mind wandered, 
and, during some of those 
moments, I thought of the 
rules about fasting.
Seems that modern Jews 
have settled into lots of inter-
esting ways of dealing with 
fasting, or at least their version 
of that word. As I sat in the 
service, I noticed that a few 
people in the sanctuary were 
chewing gum. They looked 
like they were trying to be 
discreet, but once I noticed 
them and their subtle chewing 
technique, I became transfixed. 
Are they really chewing gum 
in the sanctuary — on Yom 
Kippur? Who does that? I 
found myself judging them as 
I was reading words about for-
giveness. It was very confusing.
But what exactly is allowed 
during our fast? Where is the 
line? Are we free to make up 
our own rules and remain 
good Jews, or are some actions 
so unacceptably egregious 
that they destroy any legiti-
mate claim to our Jewishness? 
What if someone were to, say, 
spend the day eating pork ribs 
and bacon? Surely that would 
violate just about everything, 
right? Orthodox Jews consume 
nothing and even forgo brush-

ing their teeth. But does that 
mean that only they are living 
a pure Jewish life? Not to me, 
it doesn’
t.
We each define our own line 
on what’
s acceptable behavior 
about fasting during Yom 
Kippur. Mine is somewhere 
between eating pork ribs and 
not brushing my teeth.
In recent years, I’
ve made an 
official ruling that water is a 
perfectly fine exception to my 
fast. It’
s non-caloric, healthy 
and relatively guilt-free. But it 
also presents a slippery slope. 
If water is OK, then does that 
mean that ice is also OK? Ice is 
just frozen water, after all. But 
can a good Jew really spend 
Yom Kippur chomping on 
ice? I pondered that question 
and ruled that it was perfectly 
acceptable. But that resulted 
in my kids calling me the “Ice 
Man” all day, which was fine 
by me. I’
ve been called far 
worse.
But we all have our rules, 
right? One buddy of mine goes 
out to dinner after Kol Nidre 
services, so as to get a jump 
on being full for Yom Kippur 
day. “It’
s cheating,
” he readily 
admits, but says that it works 
for him and his family, and 
he even included his dad in 
the plan. Upon picking up his 
dinner at a Chinese restaurant 
(of course), he told me the 
cashier said to him, “
Aren’
t you 
supposed to be fasting?” He 
figured he wouldn’
t bump into 
his rabbi that night but never 
thought the cashier would bust 
him.
A surprising number of 
people tell me they have no 
problem with drinking coffee 
on Yom Kippur. They rule out 
food but draw the line at cof-
fee. “It’
s just coffee,
” they insist. 
Their conviction is so sincere I 
almost find it convincing (after 
all, I do drink water, so adding 

a few coffee beans is just a 
short putt away). One person 
tells me she’
ll have coffee on 
Yom Kippur but “absolutely no 
cream.
” That logic is so twisted 
it almost makes sense to me.
My 88-year-old mother 
created an interesting method: 
She eats on Yom Kippur, but 
only 
half of what she’
d normal-
ly consume. She’
s very proud 
of herself for coming up with 
this plan. I plan on trying it 
when I turn 88.
This year, some of my family 
and friends added a new Yom 
Kippur tradition: At break-fast, 
we shared photos of the mass 
smorgasbord of food we were 
about to eat, from the kugel to 
the seven-layer cake. I wasn’
t 
sure why that was so satisfying, 
but it was. We collectively sal-
ivated at the sight of the deli-
cious spread and even shared 
a bit of pride that each of us — 
even the rule benders — had 
made it through the fast.
Yom Kippur is such a deeply 
reflective time for us. We sit 
in services and read all about 
words like “repentance, charity, 
forgiveness.
” It’
s a powerful 
way to think about what kind 
of person we wish to be in the 
coming year. 
That lesson was put to the 
test for me a few years ago 
when I got into a car accident 
in the Temple Israel parking 
lot upon arriving for services. 
My beautiful, shiny sports 
car was just two days old and 
I was still in the love phase 
with it. But there was an ugly 
collision that would later cost 
me about $2,000. I was initially 
livid and still shaken as I sat 
in the sanctuary, telling myself 
over again that it’
s just a car 
and that the message of the 
holiday reminds us of what’
s 
important in life. Can’
t say it 
fully worked for me that year, 
but not for lack of trying. But 

Mark Jacobs

for openers
Bending the Rules on Yom Kippur

As we welcome the Jewish 
year 5780, the number of Jews 
worldwide stands at 14.8 mil-
lion, compared to 14.7 million 
in 5779. Of these, 8.1 million 
live outside Israel (including 
5.7 million in the United 
States). In Israel, the number of 
Jews is 6.7 million (compared 
to 6.6 million in 5779). The 
updated estimates were pub-
lished by Professor Sergio Della 
Pergola of Hebrew University 
in the American Jewish Year 
Book 2019.
The numbers include those 
who define themselves as Jews 
and who do not identify with 
another religion. When includ-
ing those who are eligible for 
Israeli citizenship under the 
Law of Return, the number 
rises to 23.6 million people, of 
whom 16.5 million live outside 
Israel.
Jewish Agency Chairman 
Isaac Herzog said that: “In the 
past year, tens of thousands 
of people have made Aliyah 
(immigrated to Israel) with 
assistance from The Jewish 
Agency for Israel, along with 
tens of thousands of young 
Jews who visited Israel on 
educational programs such 
as Masa Israel Journey. The 
Jewish Agency continues to 
act as a bridge between Israel 
and Jewish communities, and 
address the main challenges 
facing the Jewish people in 
Israel and worldwide. Chief 
among these is combating 
anti-Semitism, which has risen 
dramatically over the past year, 
along with the continuation 
of efforts to connect young 
Jews around the world to Israel 
against the backdrop of the 
BDS movements.” 

Jewish Population Rises 
to 14.8 Million Worldwide

