Yom Kippur, a Lesson in the Strength of Faith that Binds Jews and Christians Together

YOM KIPPUR -- THE DAY OF ATONEMENT. Yom Kippur is the most solemn day in the Jewish calendar. My Jewish Learning describes it : "The culmination of the Yamim Noraim (Days of Awe) is the fast day of Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement). This is the day at the conclusion of which, according to tradition, God seals the Books of Life and Death for the coming year. The day is devoted to communal repentance for sins committed over the course of the previous year. Because of the nature of Yom Kippur and its associated rituals, it is the most solemn day in the Jewish calendar." • This year, Yom Kippur began on Tuesday, September 18, at sundiwn, and ended on Wednesday, September 19, at sundown. • My Jewish Learning says that a ritual for the expiation of sins was in existence already during biblical times. However, it was only during the Second Temple Period that Yom Kippur assumed central importance as a day of mourning and abstention. Later, it became the most important day in the Jewish liturgical calendar, an importance that the day has retained until the modern period. On Yom Kippur, Jews are instructed to divorce themselves as completely as humanly possible from the mundane world in order to devote themselves with all their hearts and minds to their relationship with the Divine. Fasting is the most widespread act in carrying out this instructio. Other examples include : refraining from washing, sexual relations, and the wearing of leather (a sign of luxury in earlier times). It is traditional to dress in white on Yom Kippur to symbolize personal purity. Because of this and the desire to avoid leather, many Jews wear sneakers, or white athletic shoes, on Yom Kippur. • The liturgy of Yom Kippur is completely centered in the synagogue. It is traditional to wear a tallit, or prayer shawl, at all times in the synagogue on Yom Kippur -- this is the only time during the year when the tallit is worn in the evening. There are more and longer services on this day than any other in the Jewish calendar. Yom Kippur begins while there is still daylight, with a powerful, ancient prayer called Kol Nidrei (All Vows), in which the congregation asks that all vows made under duress during the coming year may be considered null and void before God. On Yom Kippur, Yizkor, the memorial service, is recited, as is the Avodah, a symbolic reenactment of the ancient priestly ritual for Yom Kippur. During the course of the holiday, a major component of the liturgy is the repeated communal confession of sins -- the Viddui. The day closes with a unique and emotionally powerful service called Neilah, during which the liturgy imagines the gates of heaven closing at the end of the High Holiday period. Neilah, during which it is traditional to stand since the ark is opened, ends with a long blast of the shofar (ram’s horn), understood by many as signifying God’s redemptive act in answer to true repentance. • The theme of Yom Kippur is repentance. During the holiday all thoughts are supposed to be centered on this theme. From Kol Nidrei to the repeated Viddui to Neilah, the day revolves around the theme of communal repentance for sins committed during the past year, in order that both the community and the individual may be inscribed in the Book of Life for the coming year. Leviticus 16:30 states : “For on this day He will forgive you, to purify you, that you be cleansed from all your sins before G-d." In addition to community actions, Yom Kippur is dedicated to introspection, prayer and asking G-d for forgiveness. Even during the breaks between services, it is appropriate to recite Psalms at every available moment. Special charity trays are set up at the synagogue before the afternoon service. Everyone is encouraged to ask forgiveness of those they have offended during the year. And, After night has fallen, the closing Neilah service ends with the cries of the Shema prayer : “Hear O Israel: G-d is our L-rd, G-d is one.” Then the congregants release their day of atonement and repentance with joyous song and dance, after which a single blast is blown on the shofar, followed by the proclamation, “Next year in Jerusalem.” Afterward, everyone joins in a festive after-fast meal, making the evening after Yom Kippur a yom tov (festival) in its own right. • My Jewish Learning says that "although Yom Kippur is the most solemn day of the year, it is suffused with an undercurrent of joy; it is the joy of being immersed in the spirituality of the day and expresses confidence that G-d will accept our repentance, forgive our sins, and seal our verdict for a year of life, health and happiness." • Because Yom Kippur is such a solemn and reflective 25 hours, it is not customary to wish anyone a "Happy Yom Kippur." To greet someone for Yom Kippur you can say “G’mar Hatima Tova” which means “may you be sealed in the Book of Life.” A shorter version of the phrase is “G’mar Tov” which translates into “a good seal.” • And so we send a heartfelt “G’mar Hatima Tova” to all our Jewish brothers and sisters. • • • DEAR READERS, while we are thinking of the Jewish fast and special effort to atone for the errors and lack of charity and kindness in the past year, we would do well to the same, for the entire world has much to atone for. • Perhaps more than any other single thing, the Jews' faith in God and their ironclad belief in His devotion to them as a people sets them apart. For more than 5,000 years, they have looked to God for guidance, forgiveness, and protection. We Christians have been doing the same for 2,000 years. It is the thread of steel that binds Jews and Christians together -- our shared faith that there is a God, that He cares about us, and that He will listen to our prayers of joy, sorrow, and supplication. • In this time of spiritual and social chaos and anger, we who believe there is a God should be turning to Him every moment for help to find a way to break through this evil that has what often feels like a death grip on us. • A recently dsicovered handwritten letter by President Reagan to his dying father-in-law, Loyal Davis, gives the world a glimpse at the 40th President's religious faith. The letter was written as the professed atheist Loyal Davis lay on his deathbed. Former First Lady Nancy Davis Reagan, was at her father's side when he received the letter and she said it had an effect because her father called for a hospital chaplain before his death, a few days after Reagan’s letter arrived. Mrs. Reagan later said that "he was calmer and not as frightened.” • In the letter, Ronald Reagan was trying to give his father-in-law arguments for the truth of the Christian faith, writing : "Loyal I know of your feeling -- your doubt but could I just impose on you a little longer? Some seven hundred years before the birth of Christ the ancient Jewish prophets predicted the coming of a Messiah. They said he would be born in a lowly place, would proclaim himself the Son of God and would be put to death for saying that. All in all there were a total of one hundred and twenty three specific prophesys [sic] about his life, all of which came true. Crucifixion was unknown in those times, yet it was foretold that he would be nailed to a cross of wood. And one of the predictions was that he would be born of a Virgin. Now I know that is probably the hardest for you as a Dr. to accept. The only answer that can be given is -- a miracle. But Loyal, I don’t find that as great a miracle as the actual history of his life. Either he was who he said he was or he was the greatest faker & charlatan who ever lived. But would a liar & faker suffer the death he did when all he had to do to save himself was admit he’d been lying?....We have been promised that all we have to do is ask God in Jesus name to help when we have done all we can -- when we’ve come to the end of our strength and abilities -- and we’ll have that help. We only have to trust and have faith in his infinite goodness and mercy. Loyal, you and Edith have known a great love -- more than many have been permitted to know. That love will not end with the end of this life. We’ve been promised this is only a part of life and that a greater life, a greater glory awaits us. It awaits you together one day and all that is required is that you believe and tell God you put yourself in his hands." • It may be seen as offensive to write about Christian faith in a blog that discusses Yom Kippur. I mean no disrespect, nor do I want to try to make any point about the differences between Judaism and Christianity. That is absolutely not my goal. But, what is clear in President Reagan's letter is that he has FAITH, abiding, trusting faith in God to listen, to protect, to help -- in short, to be there for each of us. With all the worries that world events threw his way, President Reagan felt it important to give it one last try to help a dying man turn to God. And so, Ronald Reagan wrote a private, humble profession of faith and signed the letter "Love, Ronnie,” assuring his father-in-law : “We’ve been promised this is only a part of life and that a greater glory awaits us.” • It is a profession of Faith in God that underlies Yom Kippur and Easter. Atone for our sins and we will be forgiven and embraced, by the God of Abraham or the God of Christians -- they are one and the same God. And, in the act of atonement -- or contrition as many Christian churches call it -- there is an unspoken acceptance of a set of values that also binds Jews and Christians. There would be no way to atone for or be contrite about what we have done unless we know it has offended God -- unless we know what He expects of us. That is a set of values. And, that set of values is today in dire straits -- ignored, jeered at, and abandoned by those who are causing the chaos we all witness. • We Americans will tend to see the 'chaos' as coming from Progressive Democrats determined to destroy President Trump. BUT, consider the 'chaos' in the Middle East. Israelis see it as coming from anti-semitic terrorists, most of them radical Moslems, who are determined to destroy Israel simply because it is the homeland of the Jews. • One thing is certain for both Jews and Christians -- and it was certain for Ronald Reagan -- Faith is not political. It is private and personal. It is the core of who Ronald Reagan was. It is the core of who we are. It is the core of our shared set of values. It is what makes us Jews and Christians so formidable a force for good.