Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur

1. Why Jews observe Yom Kippur

   • There are 10 days from from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur
     • These are known as the High holy days or the days of awe
   • Yom Kippur is on 10 Tishri and it maks the end of the days of awe
     • Judaism teaches that on Yom Kippur, God makes a final decision about a person's behaviour during the past year and puts it in the Book of Life
     • The festival of Hoshanah Rabbah, which takes place 10 dayslater, is called the Day of final sealing and is when the Book of life is closed
   • Yom Kippur is often described as the most important day in the Jewish calendar, and is known as the Shabbat of Shabbats
     • People have already asked for forgiveness from relatives, friends and neighbours, but now they have to ask it from God
     • Jews are told to observe Yom Kippur in the Torah
     • When Jews worshipped in the Jerusalem Temple, a bull and a goat were sacrificed on Yom Kippur
       • Then the High preist put his hands on the head of a male goat and this "scapegoat took all the sins of the people into the desert (it is set free)

2. Erev Yom Kippur

   • Yom Kippur was the one occasion in the year when the High Priest entered the most sacred part of the Temple, the Holy of Holies where the Ark of the Covenant had originally been kept
     • In the Holy of holies he begged for God to forgive the people's sins and he also spoke God's name
   • On Erev Yom Kippur some Jewish men go to the Mikveh to cleanse themselves for the day
   • Yom Kippur begins at sunset
   • Before the festival starts, there is a mitzvah meal - this means that everyone must eat it as it is a commandment
     • After the meal the candles are lit and the fast starts
   • After the Temple was destroyed, the scapegoat was replaced by a ceremony called kapparah
     • On Erev Yom Kippur (the evening before Yom Kippur starts) the senior man of the house brought a live chicken (or fish) indoors waved it over the head of each member of the family 3 times and said a blessing
     • Today, many people use a handful of notes instead

3. The rules of Yom Kippur

   • On Yom Kippur many people light yahrzeit (year's time) candles to remember their dead relatives
   • Families ask for forgiveness from each other (both children and parents) and say blessings that will be sealed in the Book of Life
   • Yom Kippur is the Shabbat of Shabbats and all the usual rules apply but there are a number of extra rules that have to be observed
     • No food or drink is allowed (young children and people who may damage their health do not fast)
       • It shows that people wish God to forgive them
       • It shows that they have self-discipline
       • It allows people to concentrate just on spiritual things
       • It can make someone more compassionate and understanding
     • No skin creams or perfumes are allowed
     • No sexual intercourse is allowed
     • No washing is allowed
     • No leather shoes are allowed
       • Jews say that it would be wrong to benefit from the skin of a dead animal when they are asking God to be merciful to all of creation
   • All the cloths in the synagogues including the curtains of the Ark are white to show purity
     • Men wear white kippahs and some wear a kittel (a full white robe like a shroud)
     • For the evening service that begins Yom Kippur men wear their tallitot, which are often pure white
       • This is the only occasion when men wear their tallits in the evening

4. The services of Yom Kippur

   • Many Jews go to the synagogue on the morning of Yom Kippur and stay there for the whole day
   • There are five services on Yom Kippur instead of the usual four on Shabbat
     • Worship begins with the song Kol Nidrei "All our vows"
     • This is followed by Al Chet, a general confession
       • Al Chet is a list of 44 sins. The whole congregation recites the lis and uses the word "we" rather than "I" so that no-one feels identified with any particular wrong-doing
         • Members of the congregation beat their breasts as they recite each sin
     • There are many Torah readings about observing Yom Kippur and how it was celebrated at the time of the Temple
     • Isiah: 57-8 teaches that fasting is meaningless unless people are concentrated on their inward thoughts
     • The book of Jonah tells a story about a man being swallowed by a large fish (often assumed to be a whale) but also teaches God's understanding of human suffering, and that God is willing to forgive eveyone

5. Ne'ilah

   • The day ends with Ne'ilah which means "sealing" or "closing"
   • Ne'ilah ends with the whole congregation repeating the opening verse of the Shema
   • There is then one long final call on the Shofar
     • People go home to eat and break their fast and to start preparing for Sukkot, which is 4 days later
   • Many Jews who might not attend synagogue on Shabbat will still try to be there for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur
     • The festivals provide an opportunity to worship and celebrate together as a community as well as an opportunity to think about life, the past and the future