Yom Kippur Essays

It's all there: the underpinnings of creation, the saga of human struggle, and the ultimate triumph which arises from the imperfections and failings of man -- all that was played out in a four-month period...

Orthodox. Conservative. Reform. Reconstructionist. Secular. Religious... Where did all these labels come from? Did Moses organize the people around Mt Sinai in accordance with their denominational affiliations?

What is sin? The Midrash records a "panel discussion" featuring a philosopher, a prophet, the Torah and G-d

Why do we fast on Yom Kippur? A common perception is that it’s to de-emphasize our physicality on the most spiritual day of the year. According to chassidic teaching, the very opposite is the case.

When a person brings his animal self to the Temple of G-d and offers what is best and finest in it upon the altar, there is still the “foul odor”...

When a person transgresses a Divine command, a deeper bond with G-d comes to light. His inner equilibrium is disturbed; his soul finds no peace and is driven to compensate for its devastated identity...

There are two ways to view human life, as mutually exclusive as they are fundamental. Our existence is either a result of intention, or of accident. And the corollary follows directly: Either our lives are meaningful, or they are not...

We don't do anything. There's something in the atmosphere and experience that takes away the ability to concentrate or focus. One's greatest desire is simply not to be there, not to be doing this, and to have it be over with as quickly as possible...

Yom Kippur holds within it the very essence of the universe and of who we are. It brings together space, time and soul in one indivisible point that paradoxically contains every detail of existence. Yom Kippur is the “fifth dimension” that courses through both the expanse of the universe and deep within us. By paying attention to the way the day itself works, we can gain insight into this transcendent dimension of creation...

The inner dimension of the Torah sees the Yom Kippur "afflictions" not (only) as self-denial, but as self-transcendence. We do not deprive our bodies on Yom Kippur; we return to our essence and rise above our bodies.