Yom Kippur Prayers

[Elly Garnand]

Thislegal ritual is believed to have developed in early medieval times as a result of persecutions against the Jews. At various times in Jewish history, Jews were forced to convert to either Christianity or Islam upon pain of death. After the danger had passed, many of these forced converts wanted to return to the Jewish community. However, this was complicated by the fact that they had been forced to swear vows of fealty to another religion. Because of the seriousness with which the Jewish tradition views verbal promises, the Kol Nidrei legal formula was developed to enable those forced converts to return and pray with the Jewish community, absolving them of the vows that they made under duress.

Erev [the evening of] Yom Kippur is the only night of the entire Jewish calendar when a tallit (prayer shawl) is worn in the evening. As a matter of fact, it is traditional to wear a tallit or a white garment for the whole of the holiday, the color white symbolizing both our spiritual purity and our withdrawal from the vanities of this world. A white robe, called a kittel, is worn by traditionally observant men over their holiday clothes. Others may choose to wear a white item of clothing or dress completely in white.

The daytime services of Yom Kippur are characterized by their emphasis on the two major themes of forgiveness and teshuvah, or repentance. According to the traditional Jewish prayers, God forgives us for the sins that affect no one else other than our relationship with God. For sins that affect and harm others, we must first apologize and seek forgiveness from those whom we have hurt. Only then are the prayers of Yom Kippur considered effective in absolving our sins.

Teshuvah is the process by which we recognize our sins, feel regret for having committed them, and then resolve not to do them again and make restitution for any harm we may have caused. All of the major prayers of the Yom Kippur liturgy focus on these themes.

Since Yom Kippur is a fast day, there need not be any breaks for lunch or other meals. Therefore, Yom Kippur has evolved over the centuries into a full day of communal worship services, although many communities still do break for a short period before Mincha, the afternoon service. Beginning with Shachrit, the morning service, the prayers occupy themselves with the above-mentioned themes of seeking forgiveness for sin and engaging in the process of teshuvah, or repentance.

The Haftarah, or additional biblical reading, is taken from Isaiah 57-58, in which the prophet criticizes the empty, superficial religious rituals of the ancient Israelites when the rites are not accompanied by acts of righteousness, charity, and morality.

The Musaf, or additional service, is a repetition of the main themes of the Shachrit service and includes many ancient and medieval religious poems included over the centuries to continue to heighten the spiritual experience of the day. Two unique additions to the Yom Kippur Musaf liturgy are the Martyrology and the Avodah, or worship, service.

The Martyrology is actually a long medieval poem that describes in painfully gruesome detail the deaths of famous rabbis during ancient Roman persecutions. This poem, oftentimes including additions from the time of the Holocaust, is intended to impress upon us the spiritual devotion of our ancestors, as well as to intensify the religious and emotional tenor of the day.

Liberal movements that do not have a Musaf service include elements of the Musaf service either in the morning or in the afternoon service. Some liberal communities have also designed creative Avodah services, rather than acting out rituals that were done in the ancient Temple.

Whenever the doors of the ark are opened, it is customary to stand out of honor and deference to the holiness of the divine words contained in them. Since the doors of the ark are then left open throughout the lengthy last part of the service, the entire congregation is traditionally expected to remain standing for quite a while during this final, spiritually urgent prayer service. Although, it should be noted, that if this period of prolonged standing proves to be too uncomfortable or even dangerous to the health of some in the congregation, it is appropriate to sit down.

Pronounced: TALL-mud, Origin: Hebrew, the set of teachings and commentaries on the Torah that form the basis for Jewish law. Comprised of the Mishnah and the Gemara, it contains the opinions of thousands of rabbis from different periods in Jewish history.

On the eve of Yom Kippur while there is still daylight, Jews congregate all across the globe wearing white. They don their tallitot (prayer shawls) and Kol Nidrei is chanted with a sense of emotional anticipation and a centuries-old feverishly moving melody.

Over the years various versions of Kol Nidrei have been adopted in various places. Indeed, the version found in most siddurim actually contain parts of each version. This stems from a machlokes (halachic dispute) over whether Kol Nidrei is to annul vows from the past year (Babylonian traditional) or to declare annulled all vows of the coming year (European tradition, Tosafot).

Avinu Malkeinu

The Gemara in Taanis tells the story of when there was a very bad drought in Eretz Yisrael , the land of Israel. Public fasts were proclaimed and special prayers were said. The great Torah Scholar Rabbi Eliezer was called upon to lead the prayers with the saying of the 24 blessing Amidah, which is said at times of severe drought. Yet, no rain fell. His disciple, Rabbi Akiva came to the front and said a special prayer in which each verse began with the words, Avinu Malkenu, Our Father, Our King. Rain fell. The prayer became a regular part of the prayer services during a time of fasting or tragedy. Today, it is said fast days and during the ten days of repentance. On Yom Kippur, during Neilah, the word ketiva, inscribed is replaced by chatima, sealed, because in the Neilah prayer G-d seals our fate for the coming year.

Neilah

A Jew prays three times a day on weekdays. On Shabbat and Holidays, including Rosh HaShanah a fourth service is added (Mussaf) in memory of the additional sacrifices given on these days in the Temple in Jerusalem.

Neilah is said after Mincha as the sun is going down and literally means closing (or locking) and refers to either the closing of the gates of the Holy Temple at the end of the day or it refers to the closing of the gates of prayer as Yom Kippur is ending .

The Neilah service contains stirring pleas that our prayers be accepted by G-d before Yom Kippur ends. The heavenly judgment inscribed on Rosh Hashanah is now sealed during Neilah. The chazan chants the service in a special melody designed to stir the emotions and bring the congregation to greater devotion.

Our God and God of our fathers, pardon our sins on this Day of Atonement. Let our sins and transgressions be removed from Thy sight. As Thou didst promise: It is I who erases your transgressions, for Mine own sake, and I will recall your sins. And Thou didst further promise: I have blotted out your transgressions and they are gone, as a cloud, and your sins, as a mist; return unto Me, for I have redeemed you. And it is further promised: On this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you; of all your sins you shall be cleansed before the Lord. Make us holy through Thy commandments and grant that we may have a portion among those who devote themselves to Thy Torah. Satisfy us with Thy goodness, and cause us to rejoice in Thy deliverance. And purify our hearts that we may serve Thee in truth. Thou art He who forgives Israel and pardons the community of Yeshurun in every generation. We have no other King to grant us forgiveness and pardon.

We have turned away from Thy goodly commandments and judgments; and now we face the consequences of our folly. Thou art just in all that has come upon us. Thou hast acted in accordance with the truth, but we have done evil.

Thou knowest the mysteries of the universe, and the things hidden from mortal eyes. Thou searchest out our innermost secrets; Thou knowest the unspoken meditations of the heart. Nothing is hidden from Thee, nothing is veiled from Thine eyes.

O my God, before I was created I was nothing, and now that I have been created, what am I? In life I am dust, and more so when I fall prey to death. When I measure my life in Thy presence, I am confused and I am ashamed. Help me, O God and God of my fathers, to steer clear of sin. And as for my past sins, purge me of them in Thy great mercy, but, I pray, not through severe and painful disease.

What an amazing thought that through the work of Yeshua we have lasting forgiveness for our sins. My prayer is that we never take this blessing lightly. Yom Kippur is an opportunity to search our hearts once again for anything that would displease our Heavenly Father. It can be painful to take this piercing look at our own hearts and intents. But, it is far better to seek out sin and rebellion and root it out ourselves, than to let it take root and wait for YHVH Himself to pull it out. Whether you use this prayer of confession, or prayers right from Scripture, or use your own words, I pray that you use Yom Kippur (and every day) wisely to present yourself as a clean vessel to your Creator.

We lift our voices together and gain strength by joining our voices to one another. We wrap our arms around each other, and help steer each other back to the path. Yom Kippur may not be an innovative, and new, technology, but it can work just as well.

There is no greater uplift; there is a sense of renewed strength by our public acknowledgment and communal prayers. After a day of fasting, praying and confessing our mistakes and failings, we together sing one final Adon Olam in the concluding hour of this great and awesome day. It provides us with the courage to steer us back on path.

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