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Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, falls ten days after Rosh Hashanah. When the Temple stood in Jerusalem, the High Priest effected atonement for the entire people through an elaborate ritual. Today, in the absence of the Temple, each of us stands, alone, together, naked as it were, before God. Yom Kippur is the dramatic culmination of the entire season of teshuvah, repentance. On Yom Kippur, Jews abstain from eating, drinking, bathing, sexual relations, and the wearing of leather (a sign of luxury) for 25 hours. Jews dress in white and traditionally spend most of the day in synagogue.

Latest Rituals

Recognizing that those who are aged, infirm, or diagnosed with serious illness may have a different relationship to the Unetaneh Tokef prayer

a person puts their hand on another person's hand

Deepening the experience of saying Yizkor with a physical reminder of departed loved ones

a locket that opens to reveal a watch

A meditation on the purity of our souls and the search to be at-one with our truest selves

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A mikveh ceremony with kavannot and chants intended to greet Yom Kippur “in friendship with an undefended heart”

Contemporary Mikveh

A ritual to help begin the transformation of a bad habit to something that is healthy and life-affirming

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A Yom Kippur prayer for those suffering from drought and food shortages in the Horn of Africa

A tree and sunset in Maasai Mara in Kenya

A prayer reminding us to stay open so that we come closer to the divine

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Incorporating Miriam’s Cup, spring water, and blessings of renewal into our rituals for breaking the fast

a stream of water is pouring into a short round glass

Our readers share their most meaningful rituals

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Prayers and kavannot for those who should not fast

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