Archive for the Yom Kippur Category

Welcome – so nice to see you all again. Joke: Son comes home from school and tells father he learnt there are 3 gods, father furious and tells him there is ONLY one G-d and we don’t believe in him!  Us Jews: We know if there is a

Welcome again to all – so happy to see all of you here tonight. What should be our mindset for the next 25 hrs? Not who will be the next president. Two old Jewish Bubbies are talking. “Mazal Tov”   I hear that your daughter got married…” says the

Ahuvah (Delores) Gray Story – Share her story The African-American ordained minister who converts American dream: a Californiacondo, a terrific and lucrative career, and a life full of dear friends and devoted family. Spirit, too, Delores an ordained minister she was part of a loving and accepting religious community. And yet… and

Yizkor is a moment of paradox – we remember our loved ones, and Jewish martyrs, who are gone, and yet in doing so we are reminded of their immortality – their souls residing in Gan Eden. In turn, at the moment of recognition of their being a

It was a cold wintry day, the RY of Telz Yeshiva, Rabbi Mordechai Gifter, and eight students were planning on travelling from Cleveland to NY for the wedding of a student in the Yeshiva. After the plane took off and they settled into their seats, they all

After concluding the Kabbalas Shabbos prayers, Dan greeted the Rabbi and was making his way out of the shul when he thought to scan the room and see if anyone needed a place for Shabbos dinner. He spotted young man wearing dungarees, with a backpack, dark skin,

We in America are used to calling today’s holiday Yom Kippur, translated as Day of Atonement.  Really the Torah calls it Yom HaKippurim: The Day of Atonements, plural.  Our mystical tradition explains that the day’s judgment and atonement is two, for the living and the dead. As

Author: Rabbi Yitz Sandler based on sources by Rabbi Malcolm Herman Break it into three main parts: History of the world; Avoda itself; Celebration – seems to suggest that the whole purpose of creation was the centrality of the Yom Kippur service. Introduction – we say Yom Kippur is

Author: Rabbi Noach Weinberg zt’l based on the Chovos HaLevavos       1)      Focus on one specific moment when you did this עבירה.   2)      Know that what you did was unequivocally an עבירה. 3)      Know that you will be punished for this עבירה.   4)      The punishment is on its way (the bullet

(Based on the words of Rabbi Yitzchak Berkovits) “Ki bayom hazeh yechaper aleichem letaher eschem m’kol chcatoseichem… For, on this day, He will forgive you to purify you from all your sins…”. Thus describes the Torah the divine forgiveness of Yom Kippur. How does it work, though?

One of the most well-known aspects of Yom Kippur is the moving service ‘Kol Nidrei’, with which we begin the Holy day. The commentaries point out that, in truth, ‘Kol Nidrei’ is not a prayer at all, rather it is an annulment of vows. This annulment could

As we approach Yom Kippur we recognise that there is a great necessity to contemplate our shemiras hamitzvos – where we have erred and where we need to do teshuva.  However there is another vital aspect of Avodas Hashem that we are less aware of, that we also

Author: The Salant Foundation Mussar – The Wisdom of Personal Growth We would assume that the logical sequence of repentance would entail first cleansing oneself from transgression, followed by the granting of forgiveness by HaShem.  However when the Torah (Vayikra 16:30) speaks about Yom Kippur it first

(based on the teachings of Rav Yaakov Weinberg zt’l) The Rambam writes in Perek Aleph, that when an Adom is choteh andkesheyaseh Teshuva he is chayev lehisvados-to say viduy. He should’vesaid im yaseh teshuva- if he’ll do teshuva. Why does the Rambam saythat vaday he’ll do teshuva?

The Midrash (Yalkut Emor 651) comments on the verse, “You should take for you on the first day,”that Sukkot is the first day for the accounting of sins. Many explanations are offered to explain this difficult Midrash. The Shlah HaKadosh explains that in the four days between Yom

Beset by many evils and troubles, the will say, “It is because God is no longer with me that these evil things have befallen me.” On that day I will utterly hide My face because of all the evil that they have done… (Deut. 31:17-18) Maimonides says that

The Jewish community has a dilemma this weekend. The upcoming critical Red Sox – Yankees series at Fenway Park starts the same night as Kol Nidre, the solemnest time of the Jewish calendar. This has put many local fans into a quandary.A very distressed Yankee fan goes

The head of the company got in late that day because his son started kindergarten. Another fellow was delayed because it was his turn to bring donuts. One woman was late because her alarm clock didn’t go off in time. One was late because of being stuck

Author: Rabbi Shmuel Silinsky Here is a great one but a little complicated. Good if your people are into and can follow the Hebrew and a gematria. Might be hard for absolute beginners. How you tell it is important. I heard this from Rabbi Zvi Block at

Question to consider; Is Yom Kippur a happy day or sad?The ten days between and including Rosh HaShonna and Yom Kippur are called the ‘eser yamai tshuva” the ten days of tshuva.The Rambam in the laws of tshuva says that Tshuva..is always beautiful during the ten days

Author: Rabbi Ahron Hoch A Vision Of What We Can Become As Derived From The Vidui (Admitting Of Our Mistakes)I commit for the rest of my life to:  Pursue truth and not to rationalize away my wrongdoings Constantly grow morally and spiritually Ensure that my word is my

Everyone here is familiar with what we do on Yom Kippur. We fast. We go to synagogue all day. The Rabbi gets up to speak. It’s very solemn. He asks for money… In the Talmud, it says “There are no holidays as happy for the Jewish people

# 3 Neila Talk Neila is the closing, the closing of Yom Kippur, the closing of the Gates of Teshuva – it is the last chance to realize this closeness to spirituality that for these brief moments we have been touching. Neila, the Rambam tells us must

# 2 Pre – Yizkor Talk Here are three Drushas you can use for Yom Kippur – the story in the Neila talk is from Chanoch Teller’s “Souled” book- ‘Full Circle’ and the story in the Yizkor talk is from Chanoch Teller’s “Soul Survivors” – ‘The Gunner

# 1 Yom Kippur Talk between Kol Nidre and Maariv Here are three Drushas you can use for Yom Kippur – the story in the Neila talk is from Chanoch Teller’s “Souled” book- ‘Full Circle’ and the story in the Yizkor talk is from Chanoch Teller’s “Soul