Yom Kippur Torah Reading

By The Jewish Theological Seminary | Collected Resources | Aharei Mot | Yom Kippur

The Yom Kippur Torah portion is taken from Aharei Mot. In the morning service, the reading (Leviticus 16:1-34) describes the priestly duties on Yom Kippur and the ritual of the scapegoat. While the afternoon (18:1-30) describes forbidden relationships and marriages. The Haftarah in the morning is from Isaiah 57:14-58:14 and highlights themes of repentance and fasting. During mincha, the book of Jonah is read.

Forgiveness

By The Jewish Theological Seminary | Collected Resources | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

much more complex challenge of seeking forgiveness from those who we have wronged. It means reflecting on our shortcomings and forgiving ourselves and reaching out to those we have hurt. These resources provide guideposts on going through this difficult process.

Time Capsule

By The Jewish Theological Seminary | Collected Resources | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

This page explores historical events through the lens of the JTS Torah commentaries that reflect a particular event or time. Starting in the 17th Century, sermons started reflecting not just concerns to the Jewish world, but those of the broader society in which Jews lived.[1] In looking back at the ways in which Jewish thought leaders engaged issues around 9/11, immigration, or COVID-19, consider how we continue to feel the impacts of these events and issues today and how our thinking has shifted.

High Holiday Reflections

By The Jewish Theological Seminary | Collected Resources | Shabbat Shuvah | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

Explore these sources from JTS Scholars, Students, and Alumni to enrich the Yamim Nora’im.

JTS High Holiday Webinars 2022

Join JTS in preparing for this 5783 High Holiday season with two meaningful and enriching sessions. 

Restoring Balance: Exploring an Ancient Paradigm for Moving Beyond Our Mistakes

Sep 14, 2020 By Julia Andelman | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement—yet the concept of atonement itself is rarely explored. The text of the mahzor (High Holiday prayerbook) asks God to “forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement”—but how is atonement distinct from forgiveness and pardon? Through an examination of biblical and rabbinic sources, we will learn how our ancestors interpreted the concept of kapparah, atonement, and the great power it held in their understanding of how human beings—flawed in our very nature—can carry on in the world after we have sinned. 

From Self-Interest to Self-Surrender: Confronting the Challenges of Prayer

Aug 31, 2020 By Benjamin D. Sommer | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

Why do many modern Jews find tefillah so difficult? We’ll grapple with this question by exploring attitudes toward prayer among thinkers including Rambam and Heschel, and we’ll contrast assumptions about what makes for a genuine and meaningful prayer in Jewish tradition and in American culture. In particular, we’ll discuss our expectations of what happens when we pray and the possibilities that emerge when we don’t put ourselves at the center of the prayer experience. Along the way, we will touch on Thomas Aquinas, Quakerism, Thomas Merton and yoga, and the light they shed on traditional Jewish conceptions of prayer. 

Seeking and Offering Forgiveness: What are We Doing and How Do We Do It?

Aug 24, 2020 By Eliezer B. Diamond | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Rosh Hashanah | Yom Kippur

Forgiveness is at the heart of the High Holy Days season, yet it is far from clear what we mean by this term. Employing insights from rabbinic sources, mussar literature and psychology, we will think out loud about what we hope to achieve and how to achieve it as we seek forgiveness for ourselves and are asked to forgive others.