One of the most memorable times of my life was being in Jerusalem for Yom Kippur (you can read my post from 2017 here.) It is that time again, and I have been watching the camera feed from the Kotel (Western Wall) and longing to be back there, so I thought I would share a video from last night’s prayers at the Wall and a little information:
[Video from YouTube from with footage from a Jerusalem Post piece and from the Kotel camera feed.]
Yom Kippur, the most solemn day of the year in Judaism, begins today at sundown. Yom Kippur, means Day (Yom) of Atonement (Kippur literally means Covering.)
Before Yom Kippur, the faithful have engaged in 40 days of prayer, with particular focus on the last 10 days since Rosh Hashanah. The prayers are both penitential and filled with thanksgiving for God’s mercy. Last night and well into the early hours of the morning, over 100,000 Jewish men, women, and children from Israel and around the world, gathered at the Western Wall for Selichot prayers (which means forgiveness.)
An important part of the Selichot prayers are recitations of Psalm 27 and the “13 Attributes of God’s Mercy” which are drawn from Exodus 34:6-7. They are a wonderful reminder of the nature of the LORD.
Here are the 13 attributes, drawn from the website “My Jewish Learning”:
- The Lord! God is merciful before a person sins! Even though aware that future evil lies dormant within him.
- The Lord! God is merciful after the sinner has gone astray.
- God (El)–a name that denotes power as ruler over nature and humankind, indicating that God’s mercy sometimes surpasses even the degree indicated by this name.
- Compassionate –God is filled with loving sympathy for human frailty does not put people into situations of extreme temptation, and eases the punishment of the guilty.
- Gracious –God shows mercy even to those who do not deserve it consoling the afflicted and raising up the oppressed.
- Slow to anger –God gives the sinner ample time to reflect, improve, and repent.
- Abundant in Kindness –God is kind toward those who lack personal merits, providing more gifts and blessings than they deserve; if one’s personal behavior is evenly balanced between virtue and sin, God tips the scales of justice toward the good.
- Truth –God never reneges on His word to reward those who serve Him.
- Preserver of kindness for thousands of generations.
- Forgiver of iniquity–God forgives intentional sin resulting from an evil disposition, as long as the sinner repents.
- Forgiver of willful sin –God allows even those who commit a sin with the malicious intent of rebelling against and angering Him the opportunity to repent.
- Forgiver of error–God forgives a sin committed out of carelessness, thoughtlessness, or apathy.
- Who cleanses –God is merciful, gracious, and forgiving, wiping away the sins of those who truly repent; however, if one does not repent, God does not cleanse.
Such power in the gathering for Yom Kippur and such beauty in the thirteen attributes.
Thank you for posting.
Jean
Jean – Thank you. It’s really nice to see those photos and go back there in memory too.