Yom Kippur Liturgy (Sh'ma Journal: Independent Thinking on Contemporary Judaism Book 44)

This month, Sh’ma explores the Avodah service—part of the Yom Kippur musaf—which includes the ritual reenactment of the moment when the Kohen HaGadol, the High Priest, beseeched God for our atonement. It was the holiest moment of the holiest day of the year, in a place referred to as the holy of holies, and it is enacted by the holiest of our holy people, the Kohen HaGadol. It is then (and only then) that the High Priest utters God’s divine name and we, a prostrated people, are cleansed of our sins. Through an array of essays, we examine the multiple meanings of the word “avodah”: work, service, and prayer. The issue also reflects upon the nature of personal and communal prayer at the holidays, and upon the intense drama we reenact during this ritual and liturgy.