Yom Kippur's Surprising Message: Connecting Spirituality and Daily Life
Rabbi Avraham Bles argues that Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, is not meant to detach individuals from the world, but rather to teach them how to integrate spirituality with life, encompassing family, health, and acts of kindness. The common perception of Yom Kippur as solely a spiritual day, where people resemble angels and spend it in prayer, often leads to individuals fasting even when medically advised against it, causing distress over their inability to fast. However, historical and religious texts suggest a different understanding.
The Mishnah, for instance, refers to Yom Kippur as a day for matchmaking, highlighting its connection to family life. The requirement for the High Priest to be married to perform his duties underscores the day's emphasis on family. The Jerusalem Talmud further illustrates this by permitting actions like walking through water to fulfill a mitzvah, including visiting one's family, indicating that strengthening family ties can supersede certain Yom Kippur restrictions.
During the Temple era, Yom Kippur was not exclusively spent in continuous prayer. Large crowds gathered near the Temple awaiting the High Priest's emergence. Furthermore, the High Priest's prayer itself, as recorded in the Jerusalem Talmud, emphasizes the importance of the material world, praying for spiritual shortcomings rather than physical or financial ones.
Rabbi Bles posits that the public's strong adherence to abstaining from the material world on Yom Kippur stems from a long exile that has led to Judaism being perceived as disconnected from practical life, contrary to the "Torah of the Land of Israel" which grounds spirituality in practical action. Yom Kippur serves as a test of whether this understanding of the material world's importance is grasped.
The tension between a detached spiritual view and the importance of the material world is particularly evident in health-related matters. Judaism prioritizes saving a life, overriding the Yom Kippur fast if there's any doubt about a health risk. The example of Rabbi Yisrael Salanter, who broke the fast with other rabbis during a cholera epidemic to prevent the public from fasting and risking their health, exemplifies this principle. The article also recounts stories from the Jerusalem Talmud illustrating how neglecting practical needs, like providing food for children or properly storing wine, can have dire consequences, even on Yom Kippur.
The commandment to eat on the 9th of Tishrei, the day before Yom Kippur, is presented as a reminder of the importance of eating. The fast itself is explained as a call to open the heart, with difficult physical conditions prompting introspection. Isaiah's prophecy, as read on Yom Kippur morning, suggests God desires an open heart and acts of kindness over mere fasting. The Jerusalem Talmud interprets the verse "Is this the fast I have chosen?" to mean that the fast itself is not the goal, but rather a means to open the heart to acts of kindness, revealing the true nature of the Jewish people as modest, merciful, and charitable.