Yom Kipur Research Paper

Yom Kippur means day of atonement.
“A Day of Atonement?” You toss the word atonement around in your heard as your friend, Hannah, explains that she is fasting today in preparation for Yom Kippur. Now you have two words swirling in your head, “atonement” and “Yom Kippur” which begs an entire new multitude of questions, which quickly rush from your lips to Hannah’s ears. “What is atonement? What is Yom Kippur? Why is she fasting for the next almost twenty-six hours? Yom Kippur is the most celebrated Highest Holy Day by the Jewish population, and continues with the traditions and rituals established since the origination of this holiday.
According to Jewish history, the first Yom Kippur occurred after Moses returned from his second trip …show more content…
This continued until the morning of Yom Kippur when after completing his typical daily service, the High Priest changed into a white robe. The ceremony began with confessional prayers during which he pronounced the Shem Hameforash, three times (the unpronounceable name by which God identified himself to Moses at the burning bush), instead of the usual "Adonai," meaning Lord.
The ceremony continued as the High Priest walked over to two goats one of which had been chosen as a sacrifice to God. This goat would be slaughtered and its blood collected in a basin for later use in the ceremony. The other goat, the scapegoat, had red cloth its horns and was set free as a symbol of the collective sins of the people.
The most important part of the ceremony occurred when the High Priest filled a pan with incense and walked up to the altar, and into the Holy of Holies. This was an inner sanctuary where God's spirit dwelled, and this area could only be entered on Yom Kippur by a High Priest. The High Priest would light the incense and blood of the slaughtered goad was sprinkled. At this same time, a priest would take the scapegoat to a predetermined location and push him off of a cliff. A messenger would then tell the temple that the sins of the people were forgiven as the red cloth around the goat's horns turned miraculously white.

Show More

Related Documents: Yom Kipur Research Paper

Yom Kipur Research Paper