Sin, Repentance And Yom Kippur

September 13, 2013 Subscribe · Forward Sin, Repentance And Yom Kippur The most common word for sin in the Jewish tradition, chet, is a term borrowed from archery, one meaning 'missing the mark.' Chet is the most common Hebrew word for sin but hardly the only one. For there are many ways in which human beings wrong one another. Often we sin by clumsiness or coarseness, by indifference or inadvertence. These misdeeds are, like the English word 'shortcomings,' best described as missing the mark. But we are also cruel, violent, at times vicious. The human soul has darknesses whose depths are not comprehended by 'oversights' or 'blunders.' If you take your soul seriously then you take sin seriously. Continue reading... Archbishop Desmond Tutu Weighs In On Pope Francis 'Long Overdue' Decision Approves Female Bishops Much More Than Atonement WATCH: American Soldier's Jaw-Dropping Response To Islamophobe Is Vatican Shielding Archbishop From Sex Abuse Investigation? Teenage Exorcists Believe 'Harry Potter' Is Satanic Is Vatican Shielding Archbishop From Sex Abuse Investigation? WATCH: What You Should Know About Yom Kippur WATCH: American Soldier's Jaw-Dropping Response To Islamophobe Teenage Exorcists Believe 'Harry Potter' Is Satanic WATCH: Fox News Host Is 'Tired Of Atheists' ARIANNA HUFFINGTON Huffington This Week: The Big Questions In this week's issue, Jaweed Kaleem looks at the state of American conversation around "the big questions," as students return to college campuses across the country. And elsewhere in the issue, we feature the voice of New York farmer Bob Comis, who reflects on his own humanity in a haunting piece about killing for a living. Continue reading... RABBI MARC SCHNEIER Yom Kippur and Blaming Others Jews, who know only too well what it feels like to be wrongfully scapegoated, must stand with our Muslim brothers and sisters when they are subjected to the same kind of defamation and character assassination. Continue reading... RABBI EDWARD BERNSTEIN Writing the Next Act of Our Lives on Yom Kippur On Yom Kippur, our day of renewal, our tradition provides us with stage directions and a powerful script. The day is further enriched by the improvisational theater that we provide ourselves. Continue reading... JACOB COMBS Why I Fast: A Meditation for Yom Kippur Towards the beginning, the primary motivation for my fast was probably a sense of obligation and maybe of accomplishment. But over the course of a decade, I've come to look upon my fast as a privilege -- a complex, deeply personal opportunity. Continue reading... JONATHAN D. LOVITZ On Yom Kippur, Pride Is a Mitzvah A few years back, during my Logo TV days, I was asked to be Grand Marshal of Orlando Pride. This was a huge honor for me. However, that year torrential rain forced Pride to be moved a month later -- smack dab on Yom Kippur. Oy vey! Continue reading... Received this from a friend? Sign up for alerts from The Huffington Post here. Unsubscribe here. Huffington Post, 770 Broadway, New York, NY 10003