On Confession in Judaism - Yom Kippur 5769

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The concept of confession crosses many faiths.  It is not the exclusive domain of Catholicism nor protestantism.

At this time of year, Jews around the world are marking Yom Kippur in the traditional way with a prayer of supplication to God.  It is not just a confession of the individual, but of the community.  It is a means to make the worshipper aware of their failings and to focus them to repair their behavior over the following year.

But confession in Judaism does not automatically grant resolution as it may in other faiths.  One must not only confess, but make amends for past failings and strive to not repeat them.  Only when they have completed these three steps can they consider themselves truly repentant.  It is the individual that must take the responsibility to confess and repair the damages.  It is not for the community to decide the level of sincerity of the petitioner.  Each person is responsible for their own actions and inactions.  They must each make a personal effort and thereby effect the culture of the community.

The following is the translation of the vidduy section of the Yom Kippur service as published by The Rabinnical Assembly in 1972.

Our God and God of our fathers, hear our prayer; do not ignore our plea.  We are neither so brazen nor so arrogant to claim that we are righteous, without sin, for indeed we have sinned.

We abuse, we betray, we are cruel.

We destroy, we embitter, we falsify.

We gossip, we hate, we insult.

We jeer, we kill, we lie.

We mock, we neglect, we oppress.

We pervert, we quarrel, we rebel.

We steal, we transgress, we are unkind.

We are violent, we are wicked, we are xenophobic.

We yield to evil, we are zealots for bad causes.

We have ignored Your commandments and statutes, but it has not profited us.  You are just, we have stumbled.  You have acted faithfully, we have been unrighteous.  What can we say to You; what can we tell You?  You know everything, secret and revealed.

You know the mysteries of the universe, the secrets of everyone alive.  You probe our innermost depths, You examine our thoughts and desires.  Nothing escapes You, nothing is hidded from You.

May it therefore be Your will, Lord our God and God of our fathers, to forgive us all our sins, to pardon all our iniquities, to grant us atonement for all our transgressions.

We have sinned against You unwillingly and willingly,

And we have sinned against You by misusing our minds.

We have sinned against You through sexual immorality,

And we have sinned against You knowingly and deceitfully.

We have sinned against you by wronging others,

And we have sinned against You through prostitution.

We have sinned against You by deriding parents and teachers,

And we have sinned against You by using violence.

We have sinned against You through foul speech,

And we have sinned against You by not resisting the impulse to evil.

For all these sins, forgiving God, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement.

We have sinned against You by fraud and falsehood,

And we have sinned against You by scoffing.

We have sinned against You by dishonesty in business,

And we have sinned against You by usurious interest.

We have sinned against You by idle chatter,

And we have sinned against You by haughtiness.

We have sinned against You by rejecting responsibility,

And we have sinned against You by rushing to do evil.

We have sinned against You by false oaths,

And we have sinned against You by breach of trust.

For all these sins, forgiving God, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement.

Forgive us the breach of all commandments and prohibitions, whether involving deeds or not, whether known to us or not.  The sins known to us we have acknowledged, and those unknown to us are surely known to You, as the Torah states: "The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may fulfill all the words of his Torah."  For You forgive and pardon the people Israel in every generation.  But for You we have no King to pardon us and to forgive us for our sins.

Before I was born, I had no significance.  And now that I have been born, I am of equal worth.  Dust am I though I live; surely after death will I be dust.  In Your presence, aware of my frailty, I am totally embarrassed and confused.  May it be Your will, Lord my God and God of my fathers, to help me abstain from further sin.  With Your great compassion wipe away the sins I have committed against You, though not by means of suffering.

Keep me far from petty self-regard and petty pride, from anger, impatience, despair, gossip and all bad traits.

Let me not be overwhelmed by jealousy of others; let others not be overwhelmed by jealousy of me.  Grant me the gift of seeing other people's merits, not their faults.

May He who brings peace to His universe bring peace to us and to all the people of Israel.  And let us say:  Amen.