Yom Kippur 2022
The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, is a week away. Generally, achieving atonement takes work through engagement in the process of teshuvah, return. One must admit their sin, ask forgiveness of those they sinned against, and change their ways. But there is one mechanism that facilitated atonement even without teshuvah — the Sair Hamishtaleach —the scapegoat, which was brought as a sacrifice in the Temple. As Maimonides writes: “The Scapegoat brings acquittal for all sins…provided the sinner has repented. If the sinner has not repented, the scapegoat brings acquittal for lighter sins and not grave sins. What are grave sins? Those punishable by death…all others are light sins [and are acquitted by the scapegoat even without teshuvah.]”
In his book entitled, “On Repentance”, Rabbi Solovetchik points out a contradiction in this paragraph in the writings of Maimonides. In the section before that of the scapegoat, Rabbi Solovetchik points out, Maimonides writes that there can never be atonement without repentance.
Rabbi Soloveitchik answers that Maimonides is addressing two different types of atonement. When it comes to an individual achieving atonement, it takes teshuvah, the transformation of the self.
But when we are part of Knesset Yisrael, the Jewish people, as long as we have not committed such a grave sin the nature of which would separate us from the people, then the scapegoat or the day of Yom Kippur itself achieves atonement for us.
As Rabbi Soloveitchik puts it: “When the individual confesses they do so from a state of insecurity, depression and despair in the wake of sin…in contrast, Knesset Yisrael (the Community of Israel) confesses out of a sense of confidence and even rejoicing…the community does not come to plead for atonement, it comes to claim it as its right.”
Individuals are sullied by sin and must lift themselves from the depths, but the community is never in such a state. Thus when we are part of the community, when it is really our identity, we are forgiven along with it as a whole.
We are blessed with a diverse community, some are very learned and some not at all, some are very pious and some less so, some are well versed in the liturgy and some can not even read the siddur. But we achieve atonement on Yom Kippur together before God because we see each other as fellow elements of one whole. We are one community, in this together.
If we can truly see each and every one of us in the community as indispensable elements which make up our whole, and understand that each of us is holy and forgiven because we are one being with one heart, then truly, this Yom Kippur we will achieve unity, redemption, and atonement.
