I love the Jewish holiday, Yom Kippur, and I’m not Jewish. I want to join in — even when it involves fasting, repenting, and not bathing. Well, maybe not the fasting and going without a bathe! But I like the symbolism and ritual that reinforces my beliefs. I need to be reminded to repent and forgive. I want to set aside a specific time each year to remember my covenants with God. I want my name recorded in the Book of Life.
In Rabbinic tradition, Abraham “being found faithful is declared a friend of God on the heavenly tablets, and every righteous keeper of the Covenant is registered in the same Book of Life”; (A. von Gall Basileia tou Theou (Heidelberg: Heidelberg Univ., 1926), p. 313. in Nibley, A Strange Thing in the Land, The book of Enoch) (Ensign, April 1976)
The books that men keep on earth are matched by books kept in heaven: Adam’s heavenly Book of Remembrance is duplicated on earth by a Book of Life, “the record which is kept in heaven … or, in other words … whatsoever you record on earth shall be recorded in heaven. … (Ibid)
It usually runs for about 1 hour. The ark (a cabinet where the scrolls of the Torah are kept) is kept open throughout this service, thus you must stand throughout the service. (ref)As the awesome day of Yom Kippur comes to a close, and our future is being sealed, we turn to G-d to accept our sincere repentance and new resolutions, and ask that He seal us in the Book of Life, granting us a new year replete with goodness and happiness. The Ark remains open for the entire Neilah service, signifying that the Gates of Heaven are wide open to our prayers and entreaties. (ref)
During Biblical times, the High Priest performed sacred rites in the Temple at Jerusalem. (Moses did the same thing in the Tabernacle.) The High Priest burned incense and sacrificed animals as sin offerings. In one part of the service, the High Priest laid his hands on a goat “for Azazel” and confessed the sins of his people. Then he sent the goat out into the wilderness. The goat carried the sins away for the people.
The scapegoat has an interesting history. The scapegoat is someone who takes the blame and punishment but is innocent. The word “scapegoat” is really a mistranslation of the word Azazel.
I believe Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins and all these sacrifices are/were symbolic of his life. I must still repent and forgive, and the Day of Atonement is a yearly reminder to prepare, reflect and renew. In past years I have gone to the temple to mark this special day. But I am far from being able to enter the presence of the Lord. I recognize that what I do in the temple teaches me how to become sanctified and converse with the Lord through the veil. As Nibley has said, the Temple is the lab.
The Scapegoat by William Holman Hunt (1827-1910)
Deila,
Thank you so much for examining this topic. Just sharing with you:
“The Lord set forth another series of holy days for the seventh month,coinciding with the later, or autumn, harvest. They are (1) the Feast of Trumpets, (2) the Day of Atonement, and (3) the Feast of Tabernacles.These holy days also held prophetic significance, for they have an important relationship to the Lord’s spiritual gleaning in the latter days.
This article will focus on the Feast of Trumpets. It is important to note that on 22 September 1827, the very day Israel celebrated the Feast of Trumpets, Moroni gave the gold plates to the Prophet Joseph Smith. Since this feast was ripe with meaning for the theme of the regathering of Israel, it is unlikely this timing was accidental. Indeed, young Joseph was asked to meet Moroni for four years in preparation for that significant day in 1827.
Latter-day Saints can find it especially instructive to study some of the meanings Jewish scholars have attributed to the Feast of Trumpets. It signifies (1) the beginning of Israel’s final harvest, (2) the day God had set to remember His ancient promises to regather Israel, (3) a time for new revelation that would lead to a new covenant with Israel, and (4) a time to prepare for the Millennium.”
From: https://www.lds.org/ensign/2000/01/the-golden-plates-and-the-feast-of-trumpets?lang=eng
Also this:
“The Lord honored the symbolism he established for the Feast of the Trumpets in these latter days. On Rosh Hashannah, September 22, 1827, after years of preparation, the Angel Moroni delivered the gold plates to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The plates,
containing the records of a branch of Israel lost to memory, spoke “as a voice from the dust” with the sole purpose of re-gathering Israel in preparation for the Second Coming.
“…therefore I write to you all. And for this cause I write unto you, that ye may know that you must all stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, yea, every soul who belongs to
the whole human family of Adam, and ye must stand to be judged of your works,
whether they be good or evil.” – Mormon 3:20
The Book of Mormon is a clarion call, summoning men to awake, arise, gather, repent, and prepare for judgment. Its coming forth is part of the Last Day’s fulfillments leading
to the Second Coming, the final harvest. It is a tool to convert the Gentile; it is a message, also to the Jew.
“…and also that the Jews, the covenant people of the Lord, shall have other witness besides him whom they saw and heard, that Jesus, whom they slew, was the very Christ and the very God.” – Mormon 3:21
From the book, “Days of Awe – Jewish Holy Days, Symbols & Prophecies for Latter-Day Saints” by Gale T. Boyd
And lastly, the following is from the personal blog of David G. Woolley:
“Take the day for Joseph Smith’s birth. Monday, 23 December 1805. It happens to coincide with the Hebrew day marking the winter solstice, a day that symbolized the return of
light to a dark world. Another date, Thursday, 27 June 1844, was the day the Prophet went “like a lamb to the slaughter” (D&C 135:4). It was also one of four Hebrew days of
atonement.”
And further:
“The Hebrew calendar, Native American Calendar, Enoch calendar and the Mercury
calendar all point to Sunday, March 26th 1820 as the “day for the spirit
to choose a new prophet who has just come of age.” Joseph Smith never
indicated the actual date of his first vision, except to record that it was on
the “morning of a beautiful clear day early in the spring of 1820”. It was also the peak of the maple sugar harvest. That year the Smith family tapped 500 maple trees on their
property, collected 60,000 pounds of sap, and boiled off water by burning
10,000 pounds of wood. It was an all day, all night labor intensive effort
which required non-stop wood chopping, water hauling, and sap collecting. There
was hardly time to eat and no time to sleep.”
http://davidgwoolley.blogspot.com/2008/07/timing-of-heaven.html
Thanks for all your quotes!
Very interesting, as always, Deila. I could not help but think of the passage in Exodus 3:4-5 when I looked at the pictures.
“4 And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.”
I noticed that all of the pictures you posted of the high priest shows him without shoes on his feet. So I thought, “Of course, he is in the holy of holies with the Lord — a place of very sacred ground.” I am sure that is probably why the pictures are depicting the high priest without shoes. That thought was interesting to me. I love the parallels between the Jewish holidays and the restored gospel.
I didn’t even notice that — thanks for pointing that out. No shoes. You are right. You know, not all of our temples have a Holy of Holies. I think Nibley would say that you would have to call those (without) Endowment Houses.
Delia:
I haven’t been able to find an easier way to contact you so I am leaving a comment here. I wanted to thank you for wonderful Nibley collection on your website. I downloaded most of the MP3 files. I will check back from time to see if you ever get his Book of Mormon class lectures on MP3. By the way, you have some really beautiful pictures on the website. Best wishes,
Bruce Dale
bdale@egr.msu.edu
http://www.everythingbiomass.org
My research is in alternative fuels…something I understand your husband is also interested in. My website gives some details of what we are doing.
Thanks! Bonnie lead me over here and it is facinating.
It’s a wonderful holy day!
This is absolutely fascinating Delia. loved every word of it. I will feature this post on my blog on Monday. Jim and I work in the Regional Family History Center in Oakland. We have met so many wonderful Jewish people there that spend countless hours looking for their dead. Something like the Holocaust turns hearts in a very dramatic way. I loved learning about this, every word a treasure. Thanks you!