Yom Kippur 5775 - English

By Rabbi Daniel A. Kripper
Beth Israel Synagogue, Aruba

The sanctity of Words

What happened with last year?

What did we hope for and what did we achieve?

What did we gain?  What did we give?

The sublime night of Kol Nidre refers us to the profound meaning of promises, and how to handle the words that come out of our mouths.

Why is our path  full of promises, as leaves fallen from the tree?

The truth is that we often handle our words lightly:

    When we promise impossible things.

    When we assure out of a sense of obligation.

    When we say things just to comply, without conviction; easier said than done.

In Jewish thought, vows are extremely important and are sheathed by a unique religious meaning.

Time and time again we are advised not to make hollow vows or hurried oaths, which can result in negative consequences.

For people who fall into this error, Philo (1st century) says, they should try to gain God’s mercy, so they may find some cure for the illness that affects their souls.”

Without going to such extremes, what about our unfulfilled promises or forgotten commitments?

The sage already warned about that tendency of fickleness, so human, on respecting vows as sacred:

“Do not be quick with your mouth … It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it” (Eccl. 5:1,5).

The Shulchan Aruch, code of Jewish Law, admits one exception to this rule: it is allowed when somebody makes a promise aimed at fighting his/her bad habits, or to find encouragement for the purpose of doing good.

The Jewish position can be summarized with the following sentence:

“Let your ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no,’ ‘no.’”

Judaism goes as far as comparing the breaking of an oath with idol worship, and with removal from the Divine Presence.

Promises only have value when they are supported by the actions that follow them, otherwise, promises will be gone with the wind…

On this Erev Yom Kippur, all vows that could not be kept, after a sincere effort to keep or achieve them, are declared void.

May we make the wise decision to cancel all inappropriate vows, giving up our attitudes of indifference and insensitivity.  And may we cultivate and produce, at every turn, the vows of love and solidarity.

May our ‘yes’ to the world and to Israel’s millenary tradition be a true positive answer, expressed in specific acts and a particular way of life.

Rabbi Daniel A. Kripper

Beth Israel Synagogue, Aruba