Yom Kippur a time to reflect on the year
Nearly 41 years ago today, Sandy Koufax declined to pitch for
the Dodgers in Game 1 of the 1965 World Series. The day was Yom
Kippur, and Koufax would be sitting out to observe the Jewish
year’s holiest day.
Now, Jewish students will find their own way to experience the
day like Koufax and millions before and after him. Some will miss a
day of classes and sit in prayer in a synagogue, some will fast ,
and some will avoid wearing leather shoes.
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the culmination of 10 days
of introspection beginning on the Jewish New Year, during which our
wrongdoing from the previous year is reviewed.
It’s a time to look inside yourself and recall everything
you have done over the last year that has been of detriment to your
character.
It’s a time to gain forgiveness from friends you insulted
or embarrassed and reflect on and accept regrets while making a
commitment to become a better person.
The day is also an opportunity to vent personal frustrations and
reinvent yourself for the coming year. Although many deprive
themselves of the physical aspects of their lives for the day, Yom
Kippur is a time to celebrate.
We celebrate the spiritual and the realization that we can
change ourselves for the better and absolve ourselves from all the
harmful things we have done. In my fourth year at UCLA, I will
again be missing classes on this day. I worry about the
disadvantages of missing the first Monday of classes, but then I
remember something.
The Dodgers won the World Series in 1965, and Sandy Koufax was
named Most Valuable Player.
Michael Moskovitz,
Editor-in-chief, Ha’am Newsmagazine
Fourth-year, physiological science