Yom Kippur blessings to our Jewish neighbors!
You have all heard the story of Saint Teresa of Calcutta, known in life as Mother Teresa. A reporter asked her, “Mother Teresa, if you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?”
She replied, “Myself!”
This humble, radiantly loving saint knew she had flaws, imperfections, selfish tendencies - - sins - - for which she needed atonement, forgiveness, conversion.
Don’t we all?
And our Jewish community inspires all of us as they solemnly, individually, and communally acknowledge this as they observe Yom Kippur.
All of us are professionals in the “blame game.” We look out and worry about problems, injustice, division, violence, and evil in our beloved cities, the country we cherish, the world we claim as our earthly home, and wonder where all this mess comes from.
The answer we usually give is a lot different than the one Mother Teresa gave. We start by blaming others!
The Democrats . . . or the Republicans;
Biden or Trump;
CNN . . . or FOX;
The Left . . . or the Right;
Israel . . . or Palestinians;
America . . . or China;
Christopher Columbus . . . or Thomas Jefferson;
My husband . . . or my wife.
. . . on and on. Someone else is always to blame.
And on this high holy day, our Jewish friends bow their heads and whisper, “And so am I to blame.” Yes, there is blame “out there,” but, as the prophet Nathan shouted at King David, who was enraged at the sin of a man described by the prophet, “That man is you!”
The most critical battleground is not “out there,” but “in here.” Within my heart I experience a war between good and evil, virtue and sin, revenge and forgiveness, life and death. This is a war I can do something about. And we start as we admit that, way too often, within ourselves, the bad side wins.
We are all inspired as our Jewish friends admit this, and we need to follow their example, as we admit our failures and seek atonement from the Lord and one another.
Pastor Tim Keller, our New York Presbyterian minister who just died, wrote in his book on marriage that the three most significant words spouses can exchange are, “I am sorry.” That admission rekindles and strengthens a marriage.
The Hebrew scriptures tell us that God has compared His love for us as that between a husband and a wife.
And on Yom Kippur, they sincerely say those three words to their spouse, the Lord.
And they realize, as faithful Jews, that God smiles and replies, “ I forgive you.”
Yes, we sure enjoy it as the city quiets down, the traffic diminishes, and their synagogues are full on the Day of Atonement.
Most of all, we appreciate the example they give us. Thanks!
†Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York