The blessings of Yom Kippur upon our Jewish neighbors!
It may seem unusual for a Catholic cardinal-archbishop to be so mindful of this particular Jewish holy day. And yet the Jewish Day of Atonement has always had a special resonance for me. While I respect the religious observances of all faiths practiced in this great and diverse metropolis, this one, for me, is particularly inspiring.
During my happy years as a young parish priest, I often heard my pastor counsel the couples he was preparing for matrimony. He told them: “The six essential words you must repeat often if your married life is to be faithful, and forever, are ‘I love you,’ and ‘I am sorry.’ ”
Wise advice, and if I understand this moving holy day our Jewish community commences at sundown Tuesday, those are the six words they will profess to the Lord, individually and communally.
We owe the Jews a lot, especially those of us who profess to be Christian. As Thomas Cahill observed in his book “How the Jews Saved Civilization,” before the people of Israel, ancient humanity pictured their gods as ruthless, vindictive, punishing. No use confessing sorrow to them, because mercy wasn’t a characteristic of those strange gods. Sure, you could try to bribe them or buy them off, but forgiveness? Forget about it!