All Souls UU Church of Bellville, OH

As Unitarian Universalists, we draw upon many sources for our spiritual and ethical sustenance. Among the teachings that lead us to live lives of justice and peace are those of the Jewish faith. Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement begins the time set aside in the Jewish calendar for reconnecting ourselves to others, to the world, to the Divine. It is a time of reconciliation. This is the day in which we acknowledge the ways in which we have fallen short of being the people we want to be and take steps to once again bring ourselves into right relationship with one another and with our world. On Yom Kippur, we gather to acknowledge and accept the past, and to move forward into the future with uncertainty as to exactly what the future will bring, but with faith in ourselves, in our ability to change and grow, and in the readiness to forgive, to relent and to erase the bitterness from our hearts, giving way to love and acceptance of one another for who we are and what we each bring to the table of our collective feast. Continue reading Yom Kippur, Pregnancy and the Process of Transformation