Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is a day of teshuva, tefilah, and tzedaka (with the giving of tzedaka in advance of this day).  It is our heartfelt and fervent prayer that our avodah in these three all-encompassing realms - repentance, prayer and charity - will erase any evil decree against our nation and our Land, and ensure a shana that is both tova (good) and mesuka (sweet) for Am Yisrael and Eretz Yisrael. 

In regard to Yom Kippur, the Torah commands us: אַךְ בֶּעָשׂוֹר לַחֹדֶשׁ הַשְּׁבִיעִי הַזֶּה יוֹם הַכִּפֻּרִים הוּא, מִקְרָא-קֹדֶשׁ יִהְיֶה לָכֶם, וְעִנִּיתֶם, אֶת-נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם; וְהִקְרַבְתֶּם אִשֶּׁה, לַה - But on the tenth of this seventh month, it is a day of atonement, it shall be a calling of holiness for you; you shall afflict your souls, and you shall offer up a fire offering to the Lord; וְכָל־מְלָאכָה֙ לֹ֣א תַֽעֲשׂ֔וּ בְּעֶ֖צֶם הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה כִּ֣י י֤וֹם כִּפֻּרִים֙ ה֔וּא לְכַפֵּ֣ר עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם לִפְנֵ֖יה’ אֱלֹֽקְיכֶֽם - You shall not perform any work on that very day, for it is a day of atonement, for you to gain atonement before Hashem, your G-d (Vayikra 23:27-28);  שַׁבַּ֨ת שַׁבָּת֥וֹן הוּא֙ לָכֶ֔ם וְעִנִּיתֶ֖ם אֶת־נַפְשֹֽׁתֵיכֶ֑ם - it is a Sabbath of Sabbaths for you, and you shall afflict your souls… (ibid, v.32). 

Just as the weekly seventh day is called Shabbos, so too, Yom Kippur is called a Shabbos day.  The root word ש.ב.ת. does not mean ‘rest’; it means ‘to cease, cessation’ (see for example Vayikra 26:6 and Eichah 5:15).  When we cease our involvement with the world - with business, with shopping, with our devices, with the news (which is fed to us 24/6) with meetings, school, appointments, cooking, cleaning, and errands - we cease from the world, so to speak, and hence, we suddenly find that we have the time, mind and heart for the RS”O.

If this is true of a regular weekly Shabbos, how much more so is it true of Yom Ha’Kippurim, which is called a Shabbat Shabbaton - a Sabbath of Sabbaths - with a double lashon of the root word ש.ב.ת.

The Haftorah that is read on Yom Kippur morning, after the Keriyas ha’Torah, is from the book of Yeshayahu (beginning in Yeshayahu 57:14, through 58:14).  The last two verses of this Yom Kippur haftorah read: אִם-תָּשִׁיב מִשַּׁבָּת רַגְלֶךָ, עֲשׂוֹת חֲפָצֶךָ בְּיוֹם קָדְשִׁי; וְקָרָאתָ לַשַּׁבָּת עֹנֶג, לִקְדוֹשׁ ה’ מְכֻבָּד, וְכִבַּדְתּוֹ מֵעֲשׂוֹת דְּרָכֶיךָ, מִמְּצוֹא חֶפְצְךָ וְדַבֵּר דָּבָר - If you restrain (lit. ‘cease’) your foot because of the Sabbath, from performing your affairs on My holy day, and you call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Hashem honored, and you honor it by not doing your ways, by not pursuing your affairs and speaking words; אָ֗ז תִּתְעַנַּג֙ עַל־ה’ וְהִרְכַּבְתִּ֖יךָ עַל־בָּ֣מֳתֵי אָ֑רֶץ וְהַֽאֲכַלְתִּ֗יךָ נַֽחֲלַת֙ יַֽעֲקֹ֣ב אָבִ֔יךָ כִּ֛י פִּ֥י ה’ דִּבֵּֽר - Then, you shall delight with Hashem, and I will cause you to ride on the high places of the land, and I will give you to eat the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of Hashem has spoken (Yeshayahu 58:13-14). 

In regard to the words of the navi (prophet), Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, the Rav zt’l, teaches, “לִקְד֚וֹשׁ ה֙’ מְכֻבָּ֔ד - [If you proclaim] the holy one of Hashem, ‘honored one.’  The Rambam states that the mitzvah of kibbud, honor, as it applies to Shabbos, requires that one wash one’s face, hands, and feet in hot water on erev Shabbos in order to honor Shabbos, and then wrap himself in a tallis and sit with his head covered, anxiously awaiting the arrival of Shabbos as if he were waiting to greet a king.  Kibbud is thus manifested in the obligation to wear special clothes in honor of the day, as well as to await its arrival in eager anticipation.  This idea is based on the fact that the Gemara in Shabbos (119a), citing the above phrase (from the verse in Yeshayahu) and understanding that it refers to Yom Kippur when there is no eating and drinking, explains that the way to honor the day is by donning fresh clothing… 

“Since there is no reason to think that Y”K would not carry the same obligation as Shabbos or any other festival regarding the mitzvah of kibbud, why would the Torah go out of its way to stress that kibbud is somehow specifically applicable on Y”K? 

“The Meiri answers that the renewed emphasis regarding kibbud on Y”K suggests that the kibbud imperative on Y”K is even greater than it is on Shabbos.  The honor that one accords Y”K should be even more than that displayed on a normal Shabbos; one must wear his absolute best clothes on Y”K” (Machzor Masores HaRav, l’Y”K, p.487).

Rav Soloveitchik expanded on the Meiri’s point.  “Y”K possesses two aspects of Shabbos, as implied by the Biblical appellation Shabbat Shabbason, literally, a Sabbath of the ultimate Sabbath.  Shabbos refers to the injunction to withdraw from work, while Shabbason refers to withdrawal from eating.  The magnified kibbud obligation on Y”K reflects this duality; a double Sabbath engenders a double kibbud.

“In contrast to the preparation for Shabbos, when simply washing one’s face, hands and feet is sufficient, the augmented kibbud for Y”K is expressed by total immersion in a mikvah.  Regarding Shabbos, the purpose of washing is to remove dirt, so that one enters the day in a state of physical cleanliness.  Regarding Y”K however, the purpose of immersion in a mikvah goes beyond simple cleanliness; the intent is to achieve spiritual purity.  The Vilna Gaon, quoting earlier sources, explicitly states that the purpose of immersion in the mikvah prior to Y”K is to be spiritually cleansed.  

“As stated by the Rambam regarding Shabbos, there is a nervous tension, a yearning, a panting expectancy, as we prepare for our encounter with G-d on Y”K.  One waits with breathless anticipation for Y”K to arrive.  One yearns impatiently, as if continually running to a window, excitedly counting the minutes before Hashem’s arrival” (ibid, p.488-489). 

As we prepare for Y”K 5785, let us give utmost honor to the holy day.  Let us prepare both spiritually and physically for the arrival of HKB”H on this day.  Let us appreciate the gift of atonement (teshuva), the power of our prayers (tefillah), and the selflessness through which charity (tzedaka) is given.  Let Hashem see the holiness and sincerity of our avodah, and may His Divine Mercy be aroused to save us from our enemies all around.  

And then we put our faith and trust in G-d, Avinu Malkeinu, so that all of klal Yisrael, and Eretz Yisrael, will be zocheh to a gmar v’chasima tova, b’karov mamash, bi’mi’heirah b’yameinu, amen v’amen.  

בברכת שנה טובה ומתוקה