Illustration credit: Chaim File
Prayer תְּפִלָּה
In the בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ (Beit HaMikdash, Holy Temple), the main event of Yom Kippur was the עֲבוֹדָה (avodah), the service led by the כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל (kohen gadol, High Priest). This ritual is sadly missing from Yom Kippur today because we do not have a Beit HaMikdash or a kohen gadol anymore. So our Musaf prayers describe that avodah service in great detail. When we say Musaf, we imagine what it might have been like to see that avodah happen long ago, and we pray to be able to see it again one day.
There were many important parts of the avodah.
1. Korban hattat (קָרְבָּן חַטָּאת, sin or cleansing offering)
The kohen gadol would offer three different korban hattat sacrifices.
One was a bull. One of these would be offered on any holiday or Rosh Hodesh. The two others were special just for Yom Kippur.
There was another bull, too. This was for the sins of the kohen gadol, his family, and the other kohanim.
There was also a goat for the sins of all the Jewish people.
2. Vidui (וִדּוּי, confession)
Vidui is part of doing תְּשׁוּבָה (teshuvah, repentance). It’s admitting out loud that you did something wrong. During the avodah, the kohen gadol would say vidui three times, once before each hattat.
Here’s what the kohen gadol would say before offering the hattat for himself and his family:
אָנָּא הַשֵּׁם. חָטָאתִי. עָוִיתִי. פָּשַׁעְתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ אֲנִי וּבֵיתִי.
אָנָּא בַשֵּׁם. כַּפֶּר נָא לַחֲטָאִים וְלַעֲוֹנוֹת וְלַפְּשָׁעִים. שֶׁחָטָאתִי וְשֶׁעָוִיתִי וְשֶׁפָּשַׁעְתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ אֲנִי וּבֵיתִי.
Please, God. I have transgressed, I have sinned, I have done wrong before You, I and my household.
Please, with the name of God, forgive the transgressions, sins, and wrongdoings that I have transgressed, sinned, and wronged before You, I and my household.
3. Bowing
When the kohen gadol said vidui, he would pronounce God’s full name in a way we don’t do anymore. This would happen four times during the avodah. Saying this name had a powerful impact!
וְהַכֹּהֲנִים וְהָעָם הָעוֹמְדִים בָּעֲזָרָה כְּשֶׁהָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִים אֶת הַשֵּׁם הַנִּכְבָּד וְהַנּוֹרָא מְפֹרָשׁ יוֹצֵא מִפִּי כֹהֵן גָּדוֹל בִּקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה
הָיוּ כּוֹרְעִים וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוִים וְנוֹפְלִים עַל פְּנֵיהֶם וְאוֹמְרִים
בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם כְּבוֹד מַלְכוּתוֹ לְעוֹלָם וָעֶד.
When the kohanim and the people standing in the azarah (courtyard) would hear God’s most honored and awesome name clearly coming out of the mouth of the Kohen Gadol with holiness and purity,
they would bend and bow and fall upon their faces and say:
Blessed be the name of the glory of God’s kingdom forever and ever!
4. Goats
Two goats were brought before the kohen gadol. One of these would be the hattat for the Jewish people’s sins. The other would be led to the wilderness to be thrown off a cliff. But how to decide which goat was which? By lottery.
5. Sprinkling blood
The avodah was messy! The kohen gadol would sprinkle a lot of blood in a lot of directions.
He sprinkled the blood of the Yom Kippur hattat bull and goat inside the קֹדֶשׁ הַקָּדָשִׁים (kodesh ha-kodashim, Holy of Holies) and onto the פָּרֹכֶת (parokhet, curtain). He would sprinkle once upwards, and seven times downwards, counting out loud:
וְכַךְ הָיָה מוֹנֶה. אַחַת. אַחַת וְאַחַת. אַחַת וּשְׁתַּֽיִם. אַחַת וְשָׁלשׁ. אַחַת וְאַרְבַּע. אַחַת וְחָמֵשׁ. אַחַת וָשֵׁשׁ. אַחַת וָשֶֽׁבַע:
Here’s how he would count: 1, 1+1, 1+2, 1+3, 1+4, 1+5, 1+6, 1+7.
He eventually mixed the blood of the bull and the goat and sprinkled that mixture onto the מִזְבַּח הַזָּהָב (mizbah ha-zahav, golden altar) seven times.
6. Ketoret (קְטֹרֶת, incense)
The kohen gadol brought a ketoret offering into the kodesh ha-kodashim and placed it between the poles of the אָרֹן (aron, ark). He would stay and wait for smoke to fill the space before leaving.
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