On sufferance: Ol Rappaport’s High Holy Days

‘The Holocaust demands the attention of all people of faith.’

by Ol Rappaport 4th October 2024

Why do bad things happen to good people? Conversely, why do good things happen to bad people?

As a practising Jew, the High Holy Days are an enormous challenge for me. From Rosh Hashanah (the New Year, which starts at sunset on 2 October) to Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement, ending at sunset, 12 October), we meditate on and repent our shortcomings. If our repentance is true we will be inscribed in the Book of Life for a good year. As a Liberal congregant, much of this is stripped from our liturgy (we do not believe God’s love is so conditional), but the traditional greeting remains: ‘May you be inscribed for a good year’.