Confessions: Introduction: Achieving Greatness

We attempt to take advantage of every level of relationship we have with God to beseech Him to forgive us for our sins. We express our desire to repair all the different aspects of our relationship with God that may have been damaged over the course of the year.

We insist that we ask for this repair, forgiveness, and atonement, not only for our sakes, but also for God’s sake:

‘Merciful Power’ is Your name. ‘Gracious Power” is Your name.
Your name is called upon us
O God, act for Your name’s sake.
Act for the sake of Your truth.
Act for the sake of Your covenant.
(Artscroll, Yom Kippur Machzor, Ashkenaz, Page 139)

Yom Kippur, when we are completely focused on our spiritual lives, is our opportunity to reconnect with our souls, which are connected to God, and reacquaint ourselves with that which is godly in us. The Vidui – Confession – of Selichot and Yom Kippur is a powerful tool to identify how we limit ourselves and, by considering how to repair each step described in the Vidui, reconnect to our infinite potential.

We will, with God’s help, present one or two stages of the Vidui each day to help us use it as an exercise in growth.