A communally-written Al Chet for 5774
September 12, 2013
My first Jewish Renewal Yom Kippur was at the old Elat Chayyim in Accord, New York in 2004. The retreat was led by Rabbi Jeff Roth (of the Awakened Heart Project) and Rabbi Elliot Ginsburg (who was an utter joy to learn with in rabbinic school -- his classes are probably what I miss most now that I'm a rabbi!) One of the practices which moved me most was a practice of collaboratively writing our own Al Chet prayer.
The Al Chet prayer -- "For the Sins (Which We Have Sinned Against You By....)" -- is a laundry list of places where we have missed the mark in the last year. It's written in the plural (though several years ago I wrote a first-person-singular version, which I still daven sometimes.) We recite it in each of the five services of Yom Kippur. (In a traditional setting, it's recited once silently and once aloud in each service, making ten recitations in total!) By the end of the day, the words can feel somewhat repetitive.
At Elat Chayyim that year, we were each handed index cards before the holiday began. We each wrote down, on those cards, anonymously, ways in which we felt we had missed the mark in the previous year. And at each service, the cards were redistributed anonymously, and we chanted them aloud interspersed with the prayer's familiar refrain. I found it incredibly moving and powerful -- especially because almost everything others had written down was something I could have written, too.
For the last several years, we've adapted this practice at my shul. At Selichot services on the Saturday evening before Rosh Hashanah, midway through the service, I play quiet guitar music while people anonymously write down places where they've missed the mark, things they feel they need to release in order to reach forgiveness on Yom Kippur. And then, a few days before the holiday, I collect the basket of cards and type up what's in it, and that becomes the Al Chet which our cantorial soloist and I will chant on Yom Kippur morning.
For those who are interested, here's my community's Al Chet for this year. I share it in hopes that it might speak to you, too, and might help this prayer come alive for you in a new way
My Community's Al Chet 5774
For the sin we have sinned against You by talking before listening
and the sin we have sinned against You by talking without listening
For the sin we have sinned against You by not being thoughtful of people
and the sin we have sinned against You by not expressing gratitude
For the sin we have sinned against You by being demanding
and the sin we have sinned against You by being forgetful
For the sin we have sinned against You by not calling a sick friend
and the sin we have sinned against You by not visiting those who are ill
For the sin we have sinned against You by being quick to anger
and the sin we have sinned against You by not mobilizing for necessary change
וְעַל כֻּלָּם, אֱלֽוֹהַּ סְלִיחוֹת, סְלַח לָֽנוּ, מְחַל לָֽנוּ, כַּפֶּר-לָֽנוּ. / For all of these, God of forgiveness, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement!
For the sin we have sinned against You by losing sight of the positive
and the sin we have sinned against You by not being gentle in our honesty
For the sin we have sinned against You by waking a spouse in the night
and the sin we have sinned against You by putting off unpleasant tasks
For the sin we have sinned against You by blaming others
and the sin we have sinned against You by being self-centered
For the sin we have sinned against You by not giving our children our full atttention
and the sin we have sinned against You by being impatient with our aging parents
For the sin we have sinned against You by not sharing with those in need
and the sin we have sinned against You by thinking we're better than other people
וְעַל כֻּלָּם, אֱלֽוֹהַּ סְלִיחוֹת, סְלַח לָֽנוּ, מְחַל לָֽנוּ, כַּפֶּר-לָֽנוּ. / For all of these, God of forgiveness, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement!
For the sin we have sinned against You through materialism
and the sin we have sinned against You through animosity
For the sin we have sinned against You by not letting go of our traumas
and the sin we have sinned against You by not being kind to others
For the sin we have sinned against You by wasting our time
and the sin we have sinned against You by neglecting meaningful work
For the sin we have sinned against You through resentment of others
and the sin we have sinned against You through ignoring our own flaws
For the sin we have sinned against You by ignoring the needs of our bodies
and the sin we have sinned against You by numbing the needs of our hearts
וְעַל כֻּלָּם, אֱלֽוֹהַּ סְלִיחוֹת, סְלַח לָֽנוּ, מְחַל לָֽנוּ, כַּפֶּר-לָֽנוּ. / For all of these, God of forgiveness, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement!