Jews around the world will observe the holiest day on the calendar tonight at sundown.
Yom Kippur is the real deal, the Day of Atonement, the day that we have to demonstrate to God that we are worthy of him.
Jews will begin fasting after the solemn meal tonight, and will fast until the end of the holiday, at sundown tomorrow, 24 hours of not eating, not bathing, not doing any of the pleasures that we are accustomed to.
I have to say this: I will be fasting, and it is not difficult to fast, even for this food lover that I am.
The difficult part is that you are supposed to do it while at prayer in the synagogue, and the constant getting up and sitting down during different passages that are read really gets to you after awhile.
I will not do the fast in shul tomorrow, but as I said, everyone has their own way to honor the holiday, and pay homage to God.
After many, many years of attending synagogue during the High Holy Days, I will be doing my penance basically at home.
I am the only one who can fast in my immediate family, so I do it for not just me, but for my wife, my son and my parents.
Again, it is not difficult as long as you don't move around too much, and I plan to not move around too much.
We will break the fast at my sister's house, where I invariably eat to my heart's content to make up for lost time.
My family and I have a lot to be grateful for this past year, and we look forward to a great year next year. We had a rough year, but that can only mean that something better is ahead.
And we do believe that it is.
So if you celebrate the holiday, have a good one, and an easy fast.
If you are not Jewish, at least I have given you a bit of a thumbnail sketch of this holiday, the most important holiday on the Jewish calendar.
Speak to you again on Monday.
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