Today is Yom Kippur – one of the oldest sacred festivals in the world. At the time Jesus was born (roughly 2,000 years ago), Yom Kippur would already have been ancient. As a Jew, it would have been the holiest day of the year for him.
One of the rites performed on Yom Kippur is to say the Yizkor – a prayer of remembrance for loved ones we’ve lost. This feels particularly apposite given the year we’re having.
I’ve written a Yizkor below that you are welcome to use. It’s also traditional to light a candle. Whoever or whatever it is you’re grieving (because it’s not just people that we grieve), I hope this helps.
Or, if you have someone or something in mind that you’d like prayer for today, let me know and I’ll include them as I say my Yizkor.
If we wished for a lighter life,
It would be a life without love.
Spirit, be with me as I carry this weight.
If we wished for a unbroken life,
It would be a life without love.
Spirit, be with me as I carry these wounds.
If we wished for an uncomplicated life,
It would be a life without love.
Spirit, be with as I carry this pain.
We mourn those we have lost.
We give thanks for their lives.
We remember them.
We hold them now.
We hold the weight of grief
We hold the wounds
We hold the pain
And above all
And above all
And above all
We hold the love.
Amen.
Gideon Heugh
Gideon Heugh 