Ki Tavo / Shabbat Selichot: The True Story Behind Jewish Guilt

Description

Jewish guilt is for many an integral component – if not the basis and foundation – of Judaism. After all, how many Jewish anecdotes and jokes orbit around guilt, especially guilt associated with the Jewish mother.

Well, today we shall learn that guilt is antithetical to Judaism and actually undermines the basis of our relationship with the Divine.

And the message couldn’t come at a better time, as we prepare for the High Holidays. With the Selichot prayers beginning this Saturday at midnight, and today’s Torah reading delineating the 98 (!) “curses” which we read in a hush – who wouldn’t associate Judaism and the High Holidays with fear and guilt?

But there is a whole other story behind this.

Powerful narratives and anecdotes, with new insights into the nature of sin and confession – all dispel the great myth of Jewish guilt.