Rev. Vicky's Message October 2, 2025

Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism, began at sundown today – Wednesday Oct 1st – and goes through sundown tomorrow – Thursday Oct 2nd. It marks the end of the High Holy Days, the period of the Days of Awe, which refers to the ten-day period in Jewish tradition that begins with the holiday of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and concludes with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

This sacred period is a time for deep introspection, self-examination, and repentance, as individuals reflect on the past year, seek forgiveness for their wrongdoings, and strive to mend relationships before the Day of Atonement. Yom Kippur involves a 25-hour fast, intense prayer, and introspection, seeking forgiveness for past sins and affirming one’s commitment to a righteous life and concluded with a communal breaking of the fast with family and friends after the closing shofar blast.

Last Sunday, midway through the High Holy Days, the New York Times’ Believing Newsletter, where they report on how people experience religion and spirituality now, explored the idea of “Awe” in an article by Emma Goldberg, “In Search of Awe.” 

Goldberg begins by noting that her childhood understanding of “Awe” – which was more about “the fear of God” – has evolved into “a different kind of awe, one that is more based in wonder than in fear.”

She shares about a book by Dacher Keltner, a psychologist at the University of California, Berkeley, aptly titled “Awe,” in which he argues that the sensation is not mysterious or unknowable – but rather “is an emotion that scientists can detect.” 

After reading Keltner’s book, Goldberg “sought out rabbis, priests, poets and artists and asked them how awe functions in their lives.” Out of a dozen conversations, she discerned three themes, which I will paraphrase here, to hopefully inspire us all to discover more wonder and awe in our own lives.

1. Experiencing awe is about quantity and not only quality. Whereas we often associate awe with “singular standout experiences,” Goldberg’s panel of awe experts “focus on finding little nuggets of awe in their everyday routines.”

For example, Barbara Brown Taylor, an Episcopal priest, told Goldberg that “awe is reinforcing: The more often she seeks it out, the more easily she finds it. Taylor lives in a farmhouse in Appalachia, and each morning on her walk to the mailbox, she finds what she calls “at least three miracles.” The roaring orange of the azaleas in her yard, the insistent song of a whippoorwill, the galloping of horses at feeding time. At this point, she said, “even a spider can knock me out.”

Goldberg observes, “Indeed, Keltner’s research found that awe, unlike pleasure, isn’t subject to a hedonic treadmill. An activity that brings pleasure, like eating chocolate, may yield diminishing returns with every bite — but awe-inducing experiences stay just as powerful every time.”

2. You can create tools to proactively find awe. In fact, Goldberg’s awe experts “treat awe as if it’s a muscle to develop, not an experience that washes over them.”

“A.J. Jacobs, author of The Year of Living Biblically, has a roster of awe-inducing habits. On the subway, he pretends the view in front of him is a Where’s Waldo? scene and zeros in on tiny and delightful details, like a toddler cupping her hand around a friend’s ear to share a secret. Jacobs wrote another book chronicling his quest to personally thank everyone responsible for his daily cup of coffee. Not just the barista, but also the truck driver who transported the beans and the woman who did pest control at the warehouse — 1,000 people in all, which made the coffee awe-inspiring.”

Keltner’s book traces all kinds of activities that spark awe, “including what he calls collective effervescence, the joy of doing something in a crowd, like marching or moshing.”

3. Looking around for awe can change the way we interact with other people. “I try to remember that wondering about another person is a path toward wonder,” Rabbi Sharon Brous shared with Goldberg. “I want to be carried away by the human experience, by grief and by love.” 

Brous shared about a day “when she helped a congregant with the devastating burial of a child, then rushed to a hospital where her sister-in-law was giving birth. As she cradled the newborn, Brous realized she had dirt under her fingernails from the cemetery. She was awed by the way life and death bump up against each other — and by the fact that people invited her into these intimate moments.”

In these times of grave challenges in our nation and our world – I believe we would all benefit from intentionally seeking out more awe and wonder in our lives to help strengthen our faith and uplift our viewing point. The more we focus on wonder and love – the more we channel God’s Good into the world.

We are all in this together. 

Blessings, Rev. Vicky

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