Rabbi:
The Kabalah tells a legend:
At the beginning God said: "Let There Be Light."
Out of space a flame burst out.
God crushed that light to atoms.
Myriads of sparks are hidden in our world, but
not all of us behold them.
The selfglorious, who walks arrogantly upright,
will never perceive one;
but the meek and modest, eyes downcast,
he sees it.
"A light is sown for the pious."
Bischiwo Schel Malo Uwischiwo Schel Mato
In the name of God!
We solemnly proclaim
that every transgressor,
be it that he was unfaithful to Our People be-
cause of fear,
or mislead by false doctrines of any kind,
out of weakness or greed:
we give him leave
to be one with us in prayer tonight,
A light is sown for the pious, a light is sown for
the repenting sinner.
(Kol Nidre)
All vows, oaths, promises and plights of any
kind,
wherewith we pledged ourselves
counter to our inherited faith in God,
who is One, Everlasting, Unseen, Unfathomable,
we declare these null and void.
We repent that these obligations have estranged
us from the sacred task we were chosen for.
Chor:
We repent.
Rabbi:
We repent.
We shall strive from this day of atonement till
the next
to avoid such and similar obligation,
so that the Yom Kippur to follow
may come to us for good.
Chor:
All vows and oaths and promises and plights of
any kind
(etc.)
may come to us for good.
Rabbi + Choir:
Whatever binds us to falsehood
may be absolved, released, annulled, made void
and of no power.
Chor:
Hence all such vows shall be no vows,
and all such bonds shall be no bonds,
all such oaths shall be not oaths.
We repent.
Null and void be our vows.
We repent them.
A light is sown for the sinner.
Rabbi:
We give him leave to be one with us in prayer
tonight.
Chor:
We repent.
