An American perspective: Why Yom Kippur still brings Jews together, even without belief - opinion

A personal essay explores how Yom Kippur, the Day, creates a powerful sense of Jewish belonging that transcends belief. The author reflects on the fictional Ed Shapiro, a secular Jew who feels compelled to fast and attend synagogue despite not believing in God, illustrating a trans-intellectual, visceral connection to Jewish peoplehood that has persisted through millennia of exile.

A personal essay by Peter Himmelman explores how Yom Kippur, referred to in rabbinic usage as Hayom (the Day), creates a powerful sense of Jewish belonging that transcends religious belief. The author reflects on the fictional Ed Shapiro, a secular Jew in Minnesota who, despite not believing in God, feels compelled to fast for 25 hours and attend synagogue on Yom Kippur. This is framed as a trans-intellectual, visceral connection to Jewish peoplehood that has persisted through millennia of exile. The author contrasts this with contemporary claims that Judaism is only a religion, not a nation, arguing that Shapiro's experience demonstrates otherwise. The piece is a reflective, first-person meditation on identity, tradition, and the power of collective ritual.