Surely, everyone will agree with me that the best time of year are the holidays.  How we keep  holidays makes our families, our traditions and, really,  our very lives.  What do the holidays that you keep, and how you keep them, say about you?

Right now we are in the time of the most important holidays: the fall feasts of the Lord, recorded in Leviticus 23. The Feast of Trumpets (Rosh HaShanah) was last Monday. The ten days following that are the “Days of Awe,” leading up to the Day of Atonement, (Yom Kippur).   In this time, Jews/Isrealites/God fearers were expected to examine their lives, repent, and get right with God.  Yom Kippur is a day of special solemn convocation, fasting and repentance. Jews  believe that it will set the course of their next year.

These holidays are increasingly studied by Christians because we believe that the Spring feats of Passover, First Fruits and Pentecost were fulfilled by Jesus 2,00 years ago. Many look for a fulfillment of the Fall Feasts now. Others, like Rabbi Kahn, are calling us to national repentance.

Regardless where on the denominations and doctrinal spectrum we are, we can all agree that self-examination, repentance, and getting right with God are a good thing.  Let’s do more than agree. Let’s really get with it. Let’s examine our lives and see where we have not met with God’s standards. Then let’s acknowledge our sin, and change directions. Let’s get right with God. It is time now.

And the ability to examine oneself morally and the introduction to repentance is highly necessary for any child. Without it, one is rearing … something less than full human beings.