Quotes

“God forgives. That one fact rescues life from tragedy. The sages said that God created repentance before He created humanity (Nedarim 39b). What they meant was that God, in creating humanity and endowing the human person with free will, knew that we would make mistakes. We are not angels. We stumble, we sin. We are dust of the earth and to dust we will one day return. Without repentance and forgiveness, the human condition would be unbearable. Therefore God, creating humanity, created the possibility of repentance, meaning that when we acknowledge our failings, we are forgiven. Exile is not an immutable fate. Returning to God, we find Him returning to us. We can restore the moral harmony of the universe.”

Ceremony & Celebration p. 11