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DAY OF ATONEMENT - Each year on Yom Kippur, Jewish communities across the world gather in prayer, reflection, and atonement. The day compels us to confront our shortcomings, seek forgiveness, and commit to change. But in a moment when our communities are stretched thin by division, fatigue, and uncertainty, Yom Kippur can be more than a ritual of repentance—it can be a radical reset.
At the heart of Judaism lies chesed, loving-kindness. Our sages teach in Pirkei Avot that “the world stands on three things: on Torah, on service, and on acts of loving-kindness.” Kindness is not an accessory to Jewish life—it is one of its very pillars. Yet too often, kindness is practiced as a gesture rather than as a force. What if this year we embraced not just kindness, but radical kindness—the kind that disrupts cynicism, rebuilds trust, and creates a culture of belonging?
Radical kindness is not sentimental. It requires courage. It means forgiving when resentment feels easier, welcoming when judgment feels safer, and giving when scarcity whispers that we hold back. It asks us to step outside of comfort zones, to listen deeply to those we disagree with, to show up for those we barely know, and to extend compassion beyond our immediate circles. It is a posture of openness in a time when fear and suspicion too often guide our interactions.
The Jewish community, like so many others, faces polarization, generational rifts, and questions of identity. For some, synagogue no longer feels like home. For others, Jewish institutions seem out of touch or inaccessible. Still others feel worn down by rising antisemitism, by the fracturing of public discourse, and by the struggle to balance tradition with modernity. These are real challenges—but Yom Kippur reminds us that renewal begins not with power or policy, but with the human heart.
Consider what would happen if each of us practiced radical kindness in the year ahead. A divided congregation could become a space where disagreement is met with dignity. A lonely elder could find comfort in regular visits from younger members. A struggling family could feel embraced rather than shamed. A teenager questioning their place in Jewish life could be mentored, guided, and told: you belong here. These are not lofty, unreachable goals. They are small, daily choices that, collectively, can transform the spirit of a community.
Radical kindness is also intergenerational. The wisdom of our elders and the creativity of our youth are both needed, but too often they exist in separate silos. Acts of radical kindness can bridge that divide. When younger Jews honor tradition by learning from elders, and elders honor the present by empowering youth, the result is continuity that is not stagnant but alive.
And radical kindness extends outward, beyond the walls of the synagogue. In a fractured society, Jewish communities have an opportunity to lead by example—by building bridges with neighbors of other faiths and backgrounds, by feeding the hungry, by standing against hate in all its forms. The Torah commands us again and again to “love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” That call is as urgent now as it has ever been. Outward-facing kindness is not charity alone; it is solidarity, an affirmation that our wellbeing is tied to the wellbeing of others.
Yom Kippur concludes with the blast of the shofar—a sound that pierces the heart. It does not signal an ending but a beginning. It calls us back into the world, charged with the responsibility of living differently than we did before. This year, may that sound awaken us to a radical truth: our strength as a people has always come not just from our prayers or traditions, but from how we treat one another.
Radical kindness is not weakness. It is resilience. It is hope. It is our most enduring form of power. If we commit to it—not just on Yom Kippur, but in the days and months that follow—we can renew not only ourselves, but the entire fabric of Jewish communal life.
(Mihran Kalaydjian has over twenty years of public affairs, government relations, legislative affairs, public policy, community relations and strategic communications experience. He is a leading member of the community and a devoted civic engagement activist for education spearheading numerous academic initiatives in local political forums. Mihran is also the President of Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure of TCCI)
