Posted on 09/30/25
Baltimore, MD - Sept. 30, 2025 - Think Yom Kippur is all about what you can’t do? In truth, it can hand you the keys to everything you need.
There are simple freedoms most of us barely notice: choosing what to wear, stepping outside when we wish, being with people we love. When those freedoms are taken away, their value comes into sharp focus.
This is the story of Elliot (name changed), a Jewish young man who has spent his late teens and early twenties in a juvenile facility. Over the years, as his longing for freedom grows, so does his interest in learning more about his people and his Yiddishkeit (Judaism).
Over the years since we’ve been learning together, he has come to the point of daily Tefillin and davening, observing kashrus, and keeping Shabbos and Yom Tov.
At this facility, every resident begins in a basic unit with many restrictions. With consistent good behavior, they can earn their way to higher units with more privileges. Elliot worked toward one goal in particular: reaching the unit that, every so often, allows a supervised trip off-grounds—a few precious hours at a mall or park.
After years of effort, Elliot finally advanced. He was elated. Sometime in the coming months, he’d be going out.
Then finally the announcement came: the next trip would be on October 2nd
Elliot stared at his calendar. On the Hebrew date, in bold letters, were the words: Yom Kippur
He phoned me in a panic.
“Rabbi, I can’t do this. I’ve waited so long and worked so hard for this opportunity. What should I do?”
He poured out his heart, describing the ache of waiting and the sweetness of a few hours of air and space. But after the turmoil settled, Elliot said something simple and clear:
“Rabbi, my neshama—my soul—is telling me not to go. As hard as it is, that’s what I’m going to do.”
This Yom Kippur, Elliot has chosen to bask in the flame of his neshama.
And that, at its core, is the power of Yom Kippur.
Because in truth, we all stand at the same crossroads as Elliot.
On the surface, Yom Kippur can feel like a day of limits—no food, no drink, no distractions. It can feel like the world is closing in. But Yom Kippur is not about losing; it’s about finding. It is not a trip to any place on earth but a journey inward, where we rediscover our truest self.
And at the same time, it is a journey outward— out of our mistakes, out of our old patterns, out of the walls that hold us back. Yom Kippur gives us the courage to step out of yesterday and step into a new tomorrow.
Elliot traded a trip to the outside world for a greater one—the kind that touches eternity.
In our own lives, Yom Kippur lays the same choice before each of us: Will we listen to the quiet, steady voice of the neshama? Will we choose one act, one prayer, one step that realigns us with who we’re meant to be?
May Elliot’s courage inspire ours. Gmar chasima tova—may you be sealed for good.
Rabbi Sholom Reindorp is the founder and director of Neshama, a Chabad-Lubavitch organization in Baltimore that restores dignity, hope, and purpose through compassionate, life-changing outreach programs across Maryland