Pessimistic portraits

Two Jewish authors offer Ecclesiastes-flavored novels | Marvin Olasky

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement for Jews, begins at sunset on Sept. 17 this year. It's the 10th and last of the High Holy Days: The operating idea is that on the first day, Rosh Hashanah, God judges most of mankind and pencils in His judgments in the Book of Life—but He can make changes until Yom Kippur, when the Book is closed and sealed.

It's partly true that Judaism is a religion of works, with the Orthodox trying to keep most of the 613 Torah commandments and ending up with more pluses than minuses, but that's too simple. Yes, actions are central, but the High Holy Days are a time for repentance that can make up for a multitude of failures. The last hour of Yom Kippur includes a service called Neilah: It's the only service during which the doors to each synagogue's Ark (home to Torah scrolls) stay open throughout, indicating that the gates of Heaven are still open but will imminently close.