Submitted photoRosh Ha Shana - Jewish new year composition of a red apple, jar of honey, and Shofar horn for Rosh Hashanah.

The single most iconic scriptural reading augured during the Days of Awe comes from the Book of Jonah. Jonah has been associated with the central idea behind the High Holy Days, namely T’shuvah (the Hebrew word for repentance) for centuries.

For most of us, when “Jonah” is mentioned, we first and foremost think of a whale. Never mind that the behemoth that swallowed the prophet was NOT a whale. Actually, that famous episode of the giant fish is far from the central message of the morality and spirituality intended.

So why read from the Book of Jonah on Yom Kippur? Jonah’s intention from the start is to escape from his task commanded by God, as he flees from his obligations to serve his fellow man.

Jonah is so much like all of us. Cynical of human nature and antagonistic to the idea that our species can change our ways, Jonah believes that man’s very nature dooms him to repeat his ill-thought-out behavior, and that we have no choice but to continue to follow the patterns of our bad and sometimes evil decisions. Generally speaking, his observations are spot on.

The message from The Book of Jonah is as clear as it is essential. We lack faith in our ability to grow or change ourselves. This deficiency of faith in ourselves often gets hidden in a mask of cynicism. Throughout the Day of Atonement God calls out to us and pleads, “I believe in you even as I believed in Jonah. After all, I know you better than you know yourself. I can see your goodness and your capacity to change for the better. You are indeed better than you dare to admit, even to yourself.”

On the Days of Awe, God’s call is hard to resist.

Yom Kippur begins this year at sunset on Sunday, Sept. 27 and ends Monday evening, September 28.

Officiating the temple Congregation Beth Israel’s Yom Kippur services will be Rabbi Barry Altman.

Rabbi Altman is Emeritus of Beth-El in Ormond Beach, Florida, where he served as senior clergy for 38 years. He is on the faculty of Stetson University in DeLand, Florida. Liturgical music will be directed by Barry Germany, who will lead and accompany the CBI choir.