Many religious traditions require adherents to spend time fasting; this is true for Jewish people at Yom Kippur. The fast on this day is meant to separate one’s being from the mundane activities of daily life and to provoke discomfort in the body as a way to feed the soul.
Try something today that makes you uncomfortable. How does it feel? How does it feel to choose that thing?
The practice of atonement means understanding what you did to harm others and seeking to make amends for that harm. It requires self-knowledge as well as attention to relationship.
What do you need to apologize for? How can you make amends for harm that you’ve done today?
Make yourself a cup of something warm today, something that will soothe your spirit and body. Inhale the steam and aroma coming from it. Sip slowly and deliberately. Feel the warmth enter your body.
Practice mindfulness holding and drinking from your cup.
CLF, which produces Daily Compass, also serves some 1,350 incarcerated Unitarian Universalists. Too many people are caught right now in the carceral state, often held for unjust reasons, and dehumanized daily in the name of “justice.” Think about how you can make change in that system.
Consider becoming a penpal to an incarcerated person. Details can be found here.
If you have shelter, witness the reality of those around you who are unhoused.
If you are experiencing homelessness, we witness you.
How can you bring some humanity to someone unhoused today?
