“O Lord, hear our voice in the morning; in the morning, we set them before You with hopeful expectation. Hear our voice."

Originating as prayers for public fast days (e.g., the six days before Rosh Hashanah), Selichot (“apologies” or “forgiveness”) is a beautiful combination of ancient and medieval-inspired poetry mentioned in the Mishnah as penitential prayers for forgiveness leading up to the High Holy Day season. The Mishnah prescribes the order of the prayer in standard liturgy and states that each prayer for forgiveness will conclude with the phrase “He will answer us,” which refers to various times in history when the Jewish people have cried out to God and God was faithful in answering those prayers.

The Selichot prayer has also been blended with general prayers for repentance over the centuries; for example, the book Rav Amran Goan presents a version of the Selichot prayer from the 9^th century blended with poetic writings about repentance that would have been prayed during the days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur (and preceding Rosh Hashanah once that custom later developed).

 This prayer, often said in the morning, sometimes even before sunrise, during the month of Elul (though sometimes starting the Sunday before Rosh Hashanah specifically in some congregations and being recited over a course of at least four days, though some Sephardic communities may recite Selichot starting at the beginning of Elul so that prayer encompasses a 40-day timespan, just as Moses devoted time to prayers of forgiveness on Mount Sinai), is intended as a forerunner to the High Holy Days as Jewish people prepare their hearts for the sentiments of this most beautiful and deeply profound season in Jewish life.

In some American congregations, Selichot services might be held at midnight to jumpstart the High Holy Day season; the midnight services have some roots in Kabbalism compared to those who hold their Selichot services at morning’s first light. Those who have taken on the custom of Selichot services at midnight believe participants in the service will have more time available to absorb the message of prayers recited by the Hazzan (cantor) and enter into the appropriate spiritual mindset prior to the High Holy Days. Sometimes Selichot is considered specifically preparatory for the Days of Awe.

Interestingly, the exact timing of when one initiates Selichot prayers prior to the commencement of the High Holy Days varies throughout the world. There is no precise custom followed by all. Some eastern European communities would even knock three times on the doors of each person in the village, crying out, “Israel, holy people, awake, arouse yourselves, and rise for the service of the Creator!” prior to holding the Selichot service for the village to bring awareness to the upcoming prayer service and encourage participation. But this is not a standard practice in other parts of the world.

The climax of the multi-day Selicot prayer celebration is a recitation of Zechor Brit (“Remember Your Covenant")—a specific passage of the Selichot recited prior to Rosh Hashanah that is longer, typically said in the very early hours of the morning with less deviation from this pattern (not said at midnight as often, for example), and then followed by morning prayers.

However, the exact phrasing of the poems may vary between congregations throughout the world, but the basic theme of God’s forgiveness is a constant thread throughout all the variations of the Selichot. This emphasis on forgiveness means that the poetry lends itself well not only during Elul but also in the Yom Kippur liturgy, which focuses on God’s forgiveness of “transgression, iniquity, and sin.”

Some congregations may also develop programs that are held on the Saturday evening immediately preceding Rosh Hashanah; these programs are focused on themes of Selichot observance, repentance, and forgiveness and might include popular movies that are based on these various themes.

  

This special Selichot service, which the Tanna debei Eliyahu Zuta (a 9th-century manuscript) describes as being instituted upon King David’s realization the Temple would be destroyed, typically allows for the recitation of some poetry known as the Thirteen Attributes, or sometimes also the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy as derived from Exodus 34:6-7. The heart of the Selichot service is the Hazzan and congregation acknowledging God’s attributes of love and forgiveness as described in Exodus, interspersed with the aforementioned ancient and medieval-inspired Hebrew poetry acknowledging our sinful nature as human beings, our failures and weaknesses, and our feeble human longings for forgiveness that only God can provide between each invocation of God’s amazing love and grace.

King David asked the Lord how atonement would be attained, and the people would respond with the Selichot poetry and requests for forgiveness. The Talmud expands on Exodus 34:6-7, saying, “’The Lord! the Lord! I am the same before one sin and after one sin and repents. A God compassionate and gracious,’ says Rabbi Judah. ‘A covenant has been made concerning these 13 attributes…They will never be turned away empty-handed.’”

The rabbis believe that God’s name and appearance incorporate mercy as an attribute of His character, and therefore the repetitive nature of the Selichot prayer underscores God’s mercy all the time. Often, the music accompanying the Selichot prayer being chanted is music of a melancholy tone, implying a sense of longing—a longing for God’s forgiveness and our hearts to be made right over the course of repentance that comes with the High Holy Day season.

Biblically, the history of Selicot seems to be traced to Exodus 32–34, as the Bible combined with Talmudic explanations describes Moses’ encounter with God and acknowledgement of God’s various attributes: “The Lord, the Lord, is loving, generous, long-suffering, immensely kind, and true. He extends kindness to thousands, forgiving sin, crime, and failure. He cleanses…” Rabbi Yehudah, in Rosh Hashanah 17b of the Talmud, describes these “revelations” from Exodus as the Thirteen Attributes. According to Rabbinical teachings, Thirteen Attributes are also alluded to in the Book of Numbers, specifically Numbers 13:28, Numbers 13:31, and Numbers 14:12–17.

Per rabbinical thinking, Moses seemed to acknowledge that if one in a community sins, there is some kind of recitation to God that must take place as part of the atonement process. Rabbi Yohanan describes such a sentiment further along in Rosh Hashanah 17b of the Talmud, stating, “If it were not written in the Torah, it would be impossible to say it: It teaches that the holy blessed One wrapped himself in a tallit like a prayer leader, showed the order of prayers to Moses, and said to him,

‘Whenever Israel sins, do this service before me, and I will forgive the sin.’”

This seems to be the best description of the origins of the 13 Attributes that comprise the heart of the Selichot prayer service, and it does mankind’s best to encapsulate in prayer our desires to seek the loving mercy of God’s heart for each one of us. He loves us, He wants us to repent of our sins and turn from our wicked ways, and He is a compassionate God who longs for the day He can welcome each of us into the Kingdom. But He cannot do that if sin continues to blemish our hearts and our records.

Thus, the Selicot prayer and meditations are an opportunity to encourage believers to reflect on the last year and any changes they may wish to make in the year ahead so that one’s heart can be convicted, purified, and blotted clean of any sin before Yom Kippur.

Along these lines, it is often customary to change the Torah covers during the Selichot service in preparation for the High Holy Days; the Torah covers for the High Holy Days are often white, reflecting purity and the desire for, during this season more than ever, our sins to be made as white as snow (Isaiah 1:18).