Before the Kol Nidrei service, there are those who read various psalms or prayers, the most common of which is known as Tefilla Zaka. This prayer includes a confession and expresses regret for the sins of the past year, as well as a request that God consider our thoughts of repentance and the suffering imposed by the fast. Additionally, there is a section in which one forgives others who may have wronged him over the course of the year. This prayer as well as Kol Nidrei should be completed before sunset. Following Kol Nidrei we accept upon ourselves the sanctity of the day, and thereby all the laws of Yom Kippur take effect.

Further reading: For more on Yom Kippur, see A Concise Guide to the Sages, p. 285; A Concise Guide to Mahshava, p. 66.

Before Kol Nidrei, two Torah scrolls are removed from the ark and given to two of the prominent members of the congregation. These individuals bring the Torah scrolls to the bima, where the hazan, the cantor or prayer leader, leads the prayer service. They stand on either side of the prayer leader, and the three of them comprise a sort of rabbinical court.

The prayer leader begins with the following declaration:

“With the agreement of God, and the agreement of the community; in the heavenly assembly and the earthly assembly; we permit praying with the transgressors.” (Some communities have slight variations in the terminology.)

The transgressors referred to here are individuals who have been excommunicated by the rabbinical court due to their sinful behavior, and it is therefore necessary to receive special permission for them to join the communal prayer service. Nowadays rabbinical courts do not excommunicate people, but we still say this line in order to express the fact that all participants stand jointly in prayer before God, regardless of their past.

Following this declaration, the prayer leader says the Kol Nidrei passage three times. It is customary for the congregation to recite it silently along with him.

“All vows, prohibitions, oaths, consecrations, restrictions, penalties, and vows accepted with substitute terms, that we have vowed, taken as an oath, consecrated, or prohibited upon ourselves, from [last Yom Kippur until this Yom Kippur, and from] this Yom Kippur until [next] Yom Kippur that will come upon us for the good; we regret all of them; they should all be permitted, absolved, released, utterly void, not confirmed, and not established. Our vows should not be vows, our prohibitions should not be prohibitions, and our oaths should not be oaths.” There are some textual variations to this passage and some congregations recite a version that is slightly different from the one cited above.

This formulation is like a communal annulment of vows. It is customary for each individual to perform an annulment of vows on the day before Rosh HaShana or Yom Kippur (see the chapter about Rosh HaShana, p. 129). Why then is it necessary to recite Kol Nidrei? This passage has great mystical significance pertaining to “releasing” the Divine Presence from being bound up, as it were, in exile, due to our sins. Similarly, in this passage we are praying that we should be released from the various negative habits that we have formed, and that we should be free to soar to great spiritual heights without being held back in any way.

Following Kol Nidrei and some additional verses, the prayer leader recites the Sheheheyanu blessing out loud, and the rest of the congregation recites it silently with him:

“Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has given us life, sustained us, and brought us to this time.”

This blessing is generally recited during the recitation of Kiddush on festivals. Since there is no Kiddush on Yom Kippur, it is recited during the prayer service. Those who have already recited this blessing when lighting the Yom Kippur candles should not recite it again with the prayer leader.

When Yom Kippur occurs on Shabbat, a condensed version of Kabbalat Shabbat is recited at this point, beginning with Psalms 92, “A psalm, a song for the Sabbath day” [Mizmor shir leyom haShabbat], or with Psalms 29, “A song by David” [Mizmor leDavid]. Some communities recite this before Kol Nidrei.

The recitation of Shema and the blessings surrounding it is the same on Yom Kippur as it is on Shabbat and other festivals, with one exception: Following the verse of Shema Yisrael, the phrase Barukh shem kevod malkhuto le’olam va’ed is recited aloud, unlike the rest of the year when it is recited in a whisper. This sentence is not part of the passage of Shema as it appears in the Torah, but is said by the angels in their prayers. For most of the year, it is not fitting for human beings to recite it aloud. However, on Yom Kippur, when God purifies us from our sins and we stand before Him like angels, we recite this phrase out loud.

Further reading: For more on saying Barukh shem aloud on Yom Kippur, see A Concise Guide to the Sages, p. 231.

The Amida prayer on Yom Kippur is similar to that which is recited on Rosh HaShana, including an extended text of the third blessing. Additionally, on Yom Kippur, at the end of the Amida, a detailed confession is recited.

When Yom Kippur occurs on Shabbat, the Amida prayer includes several references to Shabbat, and the Magen Avot prayer is recited following the Amida.

A few words about the importance and structure of the confession recited at the end of each Amida on Yom Kippur: Confession is an essential stage in the process of repentance. In order for a person to repent, he must first acknowledge and express regret for his misdeeds. The confession recited at the conclusion of the Amida has two primary components: The short paragraph of “Ashamnu” lists various categories of sin organized by the Hebrew alphabet. Each category is represented by one or two words, and there is a word for each letter of the alphabet. Then there is an extensive and more detailed listing of sins. Each sentence begins with the phrase: “For the sin (al het) that we have sinned before you with…” A specific sin is then mentioned. This listing of sins also follows the order of the Hebrew alphabet, with two sentences devoted to each letter. After each cluster of sins, the following line is recited: “For all of them, God of forgiveness, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement.”

The point of specifying so many sins and repeating this confession so many times over the course of Yom Kippur is so that one will remember any sins he has committed over the course of the year. The confession is formulated in the plural so that even if there is a particular sin that one knows he has not committed, he can still mention it in his confession on behalf of the Jewish people. When reciting the confession, one stands with a slightly lowered head, and strikes his chest with his right fist upon mentioning each sin.

After the Amida, various Selihot prayers are recited, followed by another confession. When Yom Kippur occurs on a weekday, the Avinu Malkeinu prayer is recited. There are congregations that add some psalms as well.

Following the prayer service, there are some liturgical poems that are recited in many congregations, and many have the custom to study the mishnayot of tractate Yoma, which discusses the service of the High Priest in the Temple on Yom Kippur.