ALOTT5MA THEOLOGY DEPARTMENT: So, there's this portion of the Yom Kippur service which occurs late in the afternoon, called the Avodah, in which it is described for us the way that the Kohen Gadol (the high priest) would lead Yom Kippur services in the days of the Temple in Jerusalem. You can read about it here or here, and learn all about the massive sartorial preparation by the Kohen Gadol, the sacrifice of animals, the selection of a scape-goat, etc. (After the destruction of the Temple, we can only read the story; we cannot reenact it.)
The thing that always strikes me when reading it is that at one point in the ceremony, the Kohen Gadol speaks the actual name of the Lord -- it is the only day of the year in which YHWH, and not Adonai, is pronounced. And the Hebrews are so humbled by hearing the name of the Lord that they prostrate themselves on the ground in awe, so overcome they are.
I was trying to think of anything in contemporary society that produced such universal awe and trembling, and I don't know that we come close. Maybe it's that we no longer feel as dependent on G'd's protection for our well-being; maybe it's that our ability to create spectacle through technology has overwhelming our capacity to be truly moved. (In this regard, this post directly links with Professor Jeff's below.) I suppose the sight of a newborn baby comes close -- especially if it's one's own. But in terms of other phenomena, all I could think of was a solar eclipse or comet, and I don't think either of those comes close to the sensation that's described in the Avodah service.
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