We conclude the al cheit confessional prayers of Yom Kippur with the following declaration:
“אֱ-לֹהַי, עַד שֶׁלּא נוֹצַרְתִּי אֵינִי כְדַאי. וְעַכְשָׁיו שֶׁנּוֹצַרְתִּי כְּאִלּוּ לא נוֹצַרְתִּי.”
“My God, before I was formed, I was of no worth. And now that I have been formed, it is as if I was not formed.”
The Talmud (Berachot 17a) records that fourth-century scholar Rava composed this prayer, but its meaning is unclear. Before I was formed, of course I was of no worth — I did not exist yet! And after I was formed — why does it say that “it is as if I was not formed”? Do I exist or not?
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