The three pillars that avert a harsh decree. Why tzedakah is paired with prayer and repentance on the holiest day of the year.
The Three That Avert
The centerpiece of the Yom Kippur liturgy — the Unetaneh Tokef — culminates in one of the most cited phrases in all of Jewish prayer: "ut'shuvah u'tefillah u'tzedakah ma'avirin et ro'a ha'g'zera" — "and repentance, prayer, and tzedakah remove the evil of the decree."
The phrasing is striking. Not "prevent" the decree — it has already been written. The word used is ma'avirin — cause it to pass over, to travel through, to be transformed. These three acts do not undo what was written; they change what written means.
Why Tzedakah Belongs Here