Abstract:
Abstract
The Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) is arguably the holiest and most important
day in ancient Israel’s religious calendar. In the Christian religion, the Yom
Kippur ritual is interpreted to foreshadow the ultimate sacrifice made by Christ
for the atonement of the sin of humanity. Therefore, a theological study of this Old
Testament atoning ritual has the potential to shed light on the salvific ministry of
Christ. Using a literary research approach, this article explores how atoning
practices associated with Yom Kippur might enhance the Christian understanding
of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice. I argue that by fulfilling what the Old Testament
sacrificial system prefigured, the cross renders any atoning sacrifice obsolete.
Therefore, believers ought to refrain from any form of traditional religious
sacrifices because such sacrifices have no salvific value. The paper contributes
to the ongoing scholarly discourse on Christian soteriology, particularly the
doctrine of atonement.
Keywords: Akan; Atonement; Christ; Leviticus; Yom Kippur
