Twisted Priorities: San Francisco Rabbi Gives CPR Courses on Yom Kippur

A rabbi whose San Francisco synagogue offered CPR training on Yom Kippur called the classes "spiritual."Rabbi Micah Hyman of Congregation Beth Sholom told the San Francisco Chronicle that the CPR training, before and after davening, was well suited to Yom Kippur’s focus on moving from contemplation to good deeds.The training was offered at the 1,350-member Conservative congregation during the break between "morning prayers and the closing evening services." Participants learned how to do the Heimlich maneuver and perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation. It’s a new twist on the traditional Yom Kippur rabbi’s sermon.“People will learn how to save someone’s life,” Hyman said. “That one act is going to be greater than any words I could offer.”