The Holiness of this Day - Yom Kippur

Song of Songs Rabbah teaches:  Just as if a nut falls into some dirt you can take it up and wipe it and rinse it and wash it and it is restored to its former condition and is fit for eating, so however much Israel may be defiled with iniquities all the rest of the year, when the Day of Atonement comes it makes atonement for them, as it is written, For on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you. (Lev. 16:30)

The holiness of this day is not just that it falls on the calendar, not just that it brings us here and not just because Jews around the world are engaged in this ritual, but rather all of them.  The holiness of this day is that for millenia, we, Am Yisrael, has gathered on this day to engage in this ritual and it continues…so long as we do, the kedusha, the sacredness and holiness of this day will be.