The author works off a concept of repentence and forgiveness (RF) that lacks political or social ethical significance. Consequently, it's hardly Biblical or even culturally Jewish.

He says in order for you to feel good about yourself and for others to think highly of you, say you're sorry (but "really" mean it, i.e., feel it strongly) and follow up with a small gift.

However, the things the Biblical God is concerned about on Yom Kippur and more generally, for which RF is required, are not the sort that could be addressed by "I'm sorry" (however "really" you mean it) let alone by a dinner or a bottle of wine.

The Biblical God isn't concerned if you are socially acceptable. He's concerned that you do justice. Imagine: "I'm sorry (really!) my economic choices cost you your job, but here's a bottle of wine." Or, "I'm sorry (deeply!) you were held in slavery and subject to Jim Crow. How about dinner some time?"

The author of this piece reduces RF to a matter of private, petty, and frankly Protestant (of the evangelical sort), piety. It's all about me, and how I feel about myelf!

(I'm a Protestant, so I can say this. I know private, petty piety when I see it: No smoking, No drinking, No sex outside of marriage. Always be nice. My economic choices are my own affair. How I vote is a "personal" matter. Etc., etc.)

Biblical religions don't allow adherents to justify their morality or piety by referring to the good it does them. Rather, they say, Following God's commandments may do one good (or not) but, from this isn't the reason to do them (or not).

Every attempt to make Biblical piety or morality appealing by advertising its feel-good qualities makes it, and Biblical religion, e.g., Judaism, irrelevant.

If the author's intention was to elaborate or recommend Yom Kippur and RF to us, Jewish or not, he has succeeded only to the degree he has traded Biblical religion for Emily Post.

Surely there's more to RF and Yom Kippur than this!

I suppose most of us don't feel we are personally guilty of imposing slavery, or Jim Crow, so that is pretty much irrelevant.

Now if we want to talk about a guilt for what our culture has done, what our forefathers have done, etc, that is another issue, and to some extent, Affirmative Action and similar policies (so called "reverse discrimination") do represent society's attempt to atone for past transgressions.

You have conflated two different questions in your post above: (1) According to Biblical religions, why should we follow God's commandments?; and (2) What emotional needs do some Biblical religions appeal to in the course of drawing adherents to them?

The first is a question of internal theology - in asking it, we're interested in the source of a particular Biblical religion's claim on a adherent's fidelity to certain beliefs and practices. The second question is psychological and sociological - in asking it, we're concerned with why people find religion appealing in an age of reason and science.

You've given a good answer to the first question (i.e., we're supposed to comply with God's demands because that's the right thing to do, not because we'll feel good as a result), but you really don't have an answer to the second, more interesting question. See my recent post on this at Athens and Jerusalem if you're interested in one answer: <link>.