Reconnections With Man And God By Rabbi Dr Jeffrey M. Cohen When Bernie invited me to write an article for this edition of the shul magazine, he not only tied me down to the number of words and to a deadline of five days, but also to the topic of “reconnection” and to the specific aspects that he wished me to deal with, namely “reconnecting” with each other after eighteen months of Corona lockdown and isolation, or reconnecting with Hashem during the Yamim Noraim. If ever a writer’s hands were ‘bound’!! But, why should they not be ‘bound,’ given that that is precisely the rootmeaning of the word, “(re)connection,” as derived from the Latin, con (‘together’) + nectere (‘to bind’)? Indeed, in a real sense this nuance is applicable to both the contexts I have been asked to discuss. To be ‘bound’ suggests a state of restriction. In the case of lockdown that situation certainly requires no elucidation, given the multiple restrictions it imposed on our daily lives. But Jews are fatalists, in the sense that we believe that a higher purpose 16 | Rosh Hashanah 2021
directs our destiny, to which our ready response has always been גם זו לטובה, ‘this is also for the best!’ And no matter how dire the threat to our nation, that guiding principle of faith has always seen us through. It was poetically and lyrically enunciated by the psalmist in one of the most familiar of his psalmverses, one which, coincidentally, also opens with the word gam: גם כי אלך בגיא – צלמות לא אירא רע כי אתה עמדיThough I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil for You are with me (Ps. 23:4). He taught us thereby a lesson that is vital to the full appreciation of life: namely to be aware of its fragility, and, in consequence, to take nothing for granted, to be grateful for every small blessing, and to set every setback or sorrow against contemplation of the manifold joys, achievements and enriching relationships that make life so interesting, challenging and full. King David experienced all the agonies and ecstasies of life, and described them as they were, no holds barred. And hence his employment of
