Rebbetzen Anna Reflects on Rosh Hashana and Covid

Last year on Rosh Hashana (5780) as we gathered in Shuls across the world as normal, offering up our sincere prayers for a healthy and successful year to come, the Almighty had a vision for the coming year which none of us could have ever dreamed of…

I remember seeing images from the news in January/February of people in Wuhan doing their errands and shopping wearing white face masks. The worry and anxiety in their eyes was staring out from beneath…we also saw corpses covered in tarpaulin at the sides of streets in China and then Italy…it was like scenes from a horror film.
Never did we think here in the UK life would come to a stand-still and almost everything we took for granted would have to be re-thought and re-assessed.

Our family was not spared the virus (thank God we were healthy enough to battle it) but we have suffered all the other consequences the nation has had to sacrifice such as A levels and GCSE’s cancelled and normal NHS services eg orthopedic surgeons not being able to operate when we needed them!

As I write this I still have children who have not been to school for over 6 months, had very little social contact with friends their own age, climbed the walls virtually and literally…thank God we all love each other and get on (most of the time!)…

Now as we anticipate Rosh Hashana very soon PG back together in Shul we can maximise this preceding month of Elul to take a step back and reflect on how COVID has changed us, what did we learn and who do we want to become this coming year?

The month of Elul is symbolised in the Zodiac (Kabbalistic source) as Virgo – the pure maiden. This teaches us that even if we have fallen spiritually during the year, with sincere teshuva (repentance) Hashem will wipe our slate clean and we can return to spiritual purity.

Teshuva involves 4 stages:

1. Stopping doing the transgression

2. Regretting it

3. Confession in your own words to Hashem (Al Chet is specifically formulated to include all forms of wrong-doing which we say collectively on Yom Kippur)

4. Not transgressing again if in a similar situation (eg you are with people who start to speak Loshon Hora – refrain from the conversation or politely walk away)

In fact some prominent Rabbis in Israel said in the early months of Corona, this virus is to punish us for the specific sin of Loshon Hora (negative speech about another even if true), because speaking loshon hora is likened to opening up a bag of feathers in the wind. After a few hours you would not be able to locate all the feathers because the wind has blown them in all different directions. We know this to be true with gossip or hear-say…once somebody starts a rumour it can get out of control and have devastating consequences for an individual. Similarly the Corona virus spreads so easily it’s almost impossible to trace where it has come from and how many people may be affected.

I bumped into an old friend in Tesco the other day. Wearing face masks you can still distinguish a friend from their eyes (eyes really are the window into the soul of another). Trying to speak and smile with a face mask on can be challenging as you will know but I felt that I was choosing my words more carefully with this physical restriction. I think I understand what the Rabbis were saying now – we all need to think about communicating to each other with that bit more love and care.

I also think as a community, Jewish and beyond, the COVID pandemic has taught us all to be sensitive, mindful and concerned for each other’s welfare – nobody has escaped scott free from the super rich to less financially secure – it has been a global experience.

We are all sadly too aware of the negative consequences Corona has brought but let’s focus on the positives – families and friends reunited over Zoom, tremendous community spirit etc. People are appreciating the natural world more than ever, spending more time outdoors and pollution levels are at an all-time low.

In my opinion I think if ever mankind could have a united faith in God it is now! Corona clearly came with a message to us from Him which is still baffling the greatest scientists.  Even with billions of pounds of government funding and support they cannot vaccinate against it…until it’s spiritual purpose has been realised and our belief in God proclaimed!

So let’s take what we can from this unprecedented year to grow.

Let’s be ready to allow the piercing sound of the Shofar to penetrate our hearts and souls this coming Rosh Hashana like never before. We are taught that the Shofar literally is the pure cry of our soul – it has no words – it is beyond words – it is either longing (tekiah) or broken (terura)…it is our spiritual wake-up call.

The shofar represents all of our sincere thoughts, feelings and prayers for a good year to come for ourselves, our families and the entire world.

May Hashem judge us all favourably for a healthy and happy year ahead, transforming restrictions and lock-downs into renewed and grateful appreciation of joy to be alive!

May we only be blessed with goodness and peace.

Love Anna xx