Standing together is lekker

Life today feels like a phone at 2% battery with no charger in sight. The world is shaky, our schedules overloaded, and our spirits stretched thin. But Rosh Hashanah isn’t another holiday to survive. It’s the ultimate chance to plug in, reboot, and stand strong together.

The opening verse of this week’s parsha, Nitzavim, underscores the power of community. “You are all standing this day before Hashem your G-d …” To enter into the covenant with G-d, Moshe tells us, everyone is needed. Leaders, children, woodcutters, water carriers; nobody is optional. We’re all indispensable to G-d’s plan.

I felt this on my recent trip to Israel. Whether praying at the Kotel, walking the Tel Aviv boardwalk, or floating in the Dead Sea, I was surrounded by Jews of every kind; secular, religious, young, old, local, tourist. Different in background, yet bound by the same heartbeat. That’s the reality of Jewish life, we’re never complete alone.

From a Jewish perspective, no individual can achieve spiritual perfection in isolation. That’s why nine of the holiest rabbis on earth cannot form a minyan, but the moment a freshly Barmitzvahed boy arrives, the community is whole. Holiness isn’t about the individual shining alone, but about us standing together.

Together, we are greater than the sum of our parts. A group brings more wisdom, skills, and life experience than any one person. Balancing different interests is messy, but that’s exactly what creates the spark.

Rosh Hashanah is more than reflecting on a hard year. It’s a spiritual reboot. A divine “control-alt-delete” that clears frozen screens of regret, and restarts us with fresh energy. But you can’t download this update at home alone. The shofar isn’t a podcast. Its cry reaches places words cannot touch. That moment happens only in person, shoulder to shoulder with your people.

Of course, if someone cannot make it to shul, the theme of community means they aren’t forgotten. If you know of someone who needs a visit, be there for them or reach out to me or your rabbi or rebbetzin, and we’ll make sure that the shofar comes to them. Because showing up for each other is what community is all about.

So, make that extra effort to be in shul. Bring your whole self – questions, gratitude, worries, and humour. You aren’t background noise in Jewish history. You’re a headline.

Shanah tovah. And remember, shul just isn’t the same without you!

• Rabbi Ari Kievman is the rabbi of the Sandton Central Shul & Chabad Seniors Programs