大象传媒

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Rabbi Alex Chapper, Community Rabbi
Borehamwood & Elstree Synagogue
Good morning

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy is the old proverb

Perhaps we could modernise it slightly by exchanging 鈥渄ull鈥� for 鈥渄epressed鈥�

As technology was advancing it promised to free us up to enjoy more leisure time - they said that computers and robots would do the menial work and make our lives easier

The reality has been somewhat different - we鈥檙e working longer hours, we鈥檙e expected to be constantly connected - did you know that the average person checks their phone 200 times a day and rates of depression and anxiety, especially amongst young people, has risen dramatically in the last 25 years

As an antidote to this, many are now choosing one day a week for a Digital Detox and disconnecting from electronic devices such as smartphones and computers as a way of reducing stress and focusing more on social interaction.

This idea has been part of Jewish tradition for centuries - we call it Shabbat - the Sabbath - a day of rest when we disconnect from the virtual world and reconnect with the real world, with family and friends, with our community and ultimately with G-d.

We can easily forget that we work for a living rather than live to work so taking some time to appreciate what鈥檚 truly important in life is needed more than ever

So let鈥檚 pray that we remember that no-one ever says 鈥淚 wish I spent more time in the office鈥�

Let鈥檚 remember that there鈥檚 more to life than YouTube and Facebook

Let鈥檚 remember it won鈥檛 be our smartphones or our computers that miss us when we鈥檙e gone.

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