Article October 28, 2013 ISSUE

Well connected

Tom Feldman

It seems like nearly everyone worldwide is rushing to be technologically connected—especially since the rapid introduction in recent years of speedier Internet connections, smartphones, iPods, tablet computers, Twitter, Facebook, auto satellite guidance, and other services. The highest possible degree of connectedness is eagerly sought after and paid for—often with a significant part of one’s budget, a consideration that never existed a few years ago. And recently many useful “cloud storage” services have been introduced, allowing users to store data files that they can then access through the Internet from anywhere. This urgent push to be better connected certainly does allow people to be more up to date on what is going on in the world and able to connect quickly with those whom they care about.

It dawned on me recently that this striving to be well connected is a kind of parallel to effective prayer—that is, the kind of prayer that allows us to recognize our oneness, our instant connection to God, divine goodness itself.