Having decided on the path of disobedience, they suffered the consequences. Apparently the Chazan was contemplating the possibility of his own death, and so kept repeating the words over and over again weeping uncontrollably. I could understand why you would cry if the verse said that, 'the beginning of all human beings is gold but in the end we return to the dust' because it would indicate that life is a tragedy as we trudge from greatness and glory towards nothingness. But that's not what the verse says. God has given us prayer, and mitzvot and good deeds to perform to bring joy to ourselves and joy to others.
Some religions are very concerned about making sure their adherents get into the world to come.
Judaism, while having conceptions of an Olam HaBa, has never made worrying about it a priority. We figure that God knows what God is doing, and if we live worhtwhiles lives, the world to come will take care of itself. Instead we need to concentrate our attention on this world, and doing those things which makes living in this world meaningful, significant and joyous. For Jews this means living our lives dedicated to the study of Torah, and the perfomance of Mitzvot and Maasim Tovim. This is the task that God has assigned to us.