March 13, 2020
Our Dear Friends:
When
Torah
teaches about the
mitzvot,
it
commands us, “
V’chai Bahem
,” “and you shall live by them.” Given that we are living in extraordinary times, and acting out of a love for life and our fellow human beings, effective immediately we are making several significant changes to our normal flow of congregation life, as follows:
All
in-person
scheduled religious services, events, and adult education and WFRS classes are being suspended until at least Sunday, March 29
. This includes daily minyanim at 7:00 AM and 6:00 PM (and 8:30 AM on Sunday), Friday night services in the Fonberg Family Chapel and at Beit Aryeh at the Levine Academy, and public Shabbat morning services. To help fill the void and keep people connected and engaged within our community, however, we are also taking these steps:
- On Friday nights at 6:00 PM until further notice, one or more of our Klei Kodesh will do a Facebook Live broadcast of a Shabbat service and experience. To connect go to https://www.facebook.com/Shearith/
- On Sunday through Thursday evenings at 6:00 PM, Avi Mitzner will go on Facebook Live to read the names of those for whom people are saying Kaddish during the first 11 months, as well as the names on the Yahrzeit list for the day, and share a special prayer in lieu of reciting the Mourner’s Kaddish.
- Please join us via Livestream on Shabbat mornings, beginning tomorrow at 9:30 AM. In lieu of our regular services, we will gather an invited minyan of our Klei Kodesh and several community volunteers who are not in any of the CDC categories of increased vulnerability for Coronavirus. This will allow us to recite the prayers that require a minyan. Jewish law allows for those watching to say "Amen" as if they were present in the room, as a way of participating in the ritual. Join us via Livestream at https://www.shearith.org/becklivestream.html
- Shabbat morning, March 14, will include a message of comfort to our community from Rabbi Ari Sunshine.
- PLEASE NOTE: For the sake of everyone’s health, the service in Beck Sanctuary is NOT GOING TO BE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. We are going to insist that everyone else stay home and please connect to our service via the Livestreaming option. Please respect this request as we don’t want to be put in the uncomfortable position of having to turn people away at the door.
- For a number of our classes we are planning to offer virtual learning in place of in-person gatherings. We will also add more virtual encounters for our community to "gather." Please continually check our calendar through this LINK for regular updates. Next week we will send out an additional email regarding further changes and updates.
- If you’d like to borrow a Siddur Lev Shalem from the synagogue, please sign one out at our front desk during normal business hours.
We are extremely fortunate that we live in a time when technology allows us to gather and be close and connected to one another even if not face to face. If you have not yet done so, now is the time to sign up for
Facebook
, subscribe to our
YouTube channe
l
and install
Zoom
on your computer. Please bookmark the
Shearith Israel website
as we will still be Livestreaming services and classes, as noted above. We will pray, we will study
Torah
, we will sing, we will care, and we will grow.
Please remember to check in with one another in the days and weeks ahead. Call with personal
Shabbat
greetings. Use Facetime for candle lighting and
bikur cholim
and
shiva
visits. Judaism is built on, and sustained by, person to person connection. And please check in with us and let us know if someone is in need of care and support.
Finally, here is a prayer written by Rabbi Guy Austrian, you might choose to recite as Shabbat begins tonight and in the coming days.
Harachaman, Compassionate One, You are "rofeh chol basar umafli la’asot," healer of bodies, who does wondrous deeds.
The wondrous bodies that You have made for us now feel more fragile. The openings by which we perceive Your world now feel more vulnerable.
We are anxious and frightened by the uncertainty of what is to come. We love the lives we lead, and we fear what disruption may come. We love our friends, families, and neighbors, our children and our elders, and we fear what illness may come.
We pray for healing, of body and of spirit, speedy and complete, for all those who are ill from the coronavirus, both far from us and close to home.
Strengthen the hands of our caregivers. Give of Your healing powers to our medical personnel and mental health professionals. Give of Your wisdom to our decision makers and public health officials.
Strengthen our hearts to confront this challenge. Give us of Your discipline, that we may not yield to panic and dread, but may protect ourselves with appropriate precaution and calm determination. Give us of Your compassion, that we may not yield to prejudice or bigotry, but may reach out to our neighbors with kindness and solidarity.
We are grateful for our bodies and the life You have given us. We are grateful for our communities and congregations who see us and support us. We are grateful for those who are working to protect us. We are grateful for Your love and Your sheltering presence. We know we are not alone.
Together we pray for the ill, for the frightened, for those in pain and those who wait for healing
. Adonai oz le amav yitein, Adonai yevarech et amav be shalom
. May God give strength to God’s peoples, and may God bless all nations with peace.
We thank you all for helping to keep everyone healthy and safe!
