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Mid-March at the Downtown Synagogue
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Downtown Synagogue COVID-19 Update
We hope you and your loved ones are staying healthy during these extraordinary times. The Downtown Synagogue is remaining dedicated to serving our members and the community, while providing ways to stay in touch and support one another. We are also working on organizing virtual adult education sessions in collaboration with other regional organizations as well as Jewish holiday-themed events (for Passover and Shavuot). We will provide details on those as they emerge.
We invite you to reach out directly to Rabbi Ariana Silverman if you are in search of pastoral counsel, advice, or just someone to talk to during these challenging times.
A Message from Rabbi Ariana Silverman
Judaism is about choices. Jewish texts, and the laws we draw from them, can instruct us in almost every moment of our lives. Sometimes, that can be empowering. We often have the power to choose whether to treat someone with kindness, how we spend our time, how we spend our money, whether to put someone else's needs over our own, or not.
However, we usually do not get to choose the circumstances in which we're making those choices. We do not get to choose things like where we were born, whether it is into wealth or poverty, the color of our skin, the abilities of our bodies, and as we grow, our age. We also do not get to choose whether we live in a time of a global pandemic.
I am wrestling with this tension. I am making choices in circumstances that I did not, and would not, choose. There are times when I am focused on my own disruption, fear, and loss. In those moments, I try to remind myself that Judaism's compassionate treatment of mourners, prescribing different rituals for the first 7 days, 30 days, 11 months, and then each year, can inform our understanding that different types of loss may also go through stages, and although it may not become easier, it may be different, and we need to treat ourselves with compassion in each stage. It has not even been a week since the schools, and then businesses, closed. It is ok to cry.
And treating ourselves with compassion will be critical as this pandemic gets worse before it gets better. We will experience human loss in our community, and if we are unfairly spared a loss in our immediate family, we need to have the strength to care for others.
Then there are times when I am focused on the choices that we do have. They have tremendous power. We have a sacred opportunity to choose to save lives through our actions. Please follow the CDC's recommendations. Judaism does not inform this choice--Judaism demands it. Saving a life supersedes other commandments, and certainly our own convenience. We have a choice to use our words to affirm the sanctity of each life, rather than dismiss a disease that will disproportionately affect persons whose age, body, financial resources, or location make them more vulnerable. We have a choice to support persons who are without shelter, food, water, and/or income, at a time when those basic needs are even more critical. And we can choose to reach out--even in virtual space--to one another in moments of fear, in moments of support, or often, both.
In the coming weeks and months, please do not hesitate to contact me whenever you need someone to talk to. Please let me or the synagogue know how we can support you so that we can respond or refer. And please remember that each choice we make has power. Jewish texts and tradition have taught that for millenia. Even, or perhaps especially, in circumstances beyond our control, we make choices that can change the world.
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Please see below for a variety of ways to stay connected and supported throughout the upcoming weeks.
Virtual Shabbat Services
Friday nights- 5:30 p.m.
Saturday morning- Torah Study at 9:00 a.m., Services at 10:00 a.m.
Zoom call (see below for details)
All Shabbat services will be held on Zoom. On Friday nights, we will begin at 5:30 p.m. with some check-in time, then we will hold a mincha service for anyone who wants to turn off the screen before l'cha dodi, and candlelighting together.
On Saturday mornings, we will usually have Torah Study at 9am, followed by a worship
service at 10:00 a.m.
Note: Saturday, March 21st will be Sleep-In Shabbat. Services will begin at 10:30 a.m. and there will be no Torah study before services.
Link for all Shabbat Services:
Or call 646.876.9923, Meeting ID 594 469 508
Community Coffee & Check-in with Rabbi Silverman
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Zoom call (see below for details)
Starting Tuesday, March 24th, Rabbi Silverman will hold open hours to connect, catch-up, and drink some homemade coffee on
Tuesdays & Thursdays from 11:00 a.m-12:00 p.m.
Please see below for the link to use for all Coffee & Chat hours:
Or call 646.876.9923, Meeting ID 594 469 508
Join us for a very special -and virtual!- Tot Shabbat morning service! Families and children are welcome to join in for community, prayer, and song led by Gavri Yates.
Please join us for our Tot Shabbat Service via Zoom:
https://zoom.us/j/594469508
Or call 646.876.9923, Meeting ID 594 469 508
If you need help setting up Zoom technology, please let us know and we will be able to provide assistance via phone call.
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Community Resources for COVID-19
The staff and board of the Downtown Synagogue is thinking of ways to support our community's needs right now. If you or a loved one needs help, please let us know- we will endeavor to connect you to services or help you directly. Please reach out to
Rabbi Silverman with resource inquiries.
In addition, we are aware of the following community resources:
Unemployment Insurance Agency: Please visit the UIA website to learn about how to file for unemployment.
Jewish Federation: Please visit the Jewish Federation Coronavirus community resource page.
Jewish Family Service: Please view this PDF to learn about all local resources, compiled by JFS. Resources include financial assistance, employment services, housing, food assistance, transportation, and much more.
Yad Ezra: Please visit Yad Ezra's website to learn more about their current food distribution services.
Pantry Net: Please visit Pantry Net's website to view a local listing of pantries throughout Michigan.
JHelp: Please visit
JHelp's website to view resources that may support the local Jewish community.
City of Detroit: Please visit the City of Detroit's website to learn more about the free meal program/food resources, unemployment benefits, water restart plan, and what actions and precautions are currently being taken to slow the spread of COVID-19.
2-1-1 United Way: Please visit United Way's website to learn about local support resources being provided to community members.
TechTown: See information on an Emergency Fund for Businesses Impacted by COVID-19. To mitigate barriers to capital for Detroit's most vulnerable businesses, TechTown Detroit will administer an emergency fund that provides working capital grants in amounts up to $5,000 to qualifying small businesses.
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Tributes at the Downtown Synagogue
In memory of Sam Havis by Alan Havis
In honor of Dina Bucan's graduation from MSU by Vadim and Rachel Avshalumov
In Support of IADS during this difficult period of time by Vadim and Rachel Avshalumov
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Yahrzeits at the Downtown Synagogue
We invite members to share the name and Yahrzeit of your loved ones with us.
Our membership form provides space for you to include Yahrzeit information to honor your loved one's memory. If you are not currently a member, you may access our membership form
here, complete the general information, and fill in the Yahrzeit information.
If you are a current member, you may submit your loved one's Yahrzeit information to
Liz. Please include English name, Hebrew name, English date of death (before or after sundown) and Hebrew date of death. We understand that you may not have complete information, so please include what information you do have.
We invite you to worship with us and say Kaddish during the Yahrzeit of your loved ones.
Yahrzeit reminders will be sent to Synagogue members in advance of the month of the specific Shabbat date when the yahrzeit is observed. We will send an email notification to remind you of Yahrzeits of loved ones whose names will be read at the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate contacting the office at the email above or at 313.962.4047.
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Call for Mi Shebeirach
During our Shabbat morning worship, we read the names of people in our community who are in need of healing. As we invoke God's blessing, we also become more aware of the people who could use a little extra care. Please let us know if you would like us to read the name of a loved one.
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