BETH YESHURUN AND COVID-19
Dear Friends:
 
We are living in extraordinary times and must be flexible and responsive. Acting out of a love for our fellow human beings, effective immediately we are making several significant changes to our normal flow of congregation life:
 
  1. All in-person religious services, events, and adult education classes (JLP) are suspended until further notice. This includes daily minyanim in the Chapel, Friday and Saturday Shabbat services, the Museum Minyan, and the Chapel. For those who are in aveilut or observing a yahrzeit and will not have the opportunity to say Kaddish with a minyan, we encourage you to use this alternate tefillah.
  2. In order to stay connected and engaged while our campus is closed we are increasing our virtual t'fillah options:
  • Sunday through Thursday evenings at 6:00 PM, a clergy member will read 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 this evening as Rabbi Strauss and Cantor Finkelstein lead us in prayer.
  • Shabbat Services on Friday at 6:00PM and Shabbat morning at 9:30AM, with our clergy only, will continue to be streamed live on our website and social media. Excerpts from Siddur Lev Shalem can be found here. Jewish law allows those watching to say "Amen" as if they were present in the room, thereby fully participating in the service.
A few ways we can support each other during this time:
  • Join our Chesed Team to connect with seniors living alone. It is vital that we stay connected to those in our congregation who are most vulnerable during this time of social distancing. This team is led by Jonathan Baliff, email him at jbaliff@me.com to join the team and help make phone calls. We also encourage you to make calls to your own family and friends to stay connected and ensure that they are safe and well.
  • Jewish Family Services is offering counseling services for anyone needing extra support during this difficult time. Individuals may make appointments for counseling by completing this form or calling JFS at 713.986.7832.
We are extremely fortunate to live in a time when technology allows us to gather and stay connected to one another even if not face-to-face. If you have not yet done so, now is the time to:
  • "Like" us on Facebook and "subscribe" to our YouTube Channel.
  • Sign up for Zoom (it is free). Online learning and opportunities to “gather” virtually are coming soon, and this is the program we will use.
  • Bookmark the Beth Yeshurun website as you will be able to find all of our news, live streaming, classes, and more!
While our campus is temporarily closed, our clergy is still very much here to support you. We hope that you will join us this coming shabbat where Rabbi Strauss with give a message of encouragement during this difficult time. Thank you for your understanding and partnership as we put into place these new procedures to help keep our community safe.

Rabbi Brian Strauss, Senior Rabbi
Andy Burger, Executive Director
Jerrad Bloome, President
Rabbi Brian Strauss - Finding Hope During this Time
Shabbat Friday, March 13, 2020