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With COVID’s resurgence ahead of the High Holidays, some synagogues are bringing pandemic guidelines back. But for most, it’s ‘business as usual.’
(JTA) — For synagogues across the country, it’s becoming a standard part of preparing for the High Holidays: Set up extra seating in the sanctuary. Make sure the shofars are in order. Take out the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur prayer books.
And figure out what, if anything, to do about COVID-19.
As Jews worldwide approach their fourth High Holiday season following the emergence of COVID, a resurgence of infections has forced the illness back into headlines and congregational planning meetings. But by now, rabbis say, they’re used to it — and several told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that rising case rates are not upending their plans for Rosh Hashanah, which begins Friday night and promises crowded synagogues nationwide.
“We’re trying to keep ourselves healthy, but it’s business as usual,” said Mara Nathan, the senior rabbi at Temple Beth-El, a Reform synagogue in San Antonio, Texas. Daniel Weiner, rabbi of Temple De Hirsch Sinai in Seattle, said of his Reform congregation, “We’re just trying to move on with our lives.”
The latest concerns about COVID have been driven by a new variant, known by the name Pirola, which has caused an uptick in cases and hospitalizations across the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded that the variant “may be more capable of causing infection” among people who have had COVID or been vaccinated, though the risk of serious illness remains low. On Monday, the Food and Drug Administration approved a new booster shot that will soon be available.
But for many communities, the recent wave of cases is merely a sign that COVID-19 has become endemic and will transition into a seasonal illness like the flu, which has its anticipated but manageable spikes.
As it did last year, Temple De Hirsch Sinai will offer an online streaming option for those who wish to stay home, but otherwise will not be instituting any COVID guidelines. Weiner said he has encouraged his community to use common sense and respect in deciding whether to attend services in person.
And at Kehillat Etz Chayim, a Modern Orthodox congregation in suburban Detroit, masks will be available and the community has been told to test if they are not feeling well. Rabbi Asher Lopatin, who leads the synagogue, said this year’s COVID surge “surprised us a little bit,” and that if it had hit Michigan sooner there may have been more precautions in place.
“I think if we had a few more weeks of it, we’d be stricter than last year,” he said.
At the Chicago Loop Synagogue in that city’s downtown, president Lee Zoldan said the building’s architecture lends itself to the “podding” and social distancing that were recommended during the pandemic’s most severe stages. The synagogue features a 535-seat, three-story-tall sanctuary, and the synagogue has a longstanding custom of having attendees sit in small groups by family.
Zoldan said that the synagogue is considering limiting the number of people allowed on the bimah, the stage from which services are led. She added that masks and hand sanitizer will also be available for optional use.
“We really feel pretty safe,” Zoldan told JTA, adding that she has not heard much anxiety from community members about COVID.
Some synagogues, such as Congregation Beth Sholom, a Conservative synagogue in Teaneck, New Jersey, and Congregation Beit Tikvah, a Reconstructionist synagogue in Baltimore, are providing mask-only sections for congregants. Beth Sholom regularly has masked sections at its services, and offered an outdoor service during High Holidays last year.
IKAR, Los Angeles’ progressive nondenominational congregation, will be conducting services both inside and outside this year as well, weather permitting. IKAR’s outdoor service will have a mask-only section.
One community that continues to abide by stricter health guidelines is Shir Hamaalot, a volunteer-led congregation in Brooklyn that describes itself as “traditional-egalitarian.” At its Rosh Hashanah service on Friday, Shir Hamaalot is requiring masks. Any service leader who is unmasked will have to test negative that day.
Russ Agdern, a member of the community’s organizing team, told JTA that the congregation has been one of the few that has maintained masking and other pandemic precautions since it reintroduced in-person services. Shir Hamaalot’s Rosh Hashanah registration form references “the dearth of in-person COVID-cautious High Holidays options in NYC” as a reason for its decision to maintain the protocols.
“We have community members that are high risk for COVID, immunocompromised, have long COVID, or have family members or loved ones who fit those descriptions,” he said. Using the Yiddish word for praying, he added, “Being an inclusive community that provides folks a safe place to daven is important to us.”
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The post With COVID’s resurgence ahead of the High Holidays, some synagogues are bringing pandemic guidelines back. But for most, it’s ‘business as usual.’ appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really?
JNS.org – If I asked you to name the most famous line in the Bible, what would you answer? While Shema Yisrael (“Hear O’Israel”) might get many votes, I imagine that the winning line would be “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18). Some religions refer to it as the Golden Rule, but all would agree that it is fundamental to any moral lifestyle. And it appears this week in our Torah reading, Kedoshim.
This is quite a tall order. Can we be expected to love other people as much as we love ourselves? Surely, this is an idealistic expectation. And yet, the Creator knows us better than we know ourselves. How can His Torah be so unrealistic?
The biblical commentaries offer a variety of explanations. Some, like Rambam (Maimonides), say that the focus should be on our behavior, rather than our feelings. We are expected to try our best or to treat others “as if” we genuinely love them.
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, in his classic text called the Tanya, argues that the actual feelings of love are, in fact, achievable provided that we focus on a person’s spirituality rather than how they present themselves physically. If we can put the soul over the body, we can do it.
Allow me to share the interpretation of the Ramban (Nachmanides), a 13th-century Torah scholar from Spain. His interpretation of the verses preceding love thy neighbor is classic and powerful, yet simple and straightforward.
“Do not hate your brother in your heart. You shall rebuke him, but do not bear a sin because of him” by embarrassing him in public. “Do not take revenge, and do not bear a grudge against your people. You shall love your fellow as yourself, I am God” (Leviticus 19:17-18).
What is the connection between these verses? Why is revenge and grudge-bearing in the same paragraph as love your fellow as yourself?
A careful reading shows that within these two verses are no less than six biblical commandments. But what is their sequence all about, and what is the connection between them?
The Ramban explains it beautifully, showing how the sequence of verses is deliberate and highlighting the Torah’s profound yet practical advice on how to maintain healthy relationships.
Someone wronged you? Don’t hate him in your heart. Speak to him. Don’t let it fester until it bursts, and makes you bitter and sick.
Instead, talk it out. Confront the person. Of course, do it respectfully. Don’t embarrass anyone in public, so that you don’t bear a sin because of them. But don’t let your hurt eat you up. Communicate!
If you approach the person who wronged you—not with hate in your heart but with respectful reproof—one of two things will happen. Either he or she will apologize and explain their perspective on the matter. Or that it was a misunderstanding and will get sorted out between you. Either way, you will feel happier and healthier.
Then you will not feel the need to take revenge or even to bear a grudge.
Here, says the Ramban, is the connection between these two verses. And if you follow this advice, only then will you be able to observe the commandment to Love Thy Neighbor. If you never tell him why you are upset, another may be completely unaware of his or her wrongdoing, and it will remain as a wound inside you and may never go away.
To sum up: Honest communication is the key to loving people.
Now, tell me the truth. Did you know that not taking revenge is a biblical commandment? In some cultures in Africa, revenge is a mitzvah! I’ve heard radio talk-show hosts invite listeners to share how they took “sweet revenge” on someone, as if it’s some kind of accomplishment.
Furthermore, did you know that bearing a grudge is forbidden by biblical law?
Here in South Africa, people refer to a grudge by its Yiddish name, a faribel. In other countries, people call it a broiges. Whatever the terminology, the Torah states explicitly: “Thou shalt not bear a grudge!” Do not keep a faribel, a broiges or resentment of any kind toward someone you believe wronged you. Talk to that person. Share your feelings honestly. If you do it respectfully and do not demean the other’s dignity, then it can be resolved. Only then will you be able to love your fellow as yourself.
May all our grudges and feelings of resentment toward others be dealt with honestly and respectfully. May all our grudges be resolved as soon as possible. Then we will all be in a much better position to love our neighbors as ourselves.
The post Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee looks on during the day he visits the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Saturday dismissed as nonsensical the report that President Donald Trump would endorse Palestinian statehood during his tour to the Persian Gulf this week.
“This report is nonsense,” Huckabee harrumphed on his X account, blasting the Jerusalem Post as needing better sourced reporting. “Israel doesn’t have a better friend than the president of the United States.”
Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. The leader’s first trip overseas since he took office comes as Trump seeks the Gulf countries’ support in regional conflicts, including the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and curbing Iran’s advancing nuclear program.
However, reports citing administration insiders claimed that Trump has also set his sights on the ambitious goal of expanding the Abraham Accords. These agreements, initially signed in 2020, normalized relations between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. The accords are widely held to be among the most important achievements of the first Trump administration.
The post ‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
i24 News – Unless significant progress is registered in Sunday’s round of nuclear talks with Iran, the US will consider putting the military option back on the table, sources close to US envoy Steve Witkoff told i24NEWS.
American and Iranian representatives voiced optimism after the previous talks that took place in Oman and Rome, saying there was a friendly atmosphere despite the two countries’ decades of enmity.
However the two sides are not believed to have thrashed out the all-important technical details, and basic questions remain.
The source has also underscored the significance of the administration’s choice of Michael Anton, the State Department’s policy planning director, as the lead representative in the nuclear talks’ technical phases.
Anton is “an Iran expert and someone who knows how to cut a deal with Iran,” the source said, saying that the choice reflected Trump’s desire to secure the deal.
The post US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.