Jewish musicians perform for the High Holidays, while masked. photo courtesy of Jewish Telegraphic Agency
The Jewish community adjusts to online gatherings for holidays and events.
During a global pandemic, it’s difficult to have large communities gather in a closed space to celebrate religion. Many groups in the Jewish community have either had to put their events on hold or switch to Zoom calls.
Young girls and boys cannot delay their b’nai mitzvahs (bat and bar mitzvahs) for long, and many temples are not allowing in-person services. Izzy Weissmann, a member of JCC (Jewish Community Center) camp, explained that when she attended three Bat Mitzvahs over quarantine, they were all over the place. One was in person, and the other two were over Zoom. Since the religious ceremony of a girl becoming a young woman is hard to celebrate online, Weissmann stated, “[The online ceremony] didn’t feel like a bat mitzvah at all.”
As the Jewish holidays passed, many temples and synagogues created Zoom calls for their services. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur, one of the holiest days in Judaism focused on prayer and fasting, were both in September. Lucy Adlen, a junior at Thomas Jefferson and a member of Temple Sinai, explained that she “hasn’t gone to any [services] in person because [her] family doesn’t want to risk getting COVID.” Temple Sinai also hosted Zoom services, which Adlen attended, even though “[the Zoom] was really choppy and didn’t feel the same as being in an actual service.” Sadly, Adlen feels the virus has “taken away a big part of the community aspect.” Another TJ junior and member of both the Kohelet Congregation and Chabad Bais Menachem, Gavi Fox, explained that the in-person services he attended were not beneficial to him and others. “People didn’t really talk to each other because they stayed far away, and it was hard to hear the person speaking [during the service],” Fox stated.
Another aspect of the Jewish community that the Coronavirus has affected is the youth groups. Many young adults all over belong to BBYO, but the community hasn’t felt the same to many since the outbreak of COVID. Fox belongs to BBYO as well, and he stated that “the pandemic also hindered BBYO by stopping a lot of events and making everything online.” BBYO is something a lot of people can turn to when they need a safe space, and to have everything online has made a tremendous impact. Fox is also involved in the JCC teen board, which “is basically over now.”
Throughout the year, many youth group trips have been canceled, such as NFTY, the Reform Jewish Youth Movement. NFTY and the Fall Chavurah was supposed to have a rush event, according to Adlen. In addition to NFTY’s trips being canceled, IST, the Israel Study Tour for incoming high school seniors, was pushed back. The class of 2021’s trip was supposed to take place the summer of 2020, and now it is happening alongside the class of 2022.
TJ’s own Jewish club is still functioning, just differently. The members have been communicating over social media about the club, and they have met once at Eisenhower Park, and they will continue to meet once a month.
It’s hard for all communities to stay together during a global pandemic, but it has been especially hard on the Jewish community, since it relies on gathering and being together as one.
