US unveils plans for its route out of restrictions

IF ALL goes according to government plans, the second day of Pesach on Monday will mark a moment of communal liberation with the easing of the restrictions in force in England for the past three months.

More outdoor activities will be possible and two households, or six people from different homes, can meet outdoors.

“We have spent a long time talking about closing buildings, painfully making decisions about stopping people from being able to celebrate semachot — plus the pain of people not being able to say Kaddish,” said Jo Grose, the United Synagogue’s communities and strategy director. “Thank God, now we can talk about a route out.”

The US this week issued a step-bystep guide to rabbis and synagogue leaders on the road out of lockdown over the next three months.

US shuls have gradually been reopening with over half holding services again with limited numbers before Pesach. More than two-thirds are expected to be in action by the end of the festival.

From Monday, “we can bring back outdoor children’s services and takeaway kiddush, which is lovely,” Ms Grose said. People would have to enjoy the kiddush at home “but at least it gives you a bit of a sense of warmth and celebration”.

Although worshippers still have to don masks, prayer leaders — who were asked to wear them by the US during the latest lockdown — will be able to remove theirs if it is safe.

But the hoped-for big moment will come on April 12 with the next phase of emergence from lockdown. Cheders are scheduled to reopen and children’s and youth programming will resume.

“That’s when we can start to go back to being not simply a place for davening but being community centres again,” she said. “We can also bring back educational activities, shiurim, lectures, bereavement support groups, parents and baby groups — all of those things that make our shuls community centres.”

On May 17, the first day of Shavuot, congregants may be able to tuck into a cheesecake kiddush — but only outside and still socially distanced.

Life-cycle events, as well as outdoor gatherings, will still be limited to 30, while six people or two households will be allowed to meet indoors.

“We can all start eating and drinking together a little bit,” she said. “Rabbis and relatives can open their homes to people — possibly an unnoticed but fundamental feature of community life which has been missing.”

For many synagogues, the definition of a proper return was resuming indoor kiddushim. That might be possible in stage four out of lockdown on June 21.

“But we’re a long way away from being able to define what an indoor kiddush may look like,” Ms Grose acknowledged.

Although it has been permissible to hold bnei mitzvah ceremonies as part of a service, that was not possible in many communities for the first few months of the year because their buildings remained shut.

But with more synagogues reopening, the bar- and batmitzvahs are returning.

“Even though many families now know that one could have a type of barmitzvah or batmitzvah at home on Zoom — and these have become very sophisticated — there is a rush to get back into shul.”

In some of its advice, the US has been stricter than the law requires and “reserves the right to be more cautious”.

Like other faith groups, it is still waiting for guidance on communal singing, the prohibition of which had been “a huge loss”. Places of worship are allowed to have a choir of six but congregants currently must not sing aloud.

While there has been speculation about whether the advent of online programming will make some people feel less need to turn up to community events in person, Ms Grose was “convinced we are going to be very busy over the summer”.

Nonetheless, online activities like the popular Friday afternoon Oneg Shabbat services are set to stay. “Many women who otherwise would not have been able to go to shul for Kabbalat Shabbat do tune in before Shabbat with their kids when they are preparing and it’s connecting them to the community.” These services also benefited “older people who might not have gone out in the dark”.

At present, rabbis are commonly circulating sermons to congregants in advance and, if they speak in shul, offer an abbreviated talk.

Some congregations might want to return to “a nice long sermon”, she ventured, while others “may decide the shortened one was preferable”.

We will bring back children’s services and kiddushim’

We can all start eating and drinking together a little bit’