This year’s High Holiday programming for children under 12 and their families will once again need to take into account safety measures in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. As the number of vaccinated adults and teens continues to rise, and the transmission of COVID-19 is slowing in many places, we have begun to reopen Continue Reading »
The CJLS has passed a new teshuvah, “Wearing Face Covering, Physical Distancing, and Other Measures to Control the COVID-19 Pandemic,” by Rabbis Elliot Dorff and Susan Grossman, by a vote of 18-0-0. Rabbis Dorff and Grossman conclude that for the preservation of life and health, both individual Jews and Jewish institutions are obligated to practice all health Continue Reading »
Approved on September 1, 2020 by a vote of 13-0-0. Voting in favor: Rabbis Jaymee Alpert,Pamela Barmash, David Booth, Suzanne Brody, Nate Crane, Elliot Dorff, David Hoffman,Jeremy Kalmanofsky, Jan Kaufman, Amy Levin, Micah Peltz, Avram Reisner, RobertScheinberg, and Deborah Silver. Voting against: none. Abstaining: none.1 She’eilah (Question) Our communal davenning on Yom Kippur includes liturgy Continue Reading »
By Rabbi Aaron Alexander Please note that this is not an official responsum of the CJLS. Do the restrictions on washing hands, etc.. during Yom Kippur apply this year, considering the benefits of hygiene in slowing the spread of COVID-19? They do not. Washing/sanitizing hands is not only permitted, but required in most circumstances. Read Continue Reading »
Prepared by Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky Please note that this is not an official responsum of the CJLS. The exigent circumstances of the Covid pandemic challenge Masorti communities on how to manage tefillot this Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. The CJLS has offered several optional formats for truncating and streamlining services. Some of this guidance on abbreviated services Continue Reading »
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Prepared by Rabbi Pamela Barmash, with contributions by Rabbi Ashira Konigsburg and Rabbi Jan Uhrbach Please note that this is not an official responsum of the CJLS Read more: https://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/story/ethics-gathering-when-not-all-us-may-attend-person
Members of the editorial committee of Mahzor Lev Shalem and Siddur Lev Shalem (David Ackerman, Joanna Dulkin, Edward Feld, Jan Caryl Kaufman, Lilly Kaufman, Alan Lettofsky, Stu Kelman, Rob Scheinberg, and Jan Uhrbach) have put together a series of suggestions for leading services and teaching using the Mahzor. These ideas draw on the unique possibilities for Continue Reading »
Prepared by Rabbi Aaron Alexander Please note that this is not an official responsum of the CJLS. The custom of Tashlikh, which is often observed on the afternoon of the first day of Rosh Hashanah (or day two if day one is Shabbat, can be treated with flexibility primarily because it isn’t an obligation that Continue Reading »