Not just wishing you a Happy and Healthy New Year, but putting words into action!
The pandemic has reminded us not to take for granted any time we gather as a community. Whenever we do, it is a brit, a covenant among each person who participates as well as with our wider community. We are guided as an institution by the Torah’s idea of V’ahavta l’rayacha kamocha, loving another as oneself. Thank you for all the mitzvahs you continue to do to keep each other and our wider community as safe and healthy as possible.
Currently, masks are not required at any of our indoor gatherings. You are more than welcome to wear a mask, as they are an important way to reduce the spread of respiratory infections and we encourage their use.
We continue to have a section in our Sanctuary for anyone who wants to wear a mask and only sit with others who are wearing masks. The first two rows on the right side as you face the front of the Sanctuary are designated for this.
In other indoor spaces we do not have a separate section. We have put extra portable air filtration units in the Chapel but it may be crowded during High Holy Day services and activities.
If you feel sick in any way, you should stay home and participate by Zoom, even if you do not test positive for Covid-19. If you are sick, we pray for your refuah shlaymah, a speedy and complete healing, and please let us know if we can help you with chicken soup or in other ways.
If you know you have been exposed recently to someone with Covid-19 or some else contagious in the previous five (5) days, please stay home during the High Holy Days and participate by Zoom. We realize this is a more stringent standard than in most other places, but unlike a store, for instance, the synagogue will be a place where people are near each other for potentially a few hours.
If you are at higher risk, consider staying home and participating by Zoom in light of the recent uptick in infection in the wider community.
If you were present at a Temple gathering and then tested positive within 5 days of your attendance, you are responsible to notify us so we can let people know who might have been exposed. We do not need to identify you by name to the general community, but we do need to be able to tell people who were sitting close to you or had extended contact that they were exposed.
If you were present at a Temple function and someone else tested positive in that time frame and let us know, we will let you know if you were a close contact, and we will inform everyone who was there that someone they were probably not close to is positive.
One of the most important steps you can take for the safety of the broader community where we live as well as the people you are with at the Temple continues to be keeping up to date with vaccination and boosters for those who are eligible.