Shabbat Services

We are pleased to announce our reopening plan for Shabbat services at Congregation Beth Israel. Given increased vaccination rates, declining trends for infections and hospitalizations statewide, and recent changes in CDC and state public health guidelines, we have developed a phased process that honors both our commitment to pikuach nefesh—saving lives and protecting the health of our community—and our strong desire to be able to worship together in person, once again.

This plan was developed by the Streaming Services Working Group, which has been meeting since last October to guide our Zoom services for Shabbat and holidays, and is now focused on how to safely transition back to in-person Shabbat services. The interdisciplinary committee includes Rabbi Fellman, Paula Sommer (BI President), Howard Drobner (tech), Dr. Jeremy Golding (medical), Dale Rosenberg (education), Victor Saffrin (Ritual Committee Chair), and Reena Slovin (ritual), and is chaired by Evie Herwitz Harris (communications consultant). Jeremy, in consultation with BI’s Dr. Mattie Castiel, Health & Human Services Commissioner for the City of Worcester, provides medical and public health advice for our work.

Re-Opening for Congregation June 5

After Pesach, we began offering hybrid outdoor Kabbalat Shabbat services, which will continue, weather permitting, throughout the summer. On June 5, we are re-opening for the full congregation, with indoor Shabbat Morning services, also accessible via Zoom, to provide members of our community an option to worship together in person or at home. Our plan is compliant with Massachusetts requirements, and as we move forward, all decisions about gathering will be informed by the best scientific evidence. Each new phase of reopening will begin when we are confident that the previous phase worked well, and safely. Our team will continue to consider local and national trends as we move forward.

We also have taken into account member responses to our re-opening survey, which was completed by 87 respondents. Nearly two-thirds of respondents said that they are vaccinated and ready to come back in person. About 44 percent said they would actually attend services in person if the building is reopened; another 25 percent said they would either attend in person or online; and 21 percent said only online. The rest were undecided. Quite a few respondents noted that they want to be certain attendees are vaccinated in order to feel safe.

Requirements for Attending In-Person Shabbat Morning Services

Vaccination is a top priority for our re-opening. Phase One begins on Shabbat of June 5. Here’s how it will work:

• To attend, you must pre-register, either online or by calling the BI office by 3:00 p.m. Friday. This will consist of attesting that you are at least two weeks past your second Pfizer or Moderna vaccination, or your one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccination. Although we will not require proof of vaccination, we are counting on everyone’s honesty and commitment to honor the safety of our community. We will also require an email and phone number, for the purposes of contact tracing, if needed. If you are not feeling well, even if you have already pre-registered, we ask that you remain at home.
• In Phase One, we will be seated in pods and maintain six-foot social distancing. All congregants must wear masks. Unvaccinated children may attend but must remain seated with their family pods.
• There will be no limit to the number of attendees.
• Service leaders will be unmasked while behind the plexiglass barriers, as has been our practice since we began Zoom services. All of our service leaders are fully immunized.
• We will have a Torah service, reading from the Torah scroll in the sanctuary. There will be no procession. Congregants will have aliyot from their seats. We will follow the triennial cycle through the summer. We plan to eventually reintroduce haftorah readings.
• Parts that congregants have read on Zoom, such as poems, the Prayer for Our Congregation, the Prayer for Israel, and Ashrei, will now be distributed to those attending the in-person service. Readers will participate from their seats.
• Zoom participants will have an opportunity to chat with each other before and after the service but will remain muted during the broadcast.
• We will have a very limited kiddush outdoors, with prepackaged snacks.

Assuming vaccination and Covid trends continue in the same positive direction, in July we will begin Phase Two, with regular seating indoors and a limited kiddush lunch and schmooze outdoors in the courtyard, weather permitting. Masking requirements will depend on experience with vaccine efficacy and prevalence of Covid variants. For Phase Three, in August, we hope to have indoor kiddush lunches once again. If current trends continue, we hope that by September, for the High Holidays, we can return fully to normal indoor services and kiddushes.

Please Note: We will be developing and announcing plans for daily minyan once we have more experience with Shabbat in-person services.

Our pandemic journey has shown clearly what a resilient, creative, and caring community we are at Congregation Beth Israel. We are so excited to hear your voices as we join together, once again singing and chanting our familiar prayers in our lovely sanctuary. Stay well, and we hope to see you in June.

— Rabbi Aviva Fellman and Paula Sommer, President