We are looking forward to High Holidays 5781, which promise to be different, but no less meaningful, than in years past. Below you will find important information regarding services times, health and safety, and other resources to enhance your holidays, and explain some of the differences you will notice this year.

1. HIGH HOLIDAY SERVICES WILL BE ONLINE (and In-Person)

You will be able to partake in all of our services from the comfort and safety of your own homes in one of two ways: Zoom & Facebook.

If you are not already familiar with Zoom, you can download the application here and also find a useful introduction to the platform. Zoom is a great way to be able to see the faces of your friends during services. The Zoom login information for all services will be sent after you register for services (to register, click the button above).

A few points about access to services on Zoom:

• High Holiday service Zoom links will only be sent to those individuals who have pre-registered their email addresses (by clicking the button above).

• If you have children, or guests, or others that would like to attend our Zoom services, they will also need to register using the same link. Once registered, they will receive their own email from us with login information. Feel free to forward this email to them so they can access the link and sign up!

• PLEASE DO NOT SHARE THE LOGIN INFORMATION WITH ANYONE ELSE TO ENSURE THE SECURITY OF OUR SERVICES.

• Only those people properly pre-registered will be admitted to services. Our Zoom technician will let you in to the room before services begin. If your name is not on our registration list you will not be admitted.

• Please take care to name yourself on Zoom with your actual name (instead of “Miriam’s Ipad”, for example). This will help us know who you are and will allow us to check our registration list quicker.

If Zoom is not your thing, we will be streaming from our Facebook page, “Congregation Beth Mordecai.” Find the page here and be sure to hit the ‘like’ button to receive updates and notifications. At the time you are ready to “attend synagogue” log in to Facebook and go to our page. You should see the stream at the top of the page. Everyone who goes to our Facebook page will be able to watch services streaming!

And of course, there is an option to attend in person. If you previously entered the lottery for seats in the sanctuary, you will be notified separately of all requirements.

We will be sending the Schedule of Services for Rosh HaShanah with the Zoom links via email to all registered email addresses on or about Tuesday, September 15, 2020. Similar information for Yom Kippur will be sent separately on or about Thursday, September 24, 2020. Please watch your email for this important information, as it will not be sent by regular mail. A hard copy of the service schedule will be in the holiday bags from CBM and is also published at the end of this email.

2. WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM HIGH HOLIDAY SERVICES?

When Covid entered our lives in March, discussions about how to handle the High Holy Days began. Our experience with Passover and virtual seders gave us confidence that Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur would certainly take place this year, but with some pretty big changes.

As such, most of you will spend some portion of time worshiping with us from your homes. This is, by definition, a different experience than attending in person and, therefore, the delivery of the service required adjustments. The in-person experience also required adjustments, which included not having a full sanctuary and not having shmooze time in Safran Hall. Because we know that exposure to the virus increases with being indoors and with lots of singing, we aimed to keep the services as brief as possible, while fulfilling our obligations to the tradition, as well. It is a tricky balancing act but we think we have designed services that will keep us safe and nurture our souls at the same time. We thank you for your openness to this necessary experiment. It will be different for all of us and we are all in this together.

Our core services on both mornings of Rosh HaShanah and on Yom Kippur morning will be roughly 2-2.5 hours. Each service will include a Torah reading, Torah study, and the essential framework of the High Holy Day Liturgy. On Yom Kippur, Yizkor will be recited near the middle of the service (around 10:45 a.m.).

Each service will begin with some moments of mindfulness and meditation in preparation for worship, followed by the Shacharit (morning) service. We will take the Torah from the ark, read and study its words before concluding with selections from the Musaf (the additional) service. Rabbi Allen will offer readings and framings of the particular prayer at hand, which will add depth and contour to the service as well.

We have done our best to manage the requests that came in through the seating lottery. Some may have not been selected to attend the Yom Kippur morning service but wanted to be in person to say Yizkor, so we have added an in-person element to the Kol Nidre service with a brief Yizkor service following (those impacted will be notified separately).

3. A NOTE ABOUT RABBI ALLEN’S SERMONS

Rabbi Allen will be delivering Rosh HaShanah sermons live during the evening service on the first night of Rosh HaShanah (Friday, 9/18) and the morning service of the second day of Rosh Hashanah (Sunday, 9/20). Kol Nidre and Yizkor sermons will be in their regular spots (Sunday night 9/27 and Monday morning 9/28).

Recordings of the sermons will be posted to our website after the holidays. While this is unusual, this will help us keep the morning service to a maximum of 2.5 hours. We also hope that the confluence of Zoom services, the holidays taking place on the weekends, and the changes to the normal ways we attend the High Holy Days, will encourage you to stretch your comfort zone and join us whenever possible throughout the season.

We will be providing everyone with instructions on how to do Tashlich, the symbolic casting away of our sins by throwing bread crumbs into a body of water so you can perform this ritual with your family and friends (socially distanced, of course).

4. ANNUAL CEMETERY SERVICE

It is customary to visit the cemetery before or around Yom Kippur. Our cemetery service will take place on Sunday September 27, at 10 a.m. at the Congregation Beth Mordecai Cemetery (690 Florida Grove Rd., Perth Amboy). This will be an opportunity to pay respects to loved ones and recite prayers including mourner’s kaddish.

5. HOW DO I BORROW A PRAYER BOOK OR TALLIT?

We will be providing you with a “Home for the High Holy Days” bag that will contain everything you will need to participate in services and create a joyous holiday. Bags will be available for contact-less pick up at CBM or, if you are unable to pick up your bag please let us know.

You will have the opportunity to borrow High Holiday prayer books and taleisim if you wish to have them included in your bag. We ask that following the conclusion of the holidays, you make arrangements to return the prayer book to the synagogue.

See the section above, called “Machzor & Essentials Pick-Up” for the pick up dates/times.

For any questions about the holiday bags or borrowing prayer books, please email Cheryl August or Sharon Bender.

6. HIGH HOLY DAY RESOURCES

As most of our observance this year will take place at home, we wanted to make sure that you had a few resources at your fingertips to enliven and deepen the holidays. We hope you will use them.

Creating Sacred Space at Home

Do it Yourself Tashlich

Meditation and Ritual for Tashlich

Rosh HaShanah Seder

USCJ (Conservative Movement) High Holidays page

Machzor with Transliteration  (Please note this is not the same edition of the machzor we are making available to borrow. We will do our best to call pages in both books. As this is an 800 page document, we recommend having a second device next to you in addition to the device where you are attending the service.)

7. QUESTIONS? WE HAVE (MOST) ANSWERS!

We know this is a lot of information to process, so please email your questions to CongregationBethMordecai@gmail.com, and someone will respond to you as soon as possible.

8. WE NEED YOUR HELP, TOO

This is an upside down time for everyone across the country, including those of us at Beth Mordecai. We rely and depend on your support to be able to continue making meaningful connections and deepening our love and appreciation for Judaism. If you have not yet renewed your membership for the coming year, we hope you will. If you are in a position to contribute something extra this year, we will put it to good use for the continued sustaining of our community and synagogue.

You will see other communications from us related to the High Holy Days, so please watch your inbox for those.

B’Shalom and Shanah Tovah,
Rabbi Uri Allen
Sharon Bender, President