The announcement that places of worship can begin to reopen is a welcome one.
However, there is a great deal that is still unknown.
We are awaiting government guidance on many aspects of the plans, which were announced before detailed advice had been prepared. We are also yet to receive guidance for risk assessments, which are necessary for every activity that we restart.
The relaxation of lockdown does not mean that the risk has now disappeared. While we are confident in our ability to mitigate surface-based transmission through regular cleaning and handwashing / sanitising, we need further guidance on aerosol-based transmission and the particular risks it carries for our setting and for our services, life-cycle celebrations and other activities.
There are many variables that will mean that places of worship move at different paces. As a community we have a number of specific challenges that we need to address.
As any of us who have sat in the Beit Tefillah on a summer’s day know, the space has very limited ventilation and airflow. This may require us to use other spaces in the building for communal prayer, while continuing to use the Beit Tefillah for services that are broadcast online to those participating at home.
Alyth services are mainly about singing, which has been identified as a super-spreading activity. We have now heard that congregational singing and choirs are definitely not going to be allowed. We don’t know whether members will still wish to attend services at which they cannot sing, and recognise the extraordinary possibility of the service having to be paused to ask people to stop joining in! We are also still awaiting guidance on how the service leader can sing safely in the presence of a congregation, which may require extra distancing, masks or screens.
The size of our praying community presents an additional challenge. It is unclear at this stage whether there will be a maximum number for services, or what level of physical distancing will be required. Whatever the outcome, we know that we will have to ask a large part of our community to stay away each week. We have hard decisions to make about how this might be arranged and enforced. It will be a significant cultural challenge for a community that seeks to be a welcoming space for prayer to have to turn people who have not pre-registered away from our doors.
As we have stated clearly over the last few weeks, we are committed to not leaving behind those who cannot join in person. Whatever we do must not adversely affect the online experience for those unable to come into the building because of age, vulnerability or simple over-demand. We therefore have a great deal of work to do on the development of ‘dual delivery’ methods. This is not straightforward, as even small changes will have an impact on the quality of online delivery we have developed over the last three months.
In common with other communities, we also have other priorities in need of our attention at this time. The Trustees are clear that we need to prioritise planning for the High Holy Days. Those who attended the AGM will have heard that they will look very different this year as we will be unable to gather in our normal way. A great deal of preparation and innovation will be required. We will write to you with more details about these over the coming weeks.
We also need to ensure that our clergy and staff get some time off over the coming weeks to reflect and recuperate after three months of extraordinary efforts.
We want to find our ‘new normal’ as soon as possible. We will approach this, as we do all of our challenges, with positivity and creativity. We also recognise that what we do may be with us until the development of an effective vaccine. We therefore ask that you please bear with us over the coming weeks as we work to ensure that, as we make these first moves to open, we can do so thoughtfully, safely, and for the benefit of all of our members.
In the meantime, please remember that our dedicated Careline is still in operation if you need any support at this time.
Noeleen Cohen and Russell Baum, Chairs Rabbi Josh Levy
Click here for the Reform Judaism / Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors guidance published this week. Click here for Rabbi Josh’s AGM report on the experience of the last three months.
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THIS EVENING AT 19:00
Alyth Online Lectures
‘Heading Home - Motherhood, Work and the Failed Promise of Equality’ with Professor Shani Orgad.
An eclectic series of lectures on a variety of Jewish and non-Jewish topics. The lectures have two things in common: the speakers are all members of Alyth and leading experts in their field. Some of our previous lectures have been recorded and can be viewed by clicking here.
In this talk, Shani Orgad discusses her recent book Heading Home: Motherhood, Work, and the Failed Promise of Equality (Columbia University Press, 2019), which examines a puzzling phenomenon: why, in a cultural climate that encourages women to “lean in” and champions women’s empowerment and success, do women who worked as lawyers, financial managers, teachers, engineers, and other professionals, give up successful careers after having children?
Drawing on in-depth interviews with London educated mothers who left paid employment and exploring how their accounts relate to media and policy discourses, Shani found a stark disjuncture between the promise of gender equality and mothers’ painful experience of continued injustice both at work and at home. These issues seem ever more relevant now, as women are being disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 pandemic’s economic fallout.
Shani Orgad is a Professor of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Her research and teaching focus on media representations, gender, care, and inequality. She is the author of numerous articles and four books. Shani has won numerous awards including the 2019 LSE Teaching Excellence Prize, the Sociological Research Online SAGE Prize for Innovation and Excellence (with Rosalind Gill), 2018 LSE Excellence in Education Award and the LSE Innovator Award. Shani is the Director of the social sciences programme of the Ariane de Rothschild Fellowship.
Next Week (2 July): ‘The dome of St Paul’s Cathedral: a fragile symbol of endurance’ with Dr Gordon Higgott. ‘Architecture,’ wrote Sir Christopher Wren, ‘aims at eternity.’ It ‘has its political use’ and ‘makes people love their native country’. Wren’s crowning achievement was the dome of St Paul’s Cathedral, completed in 1710. This remarkable structure survived enemy bombardment in World War II and came to symbolise Britain’s endurance at its gravest moment of national crisis. The dome retains its hold on our collective imagination, not just for its serene profile but for what it embodies of our shared history and values. In this lecture Gordon Higgott will explain how Wren developed his design for the cathedral in several stages, using a system of construction that allowed him to modify his scheme as work progressed. Dr Gordon Higgott is an independent architectural historian who specialises in architectural drawings and design practice in early modern England. From 1989 to 2010 he was a historic buildings inspector and senior researcher at English Heritage in London, where he advised on alterations to listed buildings and historic churches, including the reconstruction of St Ethelburga’s Church in Bishopsgate after a terrorist bomb attack in 1993. An authority on the history of St Paul’s Cathedral, he has catalogued the designs by Wren and his office for St Paul’s at London Metropolitan Archives, and a similar collection by Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor at Westminster Abbey.
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FRIDAY 26 JUNE
FOR YOUNG FAMILIES Baby Den (10:30-11:00) Chug-a-lug into Shabbat with Rabbi Hannah and Beth. Sing your favourite Baby Den songs, dance to a shabbat beat and wave to some familiar faces. For families with Young Children. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 142 813 452, Password: 346202).
YOUTH AND EDUCATION: RUACH Ruach 4 @ home (16:30-17:15 and 17:30-18:15) Join Abi and the team for your group’s Ruach session. This week we will be looking at a timeline of Jewish history and our own timelines through our Ruach journeys. Please check the times for your group below - please be aware that we will start the session at the start times given. - If you are in the new intake to Ruach 4, please join at 16:30 by clicking here (Meeting ID: 956 0652 2899, Password: 5Gh7mx) - If you have been coming to Ruach 4 since January, please join at 17:30 by clicking here (Meeting ID: 836 8808 1391, Password: 823690).
Ruach 1-3 @ Home (17:15-18:10) Please join Mike & Sophie at our regular time as we continue exploring how to make the most of our Bar/Bat Mitzvah journey. The topic for this term is Gemilut Chasadim - “Acts of Loving Kindness”. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 903 736 979, Password: 742355).
FOR YOUNG FAMILIES Pre-Shabbat Story Time Live (17:15-17:45) Those pre-school in age (and in heart) are invited to join Rabbi Hannah for a pre shabbat story to help bring in shabbat. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 423 529 768, Password: 785089).
PRAY WITH US Erev Shabbat Service (18:30-19:30) Join Rabbi Hannah and Cantor Tamara as they lead the Erev Shabbat service from the Beit Tefillah. Please remember that this service is online only. We invite you to have Shabbat candles and Kiddush ready in advance of the service so that we can join together in these moments from our homes. We will light candles together at L’cha Dodi and make Kiddush at the end of the service. Please click here to download the Shabbat Supplement for Friday night and the Community News and Yahrzeit list (these will be available from 17:00 Friday afternoon). Please click here to view the Reform Judaism siddur online.
Click here to join by Zoom (Meeting ID: 863 9858 8285, Password: 785089) If you do not wish to use Zoom, then the "Zoom screen" can also be seen via our YouTube channel. This can be accessed by clicking here(www.alyth.org.uk/youtubelive) or going to www.youtube.com/c/AlythRS.
SATURDAY 27 JUNE
BE WITH US Jewish Mindfulness Meditation (9:15-10:00) Jewish Mindfulness Meditation helps us to open our hearts and find peace through our spiritual heritage, especially in these challenging times. Join for contemplation, breathing, movement and meditation. Suitable for all. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 844 520 435, Password: 753749).
BE WITH US Synagogue Choir Online Rehearsal (9:15-10:15) Regular online rehearsals for the Synagogue Choir. If you would like to join us, we are delighted to welcome new singers who are interested in learning about the liturgy and music of our services. Please contact katie@alyth.org.uk for the Zoom ID and music repertoire.
PRAY WITH US Shabbat Morning Service (10:30) Rabbi Josh is running the Shabbat morning service from the Beit Tefillah. The service will include the Bar Mitzvah of Rudy Simpson who will be reading Torah with the community for the first time from his home. Rudy will be reading Numbers 20:1-6. The sermon will be given by Student Rabbi Dr Nicola Feuchtwang from her home. Please remember that this service is online only. Please click here to download a copy of the Torah portion and the Community News and Yahrzeit list (these will be available from 17:00 Friday afternoon). Please click here to view the Reform Judaism siddur online. Click here to join by Zoom (Meeting ID: 837 1479 2266, Password: 785089). If you do not wish to use Zoom, then the "Zoom screen" can also be seen via our YouTube channel. This can be accessed by clicking here(www.alyth.org.uk/youtubelive) or going to www.youtube.com/c/AlythRS.
PRAY WITH US Imrei Finu (10:30) Imrei Finu is a special, spiritual prayer experience, including lots of singing to new and familiar melodies, davening and space for personal prayer, with an informal Torah service (if time allows). With Rabbi Hannah and Cantor Tamara.
Please click here to download the service booklet (this will be available from 17:00 Friday afternoon). Please click here to download a copy of the Torah portion and the Community News and Yahrzeit list (these will be available from 17:00 Friday afternoon).
Click here to join (Meeting ID: 836 6208 6486, Password: 138638).
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SUNDAY 28 JUNE
PRAY WITH US Sunday Shacharit (9:00-10:00) Our lay-led minyan with bagel breakfast (please provide your own bagels…) Led by our lay members from their homes. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 864 4782 5935, Password: 785089).
YOUTH AND EDUCATION Alyth Sunday Morning ⟳Reloaded⟳ (ASMR). Every Sunday, open to EVERYONE from Reception to Year 6! Join Mike & Sophie as we continue to explore the breadth of Jewish Studies through fun and creative methods! Reception - Year 2 (10:00-11:00) Click here to join (Meeting ID: 830 747 818 Password: 301658). Year 3 - Year 6 (11:30-12:30) Click here to join (Meeting ID: 836 8543 4865, Password: 194753).
LEARN WITH US Biblical Hebrew (11:00-12:00) A programme for those with high level hebrew reading ability. Please email Philip Brodie at mail@pmbrodie.co.uk if you would like to join this class so that you can be sent the link and materials in advance.
MONDAY 29 JUNE
BE WITH US Craft, Chat and Cuppa! (15:00-16:00) This ‘club’ is for anyone who would like to try any sort of hand craft. Join Brenda Freedman for anything from everyday sewing, tapestry, quilt making, knitting, and anything else you can think of! Click here to join (Meeting ID: 588 095 846, Password: 468060).
TUESDAY 30 JUNE
LEARN WITH US Hebrew Reading from Scratch (19:00-20:00) Taught by Alyth member Jan Roseman, who has been one of the UK’s leading Synagogue-based Jewish educators for the last few decades. Take an hour a week in term time to learn to read Hebrew from scratch. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 909 882 685, Password: 686711).
LEARN WITH US E-ssentials (20:00-21:00) Our programme for all those who want to ensure that their Judaism has firm foundations. All are welcome. For this term, we have redesigned the curriculum and sessions so that they are more manageable over Zoom, and will run for no more than one hour. Click here for the full schedule for June and July. This week: Marriage with Cantor Tamara. Please click here for the resources which will be used during this session (available from Tuesday morning).
Click here to join (Meeting ID: 668 234 069, Password: 419681).
BE WITH US Alyth Choral Society (20:00-22:00) Click here to join (Meeting ID: 976 4873 3959 Password: 113568). For Choral Society Members only.
WEDNESDAY 1 JULY
BE WITH US News, Views & Schmooze (11:00-12:00) Join us for an hour of schmooze to discuss what is going on in the world around us. Led by volunteers from the Soup and Schmooze group. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 810 6650 1155, Password: 847786). BE WITH US Pre-dinner concert with Katie and Tom (17:00-17:30) Join Katie and Tom for a live concert streamed directly into your home. This varied programme will include repertoire from the operas, musicals and more. For all the community. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 108 960 491, Password: 961337).
PRAY WITH US Wednesday Ma’ariv (20:00-20:45) Join us for a mid-week evening service led by lay members. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 566 852 225, Password: 763158).
THURSDAY 2 JULY
BE WITH US Mellow Chair Yoga (11:00-12:00) Our special Chair Yoga and Meditation with Maxine is open to all ages wishing to enhance overall mental and physical wellbeing! It includes movement, breathing, stretching, standing, twisting, balancing and more. Great for releasing tensions and increasing, stamina, strength and immunity. Less active participants can do all the movements sitting in a chair. Please click here to sign up and to pay online. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 616 879 143, Password: 797658).
LEARN WITH US Pardes: My favourite... biblical character (13:00-14:00) A new twist on our weekly text-based study session. Over the course of each month, the Alyth clergy will each teach a passage or subject that is especially important or meaningful for them. In July we will be looking at our favourite biblical characters, starting this week with Rabbi Hannah. Click here for the source sheets being used in the session (available from Thursday morning) Click here to join (Meeting ID: 123 761 361, Password: 019498).
YOUTH AND EDUCATION Communic8&9 (17:00-18:00) A fun social space for those in Year 8&9 where we play with the new ways we can communicate. Click here to join (Meeting ID: 931 0825 3242, Password: 411477).
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NEXT SHABBAT
Friday 3 July - Baby Den (10:30-11:00) - Pre-Shabbat Tea with Lynette (15:00-16:00) - Ruach @ home (from 16:30) - Pre-Shabbat Story Time Live (17:15-17:45) - JMM on Friday (17:15-18:00) - Erev Shabbat Service (18:30) Saturday 4 July - Shabbat Morning Shiur (9:15-10:15) - Shabbat Morning Service with Rabbi Josh including the Bar Mitzvah of Oscar Phillips (10:30). - Sensory Shabbat with Rabbi Hannah (11:00)
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Alyth Refugee Drop In: Training on Eritea Mondays 13 & 20 July, 18:00-19:00
The Alyth drop in team are holding a two part training session on Eritrea run by the International Organisation for Migration. The aim is to give a feel for the country, why people left and the extent of the cultural shock.
If you would like to know more and register for a place please email refugeedropin@alyth.org.uk.
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Financial Support - How we can help
If you are facing financial challenges at this difficult time, please do not hesitate to contact us. As well as discussing the level of your annual synagogue contribution, we can help you to access a number of Alyth funds that are specifically here to help our members in times of challenge. Please contact Lynette at lynette@alyth.org.uk or Rabbi Josh at josh@alyth.org.uk
If you feel able to support other Alyth members in financial difficulty at this time, please email Rabbi Josh at josh@alyth.org.uk
The Jewish Leadership Council in partnership with Work Avenue has also established a fund to support those across the community whose earnings have been directly affected by COVID-19. This fund was set up to specifically assist those who are ineligible for Government support or who face delays accessing Government funds. Go to www.theworkavenue.org.uk/covid19 for more information.
Some of our partner organisations are also running programmes during this period. Click hereto see additional programming offered by Reform Judaism that you are invited to join.
Please remember that we also have two special numbers in addition to the main synagogue number: New Alyth Careline – 020 8457 8798 This will be answered between 08:00 and 21:00 by a member of the community for anyone who needs someone to speak to. Emergency Careline – 07726 631808 Please use this number if you need urgent pastoral support. The hard reality of this pandemic is that we as a community will support an increased proportion of our members and families through hospitalization and bereavement. This number is there for these cases and will be answered by a member of the Alyth professional team.
