Jewish High Holy Days will help us reconnect amid the pandemic - even virtually

Bea L. Hines
·4 min read

Isn’t it funny how even through this pandemic, life goes on.

Seasons change, holidays come and go. We say goodbye to some of our loved ones, while saying hello to the newcomers in our families.

Even in the midst of COVID-19, we have reasons to celebrate — and also to mourn — life’s milestones. This gives me hope. Keeping our rituals, traditions and dreams alive, even in the middle of a storm like this pandemic, tells me that we will get through this. Hopefully, we will be better for having gone through this pandemic.

So, while we are going through our life’s valleys, some things remain the same.

Like Labor Day, affectionately known as the last holiday of summer, which we will cautiously celebrate on Monday. A few days later, we will offer holiday wishes to our Jewish friends as they celebrate the centuries-old tradition of the High Holy Days.

We will celebrate these holidays while masking up and keeping a safe distance from each other. We will smile behind our masks, and give each other a fist bump or a touch of the elbow, while our arms and hearts are aching for a warm hug.

I never dreamed that we would be experiencing such a time as this. Our way of life, as we have always known it, seems now to have been only a dream. This is the way we live now. And together, being careful and adhering to the precautions handed to us from the authorities, this is just one more valley that we will get through.

With that said, let me wish all my Jewish friends Happy High Holy Days, and let you know that services at Ahavat Olam, a synagogue at 10755 SW 112th St. (on the grounds of Killian Pines United Methodist Church) will be broadcast live on Zoom, beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 18 (Erev Rosh Hashanah).

There will be a celebration of life in an upbeat worship service that is unique, even to this synagogue, said Rabbi/Cantor Danny Marmorstein. He and The Big Bad Bima Band will use their diverse musical backgrounds to present music that will range from pop to traditional liturgy.

All other High Holy Day services will be traditionally observed, and will be conducted by Marmorstein, with music by the Ahavat Olam Singers, Cantor Ronit Rubin, pianist Sergio Gonzalez, and cellist Konstantin Litvinenko.

For a complete schedule of High Holy Day services at the synagogue, call 305-412-4240, or send an email to: members@ahavatolam.org

Reimagining the High Holy Days at Beth Or

Rabbi Robyn Fisher and the congregants at Beth Or, 11715 SW 87th Ave., have reimagined the Jewish High Holy Days.

Instead of focusing on the prayer services only, Fisher said she and the congregation have come up with a “40-day introspective, spiritual journey to prepare our hearts, minds and souls for self-discovery, teshuva and forgiveness.”

The “journey” began on Aug. 21 (the first day of Elul), and will go on through Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, which begins Sunday evening, Sept. 27. Fisher said there will be“... rich and diverse holiday-themed opportunities to explore prayer, meditation, Jewish text learning, music, the arts, Jewish foods, and Jewish responses to social justice and contemporary challenges facing our world today.

“Although we will miss not being together in person, we expect to draw even greater meaning and transformation from the Reimagined Journey we have created,” Fisher said.

The Reimagined High Holy Day Journey includes:

  • Weekly movie nights and discussion on the themes of the season

  • Weekly book review of “This is Real and You are Completely Unprepared” by Alan Lew

  • Weekly “Memories from the Kitchen” sessions featuring holiday cooking demonstrations

  • Weekly Introspective meditations

  • Jewish text study and spiritual explorations

  • High Holy Day musical review of traditional and contemporary melodies

  • Creating a living legacy

  • Curated gallery of light exhibitions and projects on holiday themes, including a permanent prayer installation

  • Social justice opportunities and webinars with Feeding South Florida and Jews of Color

  • Collaborative programming with the Lowe Art Gallery and Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden

  • Full days of virtual programs on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur

  • Opportunities to participate in services by submitting themed videos on gratitude, milestones celebrated, challenges overcome.

For more information call Fisher at 305-321-5500.

Our Lady of Charity Mass to be livestreamed

The annual Mass for the feast of Our Lady of Charity will be livestreamed at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8, from St. Michael the Archangel Church at 2987 W. Flagler St.

In 2017, the Annual Procession and Fiesta for the Lady of our Shrine started at the Shrine Our Lady of Charity, “Ermita,” in Coconut Grove and made its way toward the Watsco Center at the University of Miami. This year, due to the coronavirus pandemic, worshipers can join the procession in their cars and the Mass will be livestreamed on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020.

This is the 20th anniversary since “La Ermita de la Caridad” was proclaimed a national shrine by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Due to COVID-19, the celebration is not open to the public. Maria Vision will provide the livestream via the Archdiocese of Miami website: www.miamiarch.org

The faithful will be able to honor Our Lady of Charity and see the image from their cars by using the driveway in front of the church from 4 to 6:46 p.m. Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski will celebrate the Mass.