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| Shavuos 2020 (Chabad) |
Observant Jews take the laws of the Torah seriously, and try
to follow them as scrupulously as possible. Not that we always succeed. But that
we try.
Perhaps one of the most important laws of the Torah is the
requirement to do what’s necessary to stay alive and healthy. V’Chai Bahem. We are
told to live by those laws. Not die by them. Making this particular law one that
overrides other Torah laws.
I am going to be Machmir (stringent). I would prefer to be
Mekil (lenient) and am a bit jealous of those who are. But I have chosen to observe this Mitzvah in
its more stringent form because of its relative importance to other Mitzvos.
So I will once again be Davening at Beis Tzvi. Which it
might interest people to know, is an egalitarian house of prayer. There will in
fact be an equal number of men and women in attendance. Actually it will only
be one man and one woman. I will be the ‘Shaliach Tzibur’ (Chazan) and my wife will be
the ‘Tzibur’(congregation).
(Tzvi is my Hebrew name. Beis Tzvi is my house.) Sadly, though, there will not be the requisite 10 people required for a Minyan. So that what is really happening in my house is that we will be Davening B’Yichidus – each of us as individuals and not really as a Tzibur.
(Tzvi is my Hebrew name. Beis Tzvi is my house.) Sadly, though, there will not be the requisite 10 people required for a Minyan. So that what is really happening in my house is that we will be Davening B’Yichidus – each of us as individuals and not really as a Tzibur.
But we both try and make it close to a Shul experience as we
can. We both dress in our Shabbos finest –
the way we would for Shul. I stand at a Shtender (lectern) and face East
– ending each segment out loud the way a Shaliach Tzibur would. But… there is
no Borchu, no Kaddish, no Kedusha, and no Kriyas HaTorah or Aliyos. However, I ‘Lein’ out of a Chumash and recite
the HafTorah. All in order to make the experience as realistic as possible.
This is the way it’s been since the very beginning of the
pandemic restrictions that shut down every Shul in Chicago. And for the
time being it will stay that way - for me. But that is no longer the way it will
be for everybody.
As I noted a short while ago, Agudah wants to be
Machmir on Tefillah b’Tzibur. Which in my view means being Mekil in Pikuach Nefesh.
Not that they are being careless. Quite the contrary. They are
demanding strict adherence to the rules they have set in place on pain of
expulsion if violated. But they want desperately to be able to say to say Borchu;
hear Kaddish; and say ‘Yehei Shmeh Rabbah’. So even though they are being
careful to minimize the dangers, they are nevertheless being Mekil on Pikuach
Nefesh and Machir on Tefillah b’Tzibur. That
is the way I see it although I’m sure they would not put it that way.
That being said, I admit to being jealous of the people I saw
going to Shul this morning. Bnei Ruven, the Shul I had been attending for
Shachris daily for decades, is one of those being Machmir on Tefillah b’Tzibur.
Watching the people I had been Davening Shachris with day after day until last
March made me feel like I should be doing that too. I actually felt bad that I Davened
at home this morning instead of joining them.
But at the same time I know it
was the right thing to do – and keep doing until conditions improve enough so
that all Shuls will be comfortable opening up. Sadly that is not the case yet.
Which is why the CRC is being Machmir on Pikuach Nefesh instead of Tefillah b’Tzibur.
I suppose the temptation to Daven with a Minyan on Shavuos
was too great to resist for some rabbis. So as long as there is a way to do it safely they are
going to do it. What the cost of that might be on the health of those attending
remains to be seen. Having reached 100,000 deaths due to a disease that is contagious
before it is symptomatic is nothing to sneeze at. (No pun intended).
With the
improved weather hitting us all across the nation, people are out in droves. Seemingly
oblivious to the disease. The chances of increased community spread is quite real. The
chances that one of the attendees at a Minyan may have encountered one of those irresponsible
people who may have had the virus albeit
unbeknownst to them - have now increased. My sincere hope and prayer is that I am
being overly cautious and that everyone will be fine. But for me - I’d still rather be overly cautious than face an increased chance that I may end up dead or seriously ill.
At the same time, it will be difficult seeing people going
to Shul tomorrow while my wife and I
stay home. But I will grin and bear it.
